About Deb Lonzer, MD
Deb Lonzer, MD is a board-certified pediatrician and Fellow of the AAP who has held many leadership and executive positions at Cleveland Clinic and is a lifelong learner.
She is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Lonzer is former president of the medical staff and served on the Board of Governors at Cleveland Clinic. She has chaired multiple departments, developing strategic growth plans.
Dr. Lonzer consults with criminal defense attorneys across the nation, as an expert in pediatric anatomy, physiology, development and disease processes.
Dr. Lonzer is a graduate of Bucknell University and The Hershey Medical Center of Penn State. She completed her training in pediatrics at Cleveland Clinic Children’s.
Dr. Lonzer has repeatedly been listed in Castle Connolly’s Best Doctors in America, Consumer’s Research Council of America Top Pediatrician, and other local best docs lists, and has won awards for her teaching, mentoring, coaching and research. She has a frequent guest on local news programs and has been quoted by print and web-based health information outlets, including The Plain Dealer, Cleveland Magazine, Parents Magazine, Saturday Evening Post, Pregnancy Magazine, USA Today, ABC, NBC Nightly News and MSNBC.
Dr. Lonzer has two school-aged children and three rescue dogs. In the Lonzer household, curiosity is Queen, mistakes are learning opportunities, books are plentiful, vegetables are always on the table, and laughter – with the occasional spontaneous dance party – is encouraged.
My Story
Don’t sell yourself short
I dreamt of being a doctor growing up but had no role models in medicine.
My family were hard-working people with little experience in higher education. Like many small town 18 year-olds, I was afraid of the unknowns in the great big world. After I accepted an offer from a nice school, serendipity brought a chance meeting with my favorite elementary school teacher whose 4-word message got me to Bucknell University to launch my education.
Don’t settle
I loved all of my rotations at Hershey Medical Center and finally picked OB-GYN as I began the interview season. After my 10th residency interview, I realized that I wanted to care for the babies more than the moms. With little time and very few alternatives, I managed to get the pediatric residency spot I wanted.
Life is an iterative process
I loved my residency…most of the time. Cleveland Clinic Children's was a nurturing place that reminded me of Bucknell. I tested out some leadership skills as Chief Resident and learned from every mistake I made in that safe environment.
When opportunity knocks open the door
I became a pediatrician to help people. I loved my patients in the busy private practice I joined. After only 3 months I got a call from Cleveland Clinic Children's, which was opening offices in a nearby community. I leapt at the opportunity to innovate the practice of medicine, teach and begin my leadership path.
Don’t be afraid to ask
I was among the first pediatricians to work in this new community academic environment, so I built a practice from scratch. I negotiated a small leadership position where I learned organization, efficiency, goal-setting, vision, quality, project management, public speaking, communication, negotiation... As my skills grew, so did my responsibility and my visibility. The department I created grew to more than 100 providers across northeast Ohio.
Reach for the stars
Networking. What's that? To find new opportunities I got myself out there meeting anyone I could learn from and taking on additional projects that I successfully and efficiently completed. I helped reorganize our nurse on-call system and our call center. I was elected Cleveland Clinic president of the medical staff and served on it the Board of Governors. I watched and learned from some of the best in the world. Then I participated as fully, enthusiastically and energetically as I could. I began to mentor and coach my department and other colleagues. I earned awards for teaching, research, and coaching. And it was my dream job.
Be prepared to be unprepared
Unexpected health issues took the wind out of my sails when I was at high tide. So, I began my career again, in ways that I had never planned. I discovered a new me who is no longer afraid of the unknown, having conquered what I thought might not be surmountable.
I look forward to meeting you and sharing some of the joy, enthusiasm, efficiency, and leadership skills I've learned through this fabulous journey!