Luke George Foley Smith, MD

One of the earliest influences in my life was my dad. He was an orthopedic surgeon and I learned a lot about patient care from him. But when I was in high school, my mom had a brain tumor and that's what made me want to go into neurosurgery. We meet the patients and their families when they are at their worst moments. And I like interacting with patients in that stage. A lot of physicians don't. But I do because I think it's a very special time and it's the biggest way to leave a mark on somebody at their lowest point. Pediatric neurosurgery is a very special place in medicine. I love interacting with families.