This Nigerian Doctor Became The Youngest Doctor In England At Age 21 - Health

Ola Orekunrin, now 30 years from Ilawe-Ekiti in Ekiti State of
Nigeria, was born, raised and trained in the UK, where she graduated
as one of the youngest medical doctors in England . She is also a
trainee helicopter pilot.

While she was studying to become a doctor in the UK, her younger
sister fell seriously ill while traveling in Nigeria. The 12-year-old
girl, who'd gone to the West African country on holiday with
relatives, needed urgent care, but the nearest hospital couldn't deal
with her condition.
Orekunrin and her family immediately began looking for an air
ambulance service to rapidly transport the girl, a sickle cell anemia
sufferer, to a more suitable healthcare facility. They searched all
across West Africa but were stunned to find out there were none in the
whole region.

"The nearest one at the time was in South Africa," remembers
Orekunrin. "They had a 12-hour activation time so by the time they
were ready to activate, my sister was dead".

"It was really a devastating time for me and I started thinking about
whether I should be in England talking about healthcare in Africa, or
I should be in Africa dealing with healthcare and trying to do
something about it."

Orekunrin did the latter. Motivated by the tragic death of her sister,
the young doctor decided to leave behind a high-flying job in the UK
to take to the Nigerian skies and address the vital issue of urgent
healthcare in Africa's most populous country.

Determined to make a difference in medical practice and health care
delivery system in Nigeria, Orekunrin decided to set up Lagos-based
Flying Doctors Nigeria, the first air ambulance service in West
Africa, transporting victims of medical emergencies, including
industrial workers from the country's booming oil and gas sector. It
basically provides critical care transportation solutions to both the
private and public sector by selling yearly air ambulance cover plans
to states, companies and individuals.
Since then, she has successfully steered the company upwards in
achieving its corporate goals and ensuring

sustained growth."Against all odds, I passed my A-Levels with flying
colors, started my degree at the University of York at 15. I supported
myself all through, working. I wrote my final medical examinations at
21, thus emerging the youngest medical doctor in England," said Ola
Orekunrin.

NB: Read more stories about young Africans across the globe

Source: http://www.africafuturestars.com/2016/03/at-age-of-21-this-ekiti-born-doctor.html