Opeyemi Daramola, MD, FARS
Name: Opeyemi Daramola, MD, FARS
Hometown: Ilesha, Osun State, Nigeria
Undergraduate school attended: Adam State University
Hobbies: Tennis, running and painting. No one is buying my art though.
Languages I speak: English, Yoruba
Furthest I've traveled from home: California
Favorite activity in the Twin Cities: I enjoyed fine arts and theatre while I was there. The university made it affordable to experience performance art in the Twin Cities; you just have to find the opportunities.
What is your specialty: Otolaryngology with fellowship (and clinical focus) in Rhinology
Why I chose my specialty:
Two weeks ago, I was driving through a 3am snowstorm on my way to an ultimately emergent surgery on a teenager with acute airway embarrassment from bilateral deep neck abscesses and soft tissue obstruction. I remember the sense of calm and confidence I presented when communicating with the parents although the situation was dangerous. All went well and patient is already back in school (I believe I aged a few years). However, each time I review these challenging cases in introspection, I reassure myself: if anyone is going to wake up at 3am in the morning, it better be for a page to address an otolaryngology problem otherwise, I am not picking up the phone. Because there is nothing else in medicine I love more than Otolaryngology.
Not every case is going to be similar to a scripted episode in a soap opera medicine show like above: I simply love head and neck anatomy and I am never bored of exploring at any time of the day. Thus, I find most otolaryngology pathologies intriguing prospects to resolve. Otolaryngology consistently offers a combination of pathologies amenable to resolution in clinic while providing the expected list of surgical pathologies. Thus, there is excitement on the procedural front and development of relationships in clinic for nonsurgical encounters.
Why Medicine:
I experienced some medical challenges earlier in life. There was exposure to positive role models at that juncture. My exposure to medicine continued in college after some volunteering and basic science research focused on clinical problems. For me, medicine personifies a service profession that combines humble hard work, high academic achievement with social awareness and advancement of our quality of life. This may sound naive given the administrative and public health challenges we currently face in American medicine but I held that conviction a million years ago when I applied to medical school and I maintain that conviction now. I would do it all over again; I love my job and I feel privileged that I have been provided the opportunity to facilitate healing.