Oluwatoyin Fadeyibi
MY GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT: Taking the risk to follow my eight-year-long dream of obtaining a master’s in public health. During the two-year MPH program I was raising a toddler, working as a clinical pharmacist and ultimately also pregnant — thankfully with the support of an understanding husband. In the realm of accomplishments, three things are of great value to me — my faith in Jesus, my family and the ability to serve the poor and overlooked in society. As such, any day that I can live out my faith, connect with my family and serve the underprivileged around me is a day rich in accomplishment.
HOW DREXEL HELPED: Prior to attending Drexel, I had been practicing pharmacy in a hospital setting for six years while concurrently co-leading a nonprofit in Philadelphia. My desire to pursue training in public health was fueled by the medical missions locally and abroad that LabakCare led, and also by a dream to one day aid in the strengthening of my home country Nigeria’s health care and public health infrastructures. The training I received from the Dornsife School of Public Health provided me with the framework, tools, coaching and confidence to always look beyond health needs and into the social factors that determine health conditions. In addition, hands-on experience in programmatic design and evaluation helped to position me for my current non-traditional-pharmacist role in a quasi-governmental agency. As the first pharmacist in Philadelphia’s behavioral health department, I use my clinical and public health skills to serve Philadelphia’s residents who are underprivileged and on Medicaid. The experiential training embedded in Drexel’s programming also taught me the value of community engagement, inclusion and buy-in, generosity of heart and the often underestimated impact that policy has on the health of the public. These lessons have become a fabric of any work I set my heart to do.
WHERE I’ll BE IN FIVE YEARS: I hope to be still doing fulfilling public health work that impacts the most vulnerable in society — whether right here in Philadelphia or across the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria — ideally, both!
