ElevateMeD Scholar: Evans Osuji

Meet Evans Osuji

ElevateMeD Scholar 2023-2024

Evans Osuji discusses his journey from athletics to medicine, being inspired by a physician on a similar path, and becoming an ElevateMeD Scholar.

Interview conducted by: Keiona Eady, @TheAuthenticMessenger

Video editing by: Deanna Reid, @TheSocialPhotog

• Hometown: West Orange, New Jersey

• Medical Education: The Ohio State University

• Undergraduate Education: James Madison University in Health Science

• Current Career Plan: Complete my training in Interventional Cardiology and continue on with leadership. I also want to engage regularly in public speaking opportunities.

• Specialty Interest: Medical Specialty

• I am most proud of the narrative that I have begun to make for myself and my life. Once upon a time, I was known as “the athlete”, and while that may be true, I know that I am so much more than that. Part of my career goals are to bring value to as many spaces as possible, rather than being written off to a single identity. A diverse background that encompasses a multitude of experiences is the type of person I want to be to be able to relate and share community with as many people as possible. Instead of being identified as an athlete, my preference instead would be to be referred to as someone who participated in athletics. I would prefer to be considered as someone who practices medicine rather than having my entire identity written off as a physician. In the past couple of years, I have worked to continue diversifying my experiences, and am proud of the progress that I have made.

• You might be surprised to know that while I have aspirations to continue in leadership and influence the next generation of young leaders, during my adolescence I was arguably the shyest member of my family. I recall several times being scorned by my parents for my inability to interact with my peers and participate in social engagements. It was only when I entered the world of sports that things began to change for the better. Gifted with some natural ability and also great size, I was able to compete at a high level from a young age. As one of the better players on the team, there was an unspoken expectation to be vocal. As I continued to flourish, my confidence also began to increase. By the time I had reached 9th grade, I was competing as a dual athlete in varsity sports for both football and basketball and had gained the respect of my peers. The leadership opportunities that came from sports are what ultimately led to the confidence I have today.

• ElevateMeD is… an organization created with aims to work with the next generation of bright leaders around the nation to provide the financial, emotional, and mental support required to complete their training. The aim is to equip students with resources (both tangible and intangible) and a network that they can pull from. ElevateMed specifically is interested in underrepresented communities in medicine and providing the financial relief that would enable them to pick a specialty they are passionate about instead of one that would reduce their burden in their career.