Bukonla Agunbiade is a pharmacist and consultant lifestyle doctor. In this interview by ROTIMI IGE, she talks about her various projects, career, marriage and how quality medicare is becoming extinct.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m a pharmacist and a consultant lifestyle doctor. I’m happily married with three boys .
Education?
I started my primary education at Kiddies home Montessori school, Ijebu Ode and proceeded to Mayflower school, Ikenne, where my formative years were shaped. Tertiary education was all at Ogun State university now known as Olabisi Onabanjo university. After school, I decided to specialiSe in lifestyle medicine after identifying the loop holes in both the pharmaceutical and medical training
Why did you choose the medical line?
I grew up in an healthpreneurial environment so it came naturally to me. My parents were a nurse and pharmacist, my neighbours were doctors and nurses. As a child, my play time was flipping through medical textbooks and I was told my first words were palantamol and kokoloquine.
You are a pharmacist and a doctor. What informed that desire/decision?
Pharmacy was a fantasy because I enjoyed just saying something different from what my friends were mentioning like ‘doctor’, ‘lawyer’, ‘engineer’ and it was a lower hanging apple to me because I lived for pharmacy. Becoming a doctor was out of curiosity of trying to know more than I’ve always known and a burning desire to help people live an healthier life. If I’m on my dying bed, I would still consult, prescribe and dispense.
In recent time, medical workers have been protesting negligence by state and federal governments regarding equipment, welfare etc. Tell us your take on the current situation of things.
Truthfully, the state of healthcare in Nigeria is presently heart-wrenching. Quality healthcare is no longer a luxury but almost extinct. I implore my colleagues that we do our best and pray that God does the rest.
What other projects are you involved in?
I’m the MD/CEO of Remetrix walk-in clinic which is the first of its kind in Nigeria. I’m a member of the YERI committee in Oyo State, which is the state government initiative to rehabilitate street youths .
You have a medical outreach coming up later this month. Tell us about that.
Oyo mega health and beauty fiesta is powered by my co-founded company ‘Medicred’ in collaboration with Suntec corporation, Singapore. We are in partnership with the Oyo State government. It is a five-day event starting from November 18 to 22 at the Trans Amusement Park, Ibadan. We are training 5,000 patent medicine sellers on basic psychotherapy skills and would be having over 70 doctors of different specialties, nutritionists, fitness experts, beauty consultants ,health screenings in an atmosphere of fun. There would be free meals by SH foundation (a partner), free breast and cervical screening by BRECAN, free HIV testing by OYOSA, family planning advice by SFH, family cooking competition sponsored by Titan and Rhedors farm, fitness training sessions by top fitness experts, BK and Teejay dance plus special appearances by top music artistes and comedians.
What do you hope to achieve with it?
We hope to create awareness for drug and substance abuse , increase the health literacy level of our people and the life expectancy of Oyo residents thereby improving economic viability of the state.
Critics say it is increasingly difficult for well-read women to get or stay married. Do you agree and if yes, why?
I would agree because we’re beginning to have more seemingly ‘qualified’ women than men . There’s almost too much emphasis on the girl child which is making it difficult for the male contemporaries to kind of catch up, forgetting they also didn’t come to this world with a manual.
How do you balance your career and family?
For me, career and family are the same so I don’t have to juggle the balance. I’m luckily married to a man who is a great coach. Adekoya Agunbiade makes everywhere home . We could be lounging in the clinic this minute and be picnicking at his event setup the next minute. We seem like worlds apart but we’ve been resolute about making it work and the beauty in our diversity is what birthed the Oyo mega health and beauty fiesta.
What advice would you have for young female intellectual about marriage?
Be true to yourself, spend your singlehood understanding yourself and when you do, be willing to get married but never settle for less. When you eventually get married, be resolute about keeping your innocence.
Tell us a bit about your fashion sense.
I doubt if I have a fashion sense because I practically live in my head. My husband is my stylist.
Your most prized bodily asset?
My skin! My mother always says she used so much biotin tablet s when she was pregnant with me just to ensure I came out flawless and trust me that’s what has been keeping me glowing till now. I may be the only woman I know who doesn’t have a routine but I don’t joke with my glutathione therapy which also helps my skin.
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