In a TEDx Talk delivered in St. John’s in 2021, Dr. Boluwaji Ogunyemi drew on an ecological concept to explain the advantages of diversity.

The concept, known as edge effect, describes what happens in the spaces where two or more habitats or communities intersect. These edges are teeming with life. They are naturally occurring hotbeds of biodiversity and productivity.

For Dr. Ogunyemi, edge effect is more than an intriguing metaphor. It’s an inspirational model – and a call to action.

He understands that the Canadian health-care system is facing an uphill battle.

Many people are having trouble finding a family doctor. There are backlogs of patients awaiting surgery. And people are waiting longer and longer to receive medical attention in emergency departments across the country.

In rural and remote regions, the problems are even more pronounced.

There’s also a growing body of research that reveals how Black, Indigenous and racialized Canadians face discrimination, misdiagnoses and poorer outcomes within an already challenging health-care system.

This is about more than statistics. These are life-and-death issues.

Dr. Ogunyemi believes that the edge, where diversity and different perspectives thrive, is where a path forward can be found.

He was born in Nigeria, and his family moved to Newfoundland and Labrador when he was three years old. He completed a bachelor’s degree in science at the University of Western Ontario and then came home to Memorial University to study medicine.

Today, he’s a clinical assistant professor of medicine at Memorial and a practicing dermatologist in St. John’s.

He’s also become one of the country’s leading voices on anti-racism and equity in Canadian medicine.

 

Dr. Ogunyemi receives his Horizon Award from Dr. Margaret Steele at the 2019 Alumni Tribute Awards. Photo from the Gazette.

 

One of Dr. Ogunyemi’s goals is to ensure that the medical field reflects the full diversity of the populations it serves.

This need is conspicuously evident in his chosen field of dermatology.

Historically, dermatology textbooks and medical teaching resources have featured images of skin conditions on white or light skin. But this focus on white skin has clinical consequences. People with darker skin are often misdiagnosed or wait much longer for an accurate diagnosis.

This means that clinical resources need to be improved to show how skin conditions appear on a range of skin tones. It also means the field should be more accessible to students from under-represented backgrounds.

As Memorial’s first-ever assistant dean of social accountability, Dr. Ogunyemi helped embed this kind of equity and community engagement into the fabric of medical education at Memorial.

He has played a key role in shaping a more empathetic curriculum. Students now learn how to think about who they are treating, where patients come from and what barriers they might face.

He’s also a passionate advocate for remote and rural health care. He’s established a travelling clinic in Labrador City to provide people in the province’s northern regions with the specialist attention they need.

His beliefs are entrenched in both his clinics and his classrooms. And as a public voice for change, his sphere of influence is rapidly expanding.

He’s an accomplished writer with essays and op-eds published in The Globe and Mail, CBC, Maclean’s, The New York Times and Memorial’s Gazette. With every opportunity, he challenges systemic racism and advocates for justice and compassion.

And his work has been widely recognized. He received the Canadian Medical Association’s Award for Young Leaders, the Health Promotion and Innovation Award from the Black Physicians’ Association of Canada, and Memorial’s own Horizon Award for outstanding alumni under 35.

Now, he finds himself in a position to inspire even greater change.

In 2024, he became president-elect of the Canadian Medical Association. In 2026, he will become the first Black president in the association’s 158-year history.

He’s also the first graduate of Memorial’s Faculty of Medicine ever elected to the position.

At a time when health systems are stretched thin, Dr. Ogunyemi offers a rare kind of leadership. His criticisms of the present system are precise. But his solutions and positivity are inspiring.

He asks us to embrace the spaces where we come together, to flourish at the edges where different perspectives create new directions.

With every clinic visit, classroom session and national address, Dr. Ogunyemi works towards a world where everyone is seen, heard and healed.

And his presence at Memorial gives our faculty, students and the communities they serve an edge.