Visionaries - July 19, 2022

Olurotimi Badero: Meet the World’s First and Only Fully Trained Cardio-Nephrologist

Oyetoun Olabisi July 19, 2022

10 min read

Born and bred in Lagos, Nigeria, Olurotimi Badero is not only the first and only fully trained cardio-nephrologist in the world, but he’s also an entrepreneur, educator and motivational speaker. This has earned him many distinguishable accolades in the global medical space.

It is, however, worthy of knowing that he did not attain these feats without making some sacrifices. Speaking on the lessons life has taught him, Badero says, “a goal without a plan is only a wish…there is no testimony without a test. The only time that success comes before work is in the dictionary.” According to him, these statements have become the mantra he lives by.

A glimpse into the making of Olurotimi Badero

As a young boy and the seventh of nine children, Olurotimi Badero set a high standard of excellence for himself. This was due to the honest advice he received from his father, with whom he was close.

One of such pieces of advice he lived his life by is that “Good is not good enough. Strive for perfection”. This insight made Badero push himself beyond the expected status quo of excellence.

After graduating from secondary school, he decided to study engineering. But, after having a long discussion with his father, he changed his mind and studied medicine.

He attended the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), after which he enlisted in the school’s medical program and graduated in 1997.

The first and only fully trained heart and kidney surgeon in the world

According to Olurotimi Badero, the quest for more knowledge brought him on the path of going from one specialist hospital to another to learn. This perseverance made him the first and only fully trained heart and kidney surgeon worldwide.

He recalls, “For me, it was just a continuous process of trying to get better, staying the course and finding the things that define who I am and what I want to do to make a difference in people’s lives”.

With this, he travelled to the United States, where he started his first three-year specialist training at the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. From there, he pursued a two-year Fellowship in nephrology and hypertension at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia.

After completing the Nephrology training, Badero returned to the State University of New York (SUNY) Downstate Medical Center for three additional years of cardiovascular medicine fellowship training.

After three years of training, he gained admission into Yale University School of Medicine for two fellowship training in invasive and interventional cardiology and peripheral vascular intervention.

Later, he returned to the State University of New York Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn for an additional year of fellowship training in endovascular medicine, interventional nephrology, and dialysis access care.

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Achievements

Olurotimi Badero has been achieving academic excellence and packing recognition awards since he was a little boy.

The genius won the best overall student award in Nigeria in a national science quiz competition while in secondary school. He went further to make more indelible marks in Nigeria’s health sector.

Badero has an unprecedented track record of ten years of continuous post-graduate medical training. This outstanding accomplishment made him a specialist in seven fields of medicine and earned him four fellowships.

Along with being a fellow of the American College of Physicians, he is also a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, the American Society of Nephrology, and the Society for Cardiac Angiography and Interventions.

International and National recognition

Olurotimi Badero is globally recognised as the pioneer of the cardio-nephrology field and his immeasurable contributions to the medical space in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Africa.

The US Congress gave him a Congressional award for his distinguished medical career and humanitarian service in the US.

He is a member of the editorial boards of several national and international scientific publications and has written several peer-reviewed papers.

Also, he served as a reviewer for the National Kidney Foundation’s continuing medical education (CME) programs and the medical knowledge self-assessment program (MKSAP) of the American College of Physicians.

A mentor and motivational speaker

With his extensive understanding of the medical practice, Olurotimi Badero educates prospective medical professionals and scientists.

He accomplishes this by accepting several invitations from various academic institutions, where he gives first-hand instructions to medical students and resident doctors.

So, through continuing medical education (CME) programs, Badero has also been actively enlightening the medical industry about the interlink between the heart and kidney.

As a speaker, he was at the 2016 Impact Houston Youth Empowerment Conference organised by the Impact your World Organization to empower Nigerian youth.

In 2019, he served on the panel of the World Bank Group-IMF Nigeria Heritage Conference held in Washington DC. The same year, he spoke at the “Why I Am Alive” Campaign. There, he was honoured with the Most Purposeful Nigerian Award.

In developing this field in some African countries, he served as a consultant in building cardiac centres of excellence, cardio-renal programs and training and skills transfer.

Dr Badero currently resides in the US, in Jackson and Mississippi, where he runs a private office.