Angela chases dreams which though they can keep her awake, they also make her happy. She is more fulfilled if that happiness comes from making someone else happy.
At 31, Angela doubles up as a surgeon and tutorial fellow in a field that very few women have ventured into.
When she enrolled for a Bachelor’s of Medicine and Bachelor’s of Surgery degrees at the University of Nairobi, she did not take long to settle on becoming a surgeon.
She says her internship at the Meru Teaching and Referral Hospital cemented her passion for the profession.
"The idea of making someone’s life better, in whatever small way I can, fascinates me..."
Early on in her career, Angela was given an opportunity to diagnose and later manage a baby who had been born with a rare congenital condition that required reconstructive surgery.
“For me, this was a moment for an intern to make a lasting impact in the life of a young one.
The process of reading about that topic to be able to better manage my patient took me down a rabbit hole. That is where my fascination with reconstructive surgery began,” she says.
Hardly three years after her undergraduate studies, the University of Nairobi introduced a Master’s of Medicine in plastic and reconstructive surgery. She enrolled a few months after her internship.
She was the only student in class for three years but she soldiered on, graduating last year. Angela holds this achievement so dearly, since it opened doors for her to be tutorial fellow as well.
She teaches while also attending to patients at different hospitals. “The idea of making someone’s life better, in whatever small way I can, fascinates me, be it reconstruction of a malformation or deformity,” says Angela.
Nothing keeps her as renewed as music. Her playlist is as deep as every single possible situation or mood she may face at any given time.
–Patrick Alushula