Oluchi Joan Kanma-Okafor
PhD, Health Behavior Health Promotion
Research, connect and showcase your passion: Carefully research MEZCOPH’s programs and faculty to ensure that they align with your goals, and prepare a timely application that shows how your interests align with the college’s strengths. Connect with faculty members and current students to gain valuable insights and establish professional relationships. Highlight your work or research experience in public health, especially those demonstrating your commitment to health disparities and community health Once you start your program at MEZCOPH ensure you build strong relationships with your professors and classmates. Faculty members can be valuable mentors, and your peers can offer support, collaboration opportunities, and diverse perspectives. Balancing coursework, research, and other activities can be challenging but staying organized and managing your time well will help.
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Email:
ojkanmaokafor@arizona.edu
Hometown:Imo State, Nigeria
Before entering the program:Before entering the PhD program at the University of Arizona, Oluchi Kanma-Okafor had an extensive career in public health and medicine. She served as a Physician, lecturer, and researcher coordinating multiple courses, contributing to research, and leading several teams on projects addressing adolescent behavioral risks related to HIV infection, stigma, treatment challenges among adolescents living with HIV, maternal and child health issues, immunization, and other diseases like tuberculosis, measles, and malaria. She also contributed to COVID-19 research, focusing on vaccine rollout challenges and the role of comorbidities in COVID-19 outcomes. Additionally, she volunteered in several medical missions, providing free medical services to underserved communities. Oluchi has been involved in various leadership roles and has received multiple grants and awards for her contributions to public health research and education.
Why did you choose public health?I chose Public Health because it offers a unique opportunity to impact health on a large scale, addressing systemic issues and health disparities that affect entire communities rather than individual patients alone. Public Health allows me to engage in preventive care, health education, and policy-making, all of which are critical in creating sustainable health improvements. I have always been driven by a commitment to social justice and health equity, and Public Health provides the perfect platform to address these issues. By working in Public Health, I can design and implement evidence-based policies and programs that tackle the root causes of health disparities, improve health outcomes, and enhance the quality of life for less privileged and vulnerable populations. This field empowers me to contribute to positively influencing community health, which aligns perfectly with my professional goals and personal values.
Why did you choose MEZCOPH?I chose MEZCOPH because it has a reputation for excellence in public health education, research, and community engagement. The college’s commitment to addressing health disparities and promoting health equity fits excellently with my passion for social justice and improving health outcomes for the poor and vulnerable. MEZCOPH’s emphasis on community-based research and its collaborative approach to solving public health problems are exactly what I was looking for in a PhD program. More importantly, the faculty at MEZCOPH are renowned experts in various fields of public health and I was very excited at the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with these distinguished scholars. MEZCOPH exposes students to exceptional resources, collaboration, and support available within the college and the university.
Public health interests:My Public Health interests lie in global health with a focus on reproductive health, infectious disease prevention and control, health disparities, and the social determinants of health among marginalized and vulnerable populations like children, adolescents and women.
Interests/hobbies outside of school:Family, interior decorating, reading, writing, traveling.
Tip for future students:Research, connect and showcase your passion: Carefully research MEZCOPH’s programs and faculty to ensure that they align with your goals, and prepare a timely application that shows how your interests align with the college’s strengths. Connect with faculty members and current students to gain valuable insights and establish professional relationships. Highlight your work or research experience in public health, especially those demonstrating your commitment to health disparities and community health Once you start your program at MEZCOPH ensure you build strong relationships with your professors and classmates. Faculty members can be valuable mentors, and your peers can offer support, collaboration opportunities, and diverse perspectives. Balancing coursework, research, and other activities can be challenging but staying organized and managing your time well will help.
