As a young man, Dr. Akinseinde Osakuade knew he wanted to fix people.
Coming from a family of engineers in his native Nigeria, Osakuade saw physicians as “human body mechanics”, and from the age of 14, knew that was what he wanted to be.
“That aspect of being able to look at an individual, identifying what’s wrong with them, fixing them, they get to go home, they get to go home to become moms, dad or kids, I think that attracted me,” explained Osakuade. “[It’s] a job that makes a difference, a job that puts a smile on people’s faces, a job that you get a lot of personal satisfaction with, being a physician ticked all those boxes for me.
Osakuade moved to the United Kingdom to do his post-graduate training, and afterwards practised medicine there for several years. However, as the desire to return to a rural community similar to the one where he was raised grew stronger, the family physician found the right fit a world away, in the Special Areas of southeastern Alberta.
“I appreciated the fact that Alberta had put a lot of investment into providing healthcare, good quality healthcare for people, as well, there was a lot of support for doctors,” explained Osakuade. “Literally everything I needed as a physician to be able to provide good quality healthcare was within reach, and I can easily access addition services if it’s required, so that’s generally what made me fall in love with working in rural medicine here in Alberta.”
Having discovered Oyen through their recruitment website (physiciancareersinoyen.com), the Osakuade family arrived in Oyen in 2015, and was immediately impressed with the support they received from the people of Oyen and the Big Country Medical Board.
“When I first got to Oyen the house was ready, I got a wonderful welcoming, a huge big basket with virtually lots of goodies, virtually everything I needed, we didn’t buy groceries for the first two weeks,” says Osakuade. “Effectively we got in started making dinner, and were ready to start our new life here in Oyen.”
“Dr. Akin”, as Osakuade is known within the community, says his family has adjusted well to life in Canada. With great schools and plenty of activities for his children, Osakuade says Oyen has everything his family needs.
“My daughter talked about how people here are friendly, and it’s true,” he added. “People are absolutely friendly, the healthcare team that I work with [is] fantastic – so what’s not to love?”