CommunityHealth shines the Volunteer Spotlight on Nihmotallahi Adebayo during August
As a first year medical student in what is usually a fourth year medical students’ role, Nihmotallahi stepped us as a leader as Student Coordinator for her University of Illinois at Chicago cohort. Nihmotallahi fulfilled this veteran-status position as a first year volunteer.
She exemplified her revolutionary leadership during the integrative vaccine clinics, supporting where needed and being a champion during change.
For her passionate, openminded, and devoted service, Nihmotallahi was awarded 2023 Medical Student Volunteer of the Year for the 2023 Volunteer of the Year Awards.
CommunityHealth sat down with Dulce to learn more about what quality health care for all means to her…
In a few sentences, tell us more about yourself and your background.
“I am currently a 2nd year medical student at UICOM-Chicago. Prior to starting at UICOM, I received my Bachelors and Masters at Northwestern University. Lastly, I am originally from Nigeria but have also called Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago home.“
Why and how did you begin volunteering at CommunityHealth?
“I began volunteering at CommunityHealth through my role as a Steering Committee member for UIC’s Student Run Free Clinic (SRFC). I applied for this position within SRFC because SRFC’s mission and reason for being aligned with my own belief that access to healthcare is a right that all individuals should have. I remain grateful to have found CommunityHealth through SRFC and I’m proud to play a role in ensuring that all people have access to good healthcare.“
Do you remember your first day? What surprised you?
“I vaguely remember by first day at CommunityHealth. I was shadowing an upperclassman to see how clinic flows and to understand my role in ensuring this flow. What surprised me the most was how easy it was to get help from others around me. Anything that I was unsure of, I was able to get clarification from the volunteer coordinator on staff. I was never made to feel like dumb for not knowing anything, and I just really appreciated how welcoming everyone was.“
What has kept you volunteering all this time?
“What’s kept me coming back to CommunityHealth is that being in clinic reminds me of why I went into medicine to begin with. Medical school is hectic, busy and can be draining, but every time I come to clinic and interact with patients as well as fellow volunteers, I’m reminded of the bigger picture and what I’m working towards in my career.“
What is something you have learned from volunteering?
“Something I’ve learned from volunteering at CommunityHealth is that no shift is ever the same and there’s strength in being adaptable and changing to meet the needs of a given shift.”
What has been your biggest takeaway from CommunityHealth, and how does this impact your other life or career goals?
“I think my biggest takeaway from my time with CommunityHealth is to always ask for help if I’m unsure. More often than not, someone else within the vicinity will have the answer and will be able to provide the guidance I needed. As I proceed in my career, knowing how to ask for help will make the journey less isolating and hopefully a smoother process.”
What does being a health care professional mean to you?
“Being a healthcare professional to me means listening to patients and allowing them to guide the care that I provide. Yes, I as the professional may have the answers, but those answers are only valuable if it actually meets the needs of the specific patient in front of me.”
Why is volunteering important to you, and what do you get out of it?
“Volunteering is important to me because it’s my way of giving back to the communities that influenced my decision to pursue medicine. And I get out of it a reminder of what’s important: that all this studying, all of this self-doubt and questioning my place in this field, is to ensure that I can play a role in helping patients achieve their best health outcomes.“
What advice would you give to a new volunteer at CommunityHealth?
“One advice I can give to a new volunteer is to make the most of your time at CH. Get to know the people that you see during your shifts, ask for help when you’re unsure and most importantly, if there’s something you can help with, offer that help to someone else.”
Outside of volunteering with CommunityHealth, how do you like to spend your free time?
“I spend much of my free time hanging out with friends, napping and binge watching Korean dramas on Netflix! Since 2020, I have to date watched over a 100 kdramas and am always happy to recommend shows for others to get into this genre.”
What is your favorite movie or book?
“I have never been able to pick a favorite book or movie, but a recent book that I enjoyed and that’s stuck with me is Last Summer on State Street and a recent movie I enjoyed more than I thought I would is The Great Seduction featuring Yalitza Aparicio.”
What is your favorite song or band?
“A song I’ve had on repeat daily for the past two months is Name of God by Mustafa and a band I always return to is the Korean alt-pop band, The Rose.”
What is your favorite Halloween costume?
“Favorite Halloween costume to date is from this year and it’s an Appa onesie my college friends got me for my 23rd birthday.”
As the largest volunteer-based free health center in the nation, serving the uninsured, underserved, and undocumented, CommunityHealth is more than a free clinic but a true patient-centered medical home.
Health care providers, both clinical and nonclinical, devoted to quality health care for all are encouraged to apply.