“And now I’m in it, and I’m never getting out. Unless I become an astronaut… That’s my next step; next goal.” - Miracle Anokwute
Not too long ago, I had the pleasure of interviewing Miracle Anokwute. Miracle, a black man who immigrated from Nigeria, is a neurosurgery resident at Indiana University School of Medicine. A word I would use to describe Miracle, while very simple, is happy. Miracle carries a joyful smile on his face and pursues his field and life with excitement. It’s wonderful to see such a happy person in such a demanding, and often heart-wrenching, career.
Miracle’s medical journey was very untraditional. Believe it or not, in high school, Miracle wanted to become a chef. He intended on pursuing culinary school after he graduated instead of pursuing a college degree. Despite his passion for food, his teachers urged him to pursue higher education, as he was an incredibly bright student, particularly in his science classes. Thus, Miracle applied and decided to attend Indiana University (IU).
At IU, Miracle discovered his passion for the science of Biology, which he ended up majoring in. He loved learning about how the world worked. However, Miracle didn’t want to use his Biology degree to conduct research, as he wanted to interact with people. So he began volunteering at the hospital. “And the moment I knew for sure [that I wanted to become a doctor] was when we had this older lady come into the emergency department and she was basically just left there. And just seeing how the doctors came in and took care of her and kind of just helped her. And I was apart of that process as a volunteer, just kind of working with the patient one-on-one... And the social aspects of medicine being applied to a patient, as well, that’s what really drew me to medicine and that’s when I knew for sure that I was going to be a doctor.”
With that experience in hand, Miracle decided to apply to medical school. He applied to Indiana University School of Medicine’s early decision and was accepted. “I think I got my letter of acceptance on my birthday, and so I was like, ‘This is great, this is a great birthday present.’” In medical school, Miracle did his first two years in Gary, IN at the Northwest Campus. He later transferred to the Indianapolis campus because he wanted to pursue neurosurgery and most of the academic neurosurgeons operated in Indianapolis.
In medical school, Miracle had to answer the daunting question: Medicine or surgery? “Medicine involves a lot of longitudinal care. You see a patient for years, and years, and years… You get to know the patient very well, you get to know their family very well, you get to treat their same diseases over and over again as you try to change, you know, what they’re doing to improve their lives. And I thought that was great, but it really wasn’t for me because… I want instant results. I like that satisfaction, you know… So that’s where surgery comes in… If you are a person who likes that quick gratification, then surgery is what you want to go into.” Miracle described himself as somebody who loves that instantaneous feeling of improving somebody, which was why he chose surgery. So he decided to combine his love for neuroscience and his need for instant results and become a neurosurgeon.
Miracle went on to do both of his surgical residencies at Indiana University School of Medicine. “I just kinda transitioned along the Indiana pipeline, I guess.” However, the residency program Miracle is currently apart of is structured much differently than others. Most residencies work with 1-2 hospitals, thus only exposing residents to a few different hospital settings. However, IU works with five different hospital systems, which has allowed Miracle to get a feel for different hospital sizes and systems. “It makes things interesting, for sure. Being stuck in the same place for residency wasn’t the big thing for me. I wanted to see kind of a little bit of different things....”
However, the medical journey is no cakewalk. Along the way, Miracle has experienced varying obstacles. Miracle mentioned finances to be the number one obstacle and stressor. While he was fortunate enough to have received scholarships all the way through medical school, most students are not. “A lot of med students are in debt; a lot of people who would apply to medical school don’t apply to medical school because of the finances.” Despite his scholarships, Miracle still had living expenses to cover. To make things easier, Miracle purchased second-hand books or borrowed books from his peers to help himself study. However, this wore on him. “For example, you get a textbook that’s five years older than the latest one. So the information you’re learning is approximately ten years older than what the person next to you that has the funds and is able to get that new textbook is able to learn. So that’s an obstacle. So now you have to relearn all that information, get some more information from the person next to you, to kind of compile all of that information so you can do the same or even better.”
Secondly, Miracle described being a black male as an obstacle. “When people look at Africans and African Americans in any field whatsoever, we’re not always the first people that come to mind for projects, or for advancement, or recognition, right? So you feel like you have to continue fighting every single day to make sure people understand that you can do this, I can do this, I can do neurosurgery.” This is a battle Miracle has had to fight every day of his life, but has particularly had to combat in his career. “I’ve walked around with my white coat on and been called the janitor. It’s like, really?... You have to deal with all of those things on a daily basis and still outperform or be as good as the people around you.”
Lastly, Miracle explained that the lack of diversity in well-respected professions, such as medicine, is incredibly discouraging. “The upward mobility of minorities in medicine is very low.” Miracle mentioned that even in academic fields, such as PhD-professions, it is hard to find somebody who is a minority. “Those are other obstacles I face, as well, is trying to find representation where I see myself going, and I don’t see that.” Hopefully, this is something we can change.
Miracle luckily has had a lot of inspiring role models along the way.
In Nigeria, Miracle had a friend named O’Keke when he was seven. “He was the most… persistent, he just persevered, he just took on challenges nobody else would… The way he tackled issues, he would never let anybody put him down. He would always say, ‘Well you don’t think I can do it? Let me prove you wrong.’ And then he would go ahead and do it and he would do it well.”
Dr. Carl Marfurt, a former neuroscience professor at IU, was another role model for Miracle. This professor taught Miracle that even though neuroscience is a serious field, it’s still important to laugh and enjoy life. Dr. Marfurt always managed to funnel his joy into his work, which is something Miracle tries to do in his daily life.
Dr. Jean Pierre Mobasser and Dr. Jessie Savage, mentors in Miracle’s residency program, are also role models for Miracle. They showed Miracle how to be a successful neurosurgeon, and not only that, how to take care of patients.
Dr. Clark Simons, a trauma surgeon, and a black professor, is another mentor for Miracle. Dr. Simons has always made sure to check in with the demographically underrepresented students to make sure they’re adjusting okay. Miracle explained that this was very beneficial and that he always appreciated it.
Dr. George Rawls, named the “pioneer of surgery” at Indiana University, is one of the last few role models for Miracle. He gave Miracle a scholarship to go to medical school and helped influence a lot of students who came from low-income backgrounds to go to medical school. He even has an operating room named after him. Dr. Rawls unfortunately passed away this year. “And if that’s not a role model, then I don’t know what a role model is. Somebody who just gives away their money to help other people. To me, that’s just phenomenal.”
The Obamas are also role models for Miracle.
“Those are the people that when I wake up in the morning I say, ‘Alright, what kind of person am I going to be today?’ It’s a combination of all of those people... That’s who I want to be when I grow up.”
Advice Miracle wants to give to aspiring physicians?
“Persevere. Honestly, that’s one of the biggest things. Don’t let people tell you no. A lot of people will tell you no. They’ll say, ‘Oh you can’t do that study, oh you can’t get this, or oh you can’t apply to these schools…’ Just persevere through all of that.”
“But also, don’t follow what everybody else tells you to do. You know? Do what you want to do. What do you want to do with your life?”
“You need to do what makes you happy. Figure out what field kind of makes you wake up every morning and say, ‘Even though I’m going to work a lot of hours this week, I’m gonna have fun; it’s gonna be great when I get there.’”
“Take everything with a grain of salt.”
Miracle truly radiates joy. I hope everyone can take a page from his book this upcoming week and find a reason to look on the bright side of things.
Have a wonderful Sunday everyone,
E.F.