By Deborah Hassan
365Daily – As Nigerians continue to bask in the euphoria of having one of their own, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, at the helm of the World Trade Organisation, they have been greeted with yet another good news of a Nigerian born Medical Doctor, Professor Iyalla Elvis Peterside, been named as one of America’s Best Physicians for the year 2020.
This comes as another testament of the passion inherent in Nigerians to succeed, make global impacts and record phenomenal successes on international scale in a wide range of fields.
Professor Peterside was recognised by the US National Consumer Advisory Board and Todaysbestphysician.com.
He is a Professor of Paediatrics and Neonatalogy at the University of Pennsylvania Medical school and a Consultant at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, considered one of the best Children’s Hospitals in the world where he has worked for over 20 years.
Until recently,he was the Medical Director of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital and the President of the Philadelphia Perinatal society.
The Professor is a recipient of many awards from his colleagues and professional associations in the US. A graduate of the University of Ibadan, 1985, he has practiced medicine in four continents of Africa, Europe, Asia and North America.
His area of expertise is in the care of complex surgical neonates, infants needing extracorporeal support and babies with chronic lung disease.
Prof. Iyalla Peterside is among Nigerian professionals who constitute the most celebrated diaspora community in the US.
Nigerians are top on the table of the most highly educated of all diaspora groups in the US , with 61 per cent holding at least a bachelors degree compared with 31 per cent of the total foreign-born population and 32 per cent of the US-born population, according to 2017 data from the Migration Policy Institute.
More than half of Nigerian immigrants (54 per cent) were most likely to occupy management positions, compared with 32 per cent of the total foreign-born population and 39 per cent of the US-born population. Nigerians also dominate the creative art sector in the US.
Most recently, President Biden has appointed more Nigerians to sensitive political offices than any other diaspora community.