Boluwaji Ogunyemi is set to become the Canadian Medical Association's first Black president
July 14, 2025
Coming from a family of trailblazers, Dr. Boluwaji Ogunyemi was raised with the belief that limitations are meant to be challenged and paths created, not just followed.
Dr. Abayomi Ogunyemi was the first epilepsy specialist in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) and Mary Ogunyemi opened one of the first Black hair care and accessories stores in the country’s easternmost province.
Endorsed at the end of May as the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) president-elect, their son is set to become the first Black health professional and the youngest at age 39 to lead the 158-year-old organization.
With a membership of physicians and medical learners from each province and territory, it is the largest association of medical doctors in Canada.
As he prepares for his new role, Ogunyemi plans to build on the progress made in shaping healthcare, supporting physicians and advancing medical knowledge.
“The CMA has already done a lot of great work in terms of ensuring that health remains on the agenda at the national level and that conversations around health care nationally continue,” the clinical associate professor of medicine at Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Faculty of Medicine said. “Having served as a CMA Ambassador and on the organization’s Media Network and Governance Committees, I am familiar with the CMA and ready to make the organization work for physicians across Canada.”
Ogunyemi brings vast knowledge and experience to the position.
He advised the Canadian government on who should be the first beneficiaries of COVID-19 vaccines at the height of the pandemic, designed North America’s first leadership development and implementation program for climate change health leaders which is funded through the British Columbia Ministry of Health and was the lead author of a national policy paper, leveraging virtual care to improve health equity.
In addition, Ogunyemi lobbied the NL and federal governments for increased resources for medical education in rural areas, leveraged virtual care to manage patients in his home province and was the inaugural Assistant Dean of Social Accountability at Memorial University Faculty of Medicine.
“Health care and other institutions must be accountable to society, so the social accountability lens is critical,” he pointed out. “It is important to meet patients in the communities in which they live and make that model of care visible at the national level.”
As a Canadian Doctors for Medicare (CDM) board member for three years, he believes that reform must take place within the public system to benefit every Canadian.
The CDM stepped into the national health care debate in May of 2006 when a group of physicians and friends became concerned about the increased privatization in Canadian health care, and about the development of a two-tiered health care system that would allow the wealthy to buy private insurance for private care at the expense of most Canadians.
“I left with advanced knowledge of evidence-based health policy and a national network of accomplished fellow health policy and health systems leaders which will all serve me well in my new role,” said Ogunyemi who holds a Diversity and Inclusive Professional certificate from Cornell University.
The CMA presidential role is expansive.
In the first year, the holder is provided with media training and orientation to address the issues facing the association.
As the association’s senior-most elected officer and primary spokesperson on national policy and advocacy matters identified by the Board, the president represents the organization at provincial and territorial medical associations’ annual meetings in the second year in which the president and president-elect share presidential duties.
In the final year, the CMA past president serves on the Human Resources and Compensation Committee and as chair of the Nominations Committee.
Several leading medical practitioners supported Ogunyemi’s candidacy.
“Dr. Ogunyemi would bring both his academic and leadership experience to the clinical arena in the role,” said Dr. Ian Bowmer, the former Memorial University Faculty of Medicine dean and Royal College of Physicians of Canada president. “It is a real opportunity to make use of his diversity work and complement CMA’s ongoing leadership.”
Canada’s first Indigenous dermatologist, Dr. Rachel Asiniwasis, witnessed firsthand Ogunyemi’s unwavering dedication to advancing patient care, championing physician well-being and promoting inclusivity in dermatology and the healthcare system.
“He has consistently demonstrated an exceptional commitment to improving such outcomes with deliverable results,” the Canadian Skin Patient Alliance 2023 Dermatologist of the Year pointed out. “His advocacy for patient care is reflected in numerous initiatives that prioritize not just the physical health of patients, but their emotional and mental well-being…Dr. Ogunyemi possesses a unique ability to unite individuals around a common goal, fostering collaboration among diverse stakeholders. I have no doubt he will continue to advance the interests of both healthcare providers and patients through his new role.”
Independent Senator Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia said Ogunyemi is a strong leader, advocate and changemaker.
“In my experience, I see how policy change is important to shift health outcomes and I feel it is clear that Dr. Ogunyemi’s efforts in advocacy, medical education and social accountability will have an outsize impact on patients and the profession of medicine as a whole,” he added.
Family physician Dr. Mari-Lynne Sinnott said Ogunyemi has a passion for and commitment to social justice that is fundamentally linked to health.
“In working together on political action and advocacy projects nationally and through the Canadian Federation of Medical Students and locally at Memorial University’s Medical Student Society, it comes as no surprise to me that now, as an experienced physician and advocate, he seeks to continue this important work through the CMA presidency,” said the Memorial University of Newfoundland clinical associate professor.
Known for its stunning natural beauty and welcoming residents, Ogunyemi’s parents felt at home when they arrived in NL in 1990 with Boluwaji and his older brother.
Dr. Boluwaji Ogunyemi and his mother Mary Ogunyemi (Photo contributed)
Though he was the only Black student in his high school graduating class of nearly 600, Ogunyemi said he never felt isolated or out of place.
“I had a wonderful experience growing up, always feeling included even though I understand that every newcomer has such a positive experience,” said the second of their three siblings. “When I pursued a double major at the undergraduate level in Ontario and I went away for specialized training in Vancouver, I always came back here because it is my home.”
After considering careers in teaching, communications and policy, Ogunyemi chose medicine.
“I have always had a passion for science and working with people,” the 2017 Harry Jerome Award recipient said. “I am fortunate that my career in medicine has allowed me to do those things. I have influenced health policy at the national level, I teach and mentor resident students and I have advocated. I have done all of those in my profession.”
Dr. Boluwaji Ogunyemi was the recipient of a Harry Jerome Award for Excellence in Health Sciences in 2017 (Photo by Ron Fanfair)
Graduating with honours in 2008 from Western University where he received the Young Alumni Award in 2019 and the Science Alumni Award of Achievement four years later, Ogunyemi was the first Black student raised in Newfoundland and Labrador to train at Memorial University of Newfoundland Faculty of Medicine where he served as president of the Medical Students’ Society.
He earned a Diploma in Clinical Epidemiology in 2009 and his medical degree four years later. Shortly after completing his post-residency training at the University of British Columbia, specializing in dermatology, he established a community practice in St. John’s and a travelling clinic in Labrador City.
Dermatology is a unique field of medicine that combines medical, surgical and pediatric expertise and addresses a wide range of skin, hair and nail conditions.
“In this field, you can make diagnoses quickly and use your mind, hands and heart with compassion to manage patients,” Ogunyemi, who completed the University of Toronto Rotman School of Management Director’s Education program, said. “It is patient-centred and you get to see children and adults which stands out for me because not every medical specialist can do that. Also, this area of specialization is diverse and I see people with skin cancer, allergies and other complicated medical disorders. With lots of new treatments coming out, there are more ways that I can help my patients, What I also like about being a dermatologist is that I can practice in many different settings, including communities with about 900 people (Natuashish is an Innu First Nation community in northern Labrador) that is only accessible by air. That allows me to be flexible and go where patients are.”
Dermatology is a leading specialty in virtual care, particularly in teledermatology because of the visual nature of skin conditions which lends itself well to remote diagnosis and monitoring using images and video.
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly accelerated the adoption of teledermatology, with many dermatologists now incorporating it into their practice.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming dermatology, particularly in the areas of skin cancer detection, diagnosis, and treatment planning.
“Artificial intelligence has tremendous potential for medicine in general,” said Ogunyemi who was the first physician from NL to complete an interdisciplinary Fellowship in Health Systems Improvement at the University of Alberta School of Public Health. “Physicians spend an enormous amount of time doing paperwork when we would like to use that time doing face-to-face work with patients. With dermatology, AI can help as a diagnostic aid.”
In British Columbia, a project is underway to use AI-powered medical imaging to help triage dermatology referrals, aiming to reduce wait times for skin cancer diagnoses.
Nobody gets to where they are without support that often includes the quiet and steady presence of parents, siblings and other family members.
A professor of neurology at Memorial University, his father left Lagos to pursue a Mayo Clinic Fellowship and his mother was among the first women in her region in Nigeria to attain post-secondary education.
They left Nigeria with just a few hundred dollars..
Dr. Boluwaji Ogunyemi and his father Dr. Abayomi Ogunyemi (Photo contributed)
“When you are in leadership and high-profile positions, most people see you doing important work,” said Ogunyemi whose TEDx talk, ‘Edge Effect: Different Perspectives Yield Creativity, Innovation’ details how he was awakened to a different and wider perspective after taking a sociology course at Western University. “They do not see the people behind the scenes who are helping to care for you and are encouraging you when things don’t go your way. “My parents are my anchor in that regard.”
Children bring a sense of balance to the lives of busy professional parents.
Raising two young daughters, ages five-and-a-half and four years old, in NL gives Ogunyemi pride and purpose, fueling his strength daily.
“It is fulfilling when I can go home to them at the end of the day,” he said. “They don’t understand the intricacies of the work I am doing, but I hope they and their generation will benefit from the fruits of my labour as we strive for healthier populations. It is also important to see the world through their lens. A lot of the assumptions we make are through something we read or observed. Children do not have those experiences as yet, but they see things from an angle that we can’t. Adults can benefit from their untainted perspectives.”
Ogunyemi assumes the one-year role of CMA president in May 2026.
