HOULTON — Dr. Solomon Olabiyi has joined the medical staff of Houlton Regional Hospital and Houlton Internal Medicine. Dr. Olabiyi joined the hospital on June 24.
Dr. Olabiyi initially went to medical school in his native country of Nigeria and practiced for a period of time in Nigeria after completing medical school. Practicing in Nigeria was very difficult as medicines and immunizations are not readily available to its citizens and very difficult to obtain. Dr. Olabiyi wanted to practice medicine and treat patients to make a difference in their lives.
Contributed photo
WELCOMES — Dr. Hassan Abouleish, left, welcomes Dr. Solomon Olabiyi to the practice of Houlton Internal Medicine. Dr. Olabiyi joined the staff on June 24.
At the urging of his brother to join him in the United States, he chose to come. Upon arriving in the U.S. Dr. Olabiyi completed another three years of residency in internal medicine and one year as chief resident at Morehouse School of Medicine, Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, Ga.
It was when he came to the United States that he met his wife, Pamela, who is also a native of Nigeria, but had lived in California since a teenager. They have a son, Jeremiah, who is 8 months old.
Preparing to complete his chief residency in 2015, Dr. Olabiyi and his wife began interviewing in 2014 for the new hospital he would join to practice medicine and where he and his wife and son would live. Janene Moran, physician and health care recruiter of Houlton Regional Hospital, began communicating with Dr. Olabiyi and his family in July of 2014.
In August, Dr. Olabiyi and his wife came for their first visit to Houlton Regional Hospital and soon thereafter chose to join the medical staff of the hospital.
Janene states, “Many conversations take place before a physician ever arrives in Houlton for a site visit and interview.”
Tom Moakler, CEO of Houlton Regional Hospital, said “We are very pleased to have Dr. Olabiyi join the medical staff of the hospital. The feedback from the community, hospital and his patients at Houlton Internal Medicine has been excellent. We are very fortunate to have had Dr. Olabiyi and his family join us in Houlton.”
Dr. Hassan Abouleish shares, “Dr. Olabiyi is a welcome addition to the practice and Medical Staff of Houlton Regional Hospital, as well as the community.”
When asked why he and his wife chose to move to Houlton, Dr. Olabiyi shared, “We made our decision to come to Houlton as it was a match of what we had been looking forward to. We valued the friendliness of the community when we visited and felt that Houlton would be a safe place to live.
“Thus far the entire community has welcomed us in an amazing way and we have really appreciated it,” he continued. “This includes our neighbors, my co-workers at the hospital, my patients, the people at the church wehave been attending and the people we meet while shopping. We extend our many thanks to Houlton Regional Hospital and the staff for this great opportunity. Without doubt, we know we are at home!”
