Hello there! My name is Victor Folarin, and I am a flight surgeon and Squadron Commander in Aerospace Flight Medicine. I am also currently acting as the interim Acting Commander for the Hospital at Moody Air Force Base (AFB) in Valdosta, Georgia. I have a different tale to tell, because I have come from another culture and I followed an unusual path to my current position.

I was raised in Lagos, Nigeria. In Nigeria, most education is not free, and high schools are expensive and highly competitive. Not everyone gets to go to school. When I was a child, an elementary education was free and available to most children. I was living with my grandfather, and I finished elementary school there. When I moved back to live with my father, he sent me back to school, where I repeated 2 years because my father didn't think I could pass the exams at the end of the school period. I had a pretty easy-going attitude about school, and he thought that meant I couldn't do it. After I passed the exam, I had to wait to go to high school because you had to pay to go to school - tuition, books, uniforms, and transportation. My older brother and sister were in high school, and I had to wait until they graduated before it was my turn. My father was an electrician and his income couldn't support all of us at school at once. Another sister and I went to high school together. High schools in Nigeria are highly competitive. I was exposed to a lot of subjects, and my classmates pushed me to do my very best.

When I was in high school, my mother wanted me to become a pharmacist. I was interested in medicine because my grandfather, a civil engineer, was also a native herbalist. I remember people coming to the house asking for his help. I used to go into the forest with him to look for leaves and plants, and I helped him cook them into syrups and medicines. When I started to think about it, I decided "Why be a pharmacist when I could be a doctor?" That was the beginning of my quest to be a doctor. It was sometimes a difficult quest, but I stayed focused on that goal.

After high school, I was accepted into a military program that was training civilians to be medical technicians. They promised to train us in a certain amount of time, but they were unable to finish the training. With my goal to be a doctor in mind, I decided to move to the United States to pursue my further education in Tennessee. My arrival in the US was interesting. I had no relatives living there, but we did have some friends living in New York City. They were supposed to meet my plane and help me get around. Unfortunately, my plane was delayed by one day. They didn't know that, so they went to the airport to meet me and of course missed me. When I got there a day later, no one met me at the plane! It was a bold introduction to the US, but I survived it!

I was still determined to be a doctor. I took some classes at Sneed State Junior College in Boaz, Alabama, then transferred to Tennessee Tech., where I got Bachelor's and Master's degrees in chemistry. Since I was a foreign student, financial aid was not available to me, so I had to work all through school. I also couldn't get into medical school right away because of my foreign status. I worked at a clinic at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, doing pharmaceutical research. After I received my citizenship in 1982, my status changed, and I was eligible to apply to medical schools. I had excellent grades and strong letters of recommendation from the doctors at the clinic, and I was accepted into the medical school at the University of Tennessee.

After medical school, I did my residency in family practice. I worked in private practice for a while in Kentucky. I was also a member of the Army National Guard in Kentucky and was a battalion physician assigned to a tank unit. I enjoyed going out in the field with the unit. I liked the way the military set up its medical practices, so I decided to join the Air Force as a doctor. Initially I served as a staff family physician, then as a the chief of emergency services. I later became the flight commander of medical services. I missed the operational aspects of being assigned as the physician to a unit, and I've always liked planes, so I volunteered to become a flight surgeon in Aerospace Medicine. I attended the 7 week program for training and was assigned to the 52nd Squadron at Moody AFB. The younger flight surgeons like to be assigned to the fighter squadrons; I find the "heavies," the bigger, heavier cargo airplanes more attractive! Flight surgeons must have an excellent understanding of the flying environment of the air crew members, so we are required to fly frequently. I really enjoy this; when I get tired of seeing patients, I can hop on a plane and go flying! We also deploy with the units when they are sent out on missions, so I get to travel. In addition to seeing the pilots, crew members and air traffic controllers to ensure that they are fit for duty, flight surgeons also see the families of the Air Force personnel, so my family practice background has been very handy.

My path to be an Air Force flight surgeon was unusual, so I'd like to take a moment to tell you about the more traditional path. Most flight surgeons go to college after high school and major in any degree program, with extra classes in biology and anatomy for pre-med. They attend medical school, and do a 1 year internship. In the military, there is an additional 7 week program at Brooks AFB in San Antonio where we take a survival course like the pilots, study the aviation environment, and learn about the effects of flying on the air crews. Flight surgeons must have an excellent understanding of the flying environment for the air crews. They must understand all the rules for pilots and crews and the air traffic controllers so that they can give them physicals and declare them fit for duty. After a flight surgeon finishes the 7 week program, he or she is assigned to a squadron or unit. After 2 to 3 years of experience, most flight surgeons do a RAM, a Residency in Aerospace Medicine, a 3 year program. The first year is the equivalent of a Master's degree in public health. The second year concentrates on operational medicine, and the third year is an intensive study of aerospace medicine. After the program, the flight surgeon is certified to sit on the boards for both operational medicine and aerospace medicine. Usually, the flight surgeon will be moving more into administration at this point, such as becoming a squadron commander of operations.

I like being a doctor; I don't think I could ever stop doing it. I enjoy being a flight surgeon, too. I'm not so sure about the administrative duties, though. I choose to be involved with the administration so that I can let them know what the doctors want and feel, but I don't like the fact that these duties take me away from seeing patients. I'm a good doctor, and I care about my patients. I may or may not stay in the Air Force, but I'll always be a doctor!

I have a message I'd like to pass on to you. Decide early what you are interested in, and maintain your focus. Work towards your goals. Don't wait until college to decide what you want to be. And no matter what happens, or what gets in your way, you can always still do it later. Look at me; I ran into obstacles, but I stayed with my goals. I'm doing what I wanted to do!

Questions for Victor:

What is your educational background?
High School Diploma
BS, Chemistry, Tennessee Tech.
MS, Chemistry, Tennessee Tech.
MD, University of Tennessee