I Live in Ibadan to Avoid Lagos Traffic

Interviewed by Funke Olaode

How did you come about the name ‘Griffin’?

I am Dr. Samuel Adeyinka Griffin from Apongbon area of Lagos. I am a consultant gynecologist and obstetrician with 40 years of experience. I am based in Ibadan but was born in Lagos on February 11, 1946 almost immediately after the Second World War. The name ‘Griffin’ is an Irish name adopted by my parents during colonisation.

Why the preference for Ibadan being a Lagosian?

I grew up mainly abroad. I studied in Germany. I came back to Nigeria and had a stint in Ibadan working at the University College Hospital. I also worked at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) immediately after the civil war in 1971. I was able to compare the two cities. As much as I like Lagos, the traffic situation can be stressful. Ibadan is calm and we live a communal life. Your friends were always within reach. I moved down to Ibadan in 1983 and I have been there ever since.

How would you describe your growing up?

My father was an engineer with the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) but died around 1950 when I was barely five years old. My mother took up the responsibility of looking after me and my younger brother (who is late now). I grew up in Lagos up to the age of eight. I was very rascally. I stayed in the North for six years until I was ready to go to a secondary school. From the North, I went to secondary school in Ondo State called Anglican Grammar School, Igbara-Oke. It was one of those Anglican Schools coming up. Of course, it was a strict environment.

At what stage did you develop a passion for medicine?

I always had a passion for taking care of people. I passed out of secondary school with flying colours and within one year I was in Ibadan Grammar School for my Higher School Certificate (HSC). Again, within the second term I got a scholarship from the Christian Council of Nigeria. It was an unusual scholarship for young students in the secondary or HSC to go to Germany and complete their HSC programme there, thereby inculcating in us at a very early age the culture and attitude of the Germans.

There were about 10 of us that attended higher schools there. And two of us got a scholarship in my time. After graduation from higher school then came the career choice. In the process, I developed a passion for medicine and because of my good grade it was easy for me to enter one of the prestigious universities in Germany.

How did you cope with language barrier in Germany?

It was easy because we went there at an early age. I was about 18 years. Our sponsors sent us to a foremost German language school, the Goethe Institute. I finished a six-month course in four months. Our curriculum in Nigeria then was a bit higher than theirs, we were able to cope. I studied General Medicine from 1966 to 1972 and qualified as a doctor in 1972. I did my houseman-ship in 1973 and worked as a General Medical practitioner up to end of 1974.

At the initial stage, I wasn’t sure which specialty I wanted to do. My uncle advised me to come back to Nigeria to gather some experience. I came back and was employed in UCH as a registrar and worked there for two years. At that point I had an insight into what I wanted to do. I went back to Germany and started training in gynecology and obstetrics.

Why did you choose your field of medicine?

I found out in Nigeria it was one specialty where you are busy all the time. When you are dealing with a woman, the entire family is involved. I am partially retired now but have my own hospital, Teju Hospital in Ibadan and still consult. I named the hospital in honour of my mother who was pivotal to my progress in life.

Having lost your father early, what gave you the conviction that you were going to succeed?

I was smart and was aware of the fact that my father was late and I only had my mother. That gave me some unusual confidence that there is nothing I could not deal with in life. I was not afraid of anything and when there were financial hiccups such as lack of funds to go to secondary school, I still forged on. For instance, my grandfather paid for the first year and my mother was left to carry the burden.

Apart from medicine what other passion do you have?

I have passion for humanity and when I started my practice in Ibadan the urge to help the people was there. I ruminated how best one can do this and there is saying that “Alone you achieve little and together you achieve more.” I told my friends that invited me to Lions Club then that they should wait until I am self-sufficient and able to give. So I joined the Lions Club International, a humanitarian service organisation in the early 80s. Recently, I was involved in measles campaign as the national coordinator in Nigeria. In the last six years, our major activities are blindness prevention and sight conservation: we carry out eye test and eye surgery.

Are you fulfilled?

God has been faithful. I lost my father and by providence and dint of hard work I was able to acquire higher education without spending my own money. When I left paid employment and stayed on my own I knew I was going to succeed. I am a contented and fulfilled man.

What lesson has life taught you?

That you should always believe in yourself. God has given everybody a potential to be great. And once you discover that potential follow it with passion. The grace of God will always see you through.