PLASTIC SURGEON AT RSUTH RECEIVES THE AMERICAN CLEFT PALATE CRANIOFACIAL ASSOCIATION (ACPA) VISITING SCHOLAR AWRDS FOR 2024.
Dr. Oti Nimi Aria, a renowned Plastic Surgeon and committed Cleft Care Provider in the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital (RSUTH) has received the American Cleft Palate Craniofacial Association Visiting Scholar Award for 2024 making her the second scholar to receive the prestigious award.
Dr. Aria heads the Burns and Plastic Surgery Unit of RSUTH where she offers much-needed services providing cleft care and surgical services in Rivers State. As a renowned Cleft Care Provider, Dr. Aria partners with other Cleft Care Providers to raise awareness about cleft lip and palate in Nigeria. She has a Post-Fellowship Certificate in Cleft Care from the West African College of Surgeons (WACS) in collaboration with Smile Train International, and is a Smile Train partner. She is a member of the Nigerian Association for Cleft Lip and Palate (NACLP), through which she first learned about the American Cleft Palate Craniofacial Association (ACPA). She serves as a member of the West African College of Surgeons Committee of the Annual Conferences, as well as Faculty for Nigeria’s National Surgical Obstetrics Anaesthesia and Nursing Plan (NSOANP)-Smile Train Research Capacity Training.
Dr. Aria will visit two ACPA Approved Teams next spring – the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Cleft/Craniofacial Program and Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital Pediatric Cleft and Craniofacial Program in Nashville, Tennessee. She will also attend ACPA’s 81st Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado and give a presentation about her experiences. Her experience will reposition Pediatric care and general healthcare service delivery in the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital and in the entire healthcare landscape in Nigeria.
With a passion for global surgery and specifically health systems strengthening, Dr. Aria remains one of the emerging young female leaders in surgery and stands out as a role model and mentor for students, trainees and younger colleagues.
Congratulations Dr. Aria. RSUTH celebrates you.
#RSUTHMEDIA
24/11/2023
