Dr. Raqaq Alebiosu Shares Tips for Practice Success
Alumni Spotlight Cont.
A 2011 graduate of National University of Health Sciences [NUHS], Raqaq Alebiosu, DC, is currently using his clinical skills as a team member of Aligned Modern Health in Chicago, a practice specializing in chiropractic physical medicine, acupuncture, functional medicine, and clinical nutrition.
After graduation, one of the more difficult tasks that Dr. Alebiosu faced was developing confidence and the skills necessary to connect with his patients. “Trust and communication are two of the most important skills you can have when working with patients,” he says. “Trust and communication leads to learning more about your patients and their concerns."
One way that he built up his confidence and patient skills was through working with other doctors and mentors. In networking, he was able to see how different doctors work with their patients one-on-one and how they respond to different situations. One of his pieces of advice to new graduates is not to be thrown when a patient does not respond the way you expect – everyone is different and everyone responds differently. By having effective communication skills and trust with patients, doctors can effectively respond to the unexpected.
Prior to joining Aligned, Dr. Alebiosu learned some of these skills working for two years with a medical doctor treating patients suffering from arthritis and pain. He has also worked as an in-home health care provider, where he was given the opportunity to see how his patients live on a daily basis, and how they manage pain at home. Putting all of his skills to use at Aligned, he now works in physical medicine and nutrition, which is in part a result of his background in interdisciplinary medicine provided by NUHS and his previous work with medical doctors.
When asked how NUHS prepared him for his current career, Dr. Alebiosu stated that NUHS gives students a balance of everything from oncology to botanicals. Often, patients have other illnesses, are seeing other doctors, and possibly taking other medications. Not only do doctors need the communication skills to discuss this issue with the patient, but they also need to have the understanding of interactions between medications. “Medication interaction,” he says, “is one of the skills that NUHS helped me achieve.”
While NUHS prepared Dr. Alebiosu for many things, he said there are other skills that current students and soon-to-be graduates must obtain on their own. His advice is to get out and meet people. He suggests utilizing Homecoming as an opportunity to network with other doctors and vendors. Many opportunities await NUHS graduates, if they open the doors. “By understanding patient care management, displaying confidence, and understanding and practicing ethics of medicine, one can succeed in their profession,” he says.
As a 2011 graduate of National University of Health Sciences (NUHS), Dr. Raqaq Alebiosu (DC) has been using his skills as a member of Aligned Modern Health. Prior to working at Aligned, Dr. Alebiosu worked with two internal medicine doctors doing in-home health and pain management. He also worked as a clinical director at another clinic performing physical medicine and nutrition. It was at this second location where he learned a lot of back-end work along with how to manage and motivate staff. Currently, he is the physical medicine director at his location and is working alongside other health care providers, including a functional medicine doctor, nutritionist, acupuncturist, massage therapist, and rehab therapist. Putting all of his skills to use at Aligned, he now works in physical medicine and nutrition, which is in part a result of his background in interdisciplinary medicine provided by NUHS and his previous work with medical doctors.
After graduation, one of the skills he developed over time was displaying confidence and improving his medical skills. “Trust and communication,” he says, “are two of the most important skills you can have when working with patients.” Trust and communication leads to learning more about your patients and their concerns.
One way that he built up his confidence and patient skills was through working with other doctors and mentors. In networking, he was able to see how different doctors work with their patients one-on-one and how they respond to different situations. One of his pieces of advice to new graduates is “Don't be discouraged when patients don't respond immediately with care." By having effective communication skills and trust with patients, doctors can effectively respond patients and guide them to a care plan that works best.
When asked how NUHS prepared him for his current career,
Dr. Alebiosu stated that NUHS gives students a balance of everything from physical medicine to nutrition. He says, “Often, patients are being seen by other health care providers and are performing other therapies or taking medications. They need to understand contraindications with therapies concerning physical medicine or nutritional recommendations. NUHS helped me feel confident in knowing how to treat patients when working other providers. Also, my education helped me feel confident when to refer out when patient conditions are beyond my scope.”
NUHS prepared Dr. Alebiosu for many things, but there are skills that soon-to-be graduates must obtain on their own. His advice to current students and soon-to-be graduates is to get out and meet people. He suggests utilizing Homecoming as an opportunity to network with other doctors and vendors. Many opportunities await NUHS graduates if they open the doors. By understanding patient care management, displaying confidence, and understanding and practicing ethics of medicine, one can succeed in their profession.
Dr. Raqaq Alebiosu