DR . WHO
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were so many women coming to have babies delivered that a one patient room regularly had three . “ It was not uncommon to deliver babies on the floor . The labors were taking place all night , nonstop ”. The only four operating rooms in the hospital functioned at capacity 24 / 7 , performing C-sections , abdominal explorations for the nonstop stab wounds , or broken bone surgeries , with interns always involved . “ It was stressful , but a great experience .”
After the rotations ended , Dr . Ajkay completed his year of social service ( a government requirement before obtaining a full medical license ), while looking forward to a plastic surgery residency . There were just 12 residency positions within the entire country of 45 million people . It became a second job to connect with plastic surgery attendings and prepare for the national board exam .
“ I was 23 when I finished medical school , and patients always thought we were too young to be doctors . That was an interesting dynamic , and I learned quickly that I had to convey confidence to them . I ran my own primary care clinic and had several weekly shifts covering urgent care and the emergency room . In the afternoons and weekends , I ’ d go assist plastic surgery attendings in their surgeries and study for the test .”’
All that he ’ d done to that moment didn ’ t prepare Dr . Ajkay for the merciless residency course he ’ d soon begin . Once again , he rotated within three hospitals , but this time a military hospital was included . It would challenge his capabilities immensely .
“ At that time , Colombia had been in a civil war for many years . I remember lying in the call room in the middle of the night and watching the helicopters come one after another full of wounded soldiers . I knew I ’ d be up all night because the if the patients made it out of the battlefield with a high velocity military bullet wound , they always required orthopedics and plastic surgery care . And the next day would include regular academic and surgical work . It was brutal ,” he said .
When asked how he survived the regimen of long nights and sleepless study , Dr . Ajkay ’ s answer was simple . “ Fear . You were in fear of not doing your job correctly and being dismissed . Each year there were just four residents accepted , out of a pool of two or three thousand plastic surgery candidates . The motivation was ‘ We could always fire you and bring in someone else who is dying to be in your position .’ I didn ’ t need caffeine or anything . It was the mere desire to finish the program .”
Dr . Ajkay did it . He finished his residency in 1999 with body and soul intact . During his training , his mentor , a craniofacial plastic surgeon , encouraged him to pursue a craniofacial fellowship in the United States , specifically under Dr . Bill Magee in Norfolk , Virginia . Dr . Magee is the co-founder of Operation Smile , the non-profit organization providing surgical care to children born with a cleft lip or cleft palate worldwide . Now here ’ s where things became complicated .
To go to Virginia , Dr . Ajkay was required to take the US Medical Licensing Exam ( USMLE ). So , he had to study for the test and still work to provide for himself on the side . As he was trying to figure out how to proceed with his career , the chief of plastic surgery from the National Cancer Institute called , offering a one year fellowship in breast reconstructive surgery .
“ I thought it would be a waste of time ,” Dr . Ajkay remembered . “ But it was a decent salary and I could study in the evenings . I agreed to take the fellowship and started in July of 1999 very skeptical . It turned out , I loved taking care of breast cancer patients . It was so fortuitous that I said yes because my initial inclination was to say no .” He developed close relationships with the cancer patients at the Cancer Institute , who were often downtrodden by their lot in life . He found the science behind breast cancer and reconstruction absolutely fascinating . “ I operated a lot , I learned a lot , and I worked with very thankful people . Also , I was able to take the USMLE and pass .”
After 30 years in South America and over a decade of medical knowledge earned , Dr . Ajkay packed his bags and flew to Virginia to begin the next chapter of his life . Not only was he embracing a career that he couldn ’ t predict , but he was leaving behind a very dangerous situation in the country he ’ d called home .
“ The political situation in Colombia had gotten very bad . I trained in the 1990s during the rise of Pablo Escobar . I remember during medical school , he bombed a plane hoping to kill a presidential candidate . The Security Service Agency headquarters ( the FBI counterpart in Colombia ) was bombed by Escobar , and we had to take care of the victims . There were kidnappings . It was a difficult time .”
Dr . Ajkay ’ s family wasn ’ t immune from the rising violence . A distant relative was murdered leaving his mother ’ s farm by thieves who simply wanted to steal his car . “ They shot him to death for a
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