Kolawole S. Okuyemi, MD, MPH

Languages Spoken: English

Kola Okuyemi, M.D., M.P.H., is a board certified family medicine physician who specializes in acute and chronic diseases and full spectrum care for patients of all ages. He received his medical degree from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria. Dr. Okuyemi completed a family medicine residency at the University of Kansas Medical Center and obtained a master’s degree in public health while on the faculty at the University of Kansas. He also completed a research fellowship at Morehouse School of medicine, Atlanta, Georgia. His professional interests include improving the health of racial/ethnic minorities and other socio-economically disadvantaged individuals, addressing health disparities/equity, socio-cultural and behavioral risk factors impacting health outcomes, professional development and mentoring. In his leisure time, Dr. Okuyemi enjoys reading, exercise, and spending time with his family. He accepts most insurance plans. At this time, Dr. Okuyemi is not accepting new patients.

In March 2017, Kolawole S. Okuyemi, M.D., M.P.H., was appointed as Professor and Chair for the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine at the University of Utah School Of Medicine in Salt Lake City, Utah. He also holds the George D. Gross, M.D. & Esther M. Gross M.D. Presidential Endowed Chair in Family & Preventive Medicine. Dr Okuyemi also serves as the Huntsman Cancer Institute Director of Diversity and Inclusion as well as the Associate Director for Mentorship Development for the Center for Clinical and Translational Sciences.

Prior to coming to Utah, he was at the University of Minnesota Medical School Twin Cities for 11 years where he was Professor and the inaugural Endowed Chair for Health Equity Research in the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health. While in Minnesota, he was also the Director for the Program in Health Disparities Research as well as Director of Cancer Health Disparities for the Masonic Cancer Center, an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota. He received his medical degree from University of Ilorin, Nigeria, completed a family medicine residency and Master of Public Health at the University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas , and a public health research fellowship at the Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia.

Dr. Okuyemi’s career in the last 20 years focused on research and programs to improve the health of underserved populations and eliminate health disparities using pharmacological and culturally tailored behavioral interventions as well as community-engaged research approaches. He has been Principal Investigator on several NIH (NCI, NIDA, NHLBI, NIMHD, NIGMS) funded centers as well as research and training grants aimed at reducing cancer-related health disparities especially among African Americans, African Immigrants, and homeless populations.

In September 2014, Dr. Okuyemi was one of 5 Principal Investigators awarded a $22 million NIH grant to establish the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) and serves as PI/Director of NRMN’s Professional Development Core. Dr. Okuyemi has a passion for mentoring and has mentored faculty, postdoctoral fellows, graduate, and undergraduate students many of whom have progressed to establish their own independent academic, research, or other health professional careers. Dr. Okuyemi has published over 120 peer-reviewed scientific articles and book chapters.