In Health, Leadership And Publishing, Meet ‘Miracle’ Dr Igyuse Saater

Health, Stories 23/08/2020 by Akaafele

Igyuse Saater was born in Zaki Biam in Ukum local government of Benue State, it’s been a humble beginning but with an unwavering determination to carve out a niche and achieve success. This has involved hundreds of failed attempts. However, as the common saying goes, the universe conspires to help people achieve their dreams when they are passionate about them. 

When I moved to Pacific College, Lagos in 1996 I could hardly communicate in English, and came last in my first term examination, but worked my way to the very top of the class by the time we left the school in 2002. This amazing transformation brought the belief that it is actually possible to achieve anything. Till date, my friends in Pacific keep telling me how I am a miracle. From there, I found my way to the medical school at Igbinedion University where the competition was tough. Of course, in the medical school, certain grades must be achieved in order to move to the next class, people who fail to achieve the set grades are transferred to other courses like Anatomy and Biochemistry. Because of this, I became a voracious reader so as not to disappoint myself and my family.

After I completed national service at State House Clinic, I had contacted at least ten hospitals in Abuja looking for employment. None got back!

As I became an ardent reader of not just medical, but self-help books, it was natural to jot down some ideas I got from different authors. These ideas soon began to coalesce into something big. In 2007, I wrote my first book and titled it “Woman Exposed”, the response was amazing. People who wanted to read the book and see how I had exposed women bought the book in hundreds. However, the question many kept asking was if and when I will expose men too. In 2009, I wrote “Men Exposed” to create a balance. While the response was not as great as the previous one, it did sell fast too and impacted lives.

The feedbacks I received from these books prompted me to believe I was doing something right, though improvements were required. With the help of great mentors, I got my third book “Leadership Intelligence” published in 2010. It was like a dream when the Chancellor of the university, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion took interests in the book and offered to fund its publication. Coincidentally, this was around the period the university celebrated its 10th anniversary. As a way of appreciation, I was made one of the keynote speakers on that occasion, sharing platform with the then minister of information, late Dora Akunyili, minister of state Education, Aisha Dukku among other dignitaries.

Back to professional life. After I completed national service at State House Clinic, I had contacted at least ten hospitals in Abuja looking for employment. None got back! I founded FirstCare Health that same month to provide mobile health services. The response was great!

I was also able to conduct research on the utilization of maternal health services in Benue state, which has been accepted for publishing in a major journal.

To scale up, we applied for and were granted the USD 10,000 Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Programme Award. I learnt an important lesson; when doors fail to open, sometimes you need to create new ones. That same year, I secured the Commonwealth Scholarship to pursue a postgraduate program at Queen’s University, Belfast, which in a way, affected the efforts I had put in the start-up. At Queen’s, I was privileged to conduct a series of research projects, prominent among which was investigating the impact of “green Prescriptions” in the management of non-communicable diseases, which led to the implementation of the scheme for the first time in Northern Ireland by the Northern Ireland Environment Link (NIEL).

To further enhance my career as a Public Health practitioner, I proceeded to Liverpool John Moores University to pursue a second postgraduate degree in International Public Health. This was to further hone my research skills and prepare me to handle the global health challenges facing our world. I was also able to conduct research on the utilization of maternal health services in Benue state, which has been accepted for publishing in a major journal.

All Or None Law by Dr Saater Igyuse © I am Benue 2020

On returning from the United Kingdom, I felt a need to create an organization that will handle my book business and speaking engagements. Leadership Intelligence Inc., was born. Indeed, book publishing is a difficult venture in our clime—research, writing, publishing, marketing and sales are all on the shoulders of the author. Despite these challenges, the desire has been greater than the resistance, leading to the new book “All or None Law: the science behind focus and excellence”. This is a book that will challenge your beliefs, enable you to set amazing goals, be obsessed about them and achieve results you never thought possible.

In all, the key lesson is that success requires a great deal of efforts and does not happen by default. If you persevere long enough, you will win!

3 thoughts on “In Health, Leadership And Publishing, Meet ‘Miracle’ Dr Igyuse Saater

  1. Dondo Uyoo

    You are indeed a miracle. I’m inspired

    Reply
  2. Isaac Ubula

    Dr., you are an inspiration for the young!

    Reply
  3. Iveren Doreen Tersange

    So inspiring…May God continue to lift you.

    Reply

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