Having been schooled at the prestigious Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Anita Kemi Dasilva certainly had a vast range of very lucrative career options open to her. In spite of these opportunities, however, Anita Dasilva Ibru opted to dedicate herself to improving the lives of Nigerian women and patients by working at a relatively modest-sized hospital in Lagos called the Ideal Eagle. In addition to this, she devotes much of her remaining time to serving on a five-member board for the Erelu Adebayo Foundation.
Her work is nothing short of remarkable, especially in terms to her contributions to the Erelu Adebayo Foundation. Here, she is focused on improving the lives of orphaned children, widows and teens by creating educational programs and improving access to necessary forms of assistance and care. The goal of many of these efforts is to offset the ravages that have been caused by the AIDS epidemic and national poverty.
These efforts lay bare a major concern that often remains hidden. This is the suffering that disease has caused in a region where access to medicines and the right forms of prevention are not optimal. There are many children who have been orphaned and who are in some instances, left to care for their siblings alone after parents have succumbed to AIDS or AIDS-related complications among other common forms of illness.
She has also established a variety of scholarships that have improved the accessibility to higher education for Nigerian and teens. Widows and young girls can additionally benefit from educational programs that promote self-sufficiency. These women can learn how to become breadwinners and support themselves and their families, which is a form of empowerment that might not otherwise be available.
As one of just two doctors on the Ideal Eagle hospital staff, she serves as the OB-GYN. Her efforts here are not solely reserved for those who possess the financial means to obtain medical care. Instead, Anita Dasilva Ibru serves a hospital with a strong focus on inclusion, meaning that even those who are less fortunate can access the health care they require.