Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Shaker Hamadiya.
Dr. Hamadiya, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I fell in love with becoming a Medical Doctor at the age of 17. I shadowed a doctor who would volunteer his time to see patients who did not have access to medical care. I was astounded at the positive impact he had on their lives and knew I wanted to devote myself to the field.
The journey of a Medical Doctor is very long, and when the odds are against you, it feels even longer and more stressful. I barely understood English when I moved back to Canada from Syria at 17. After finishing my undergraduate Biology degree, I attended St. George’s University School of Medicine in Grenada. I chose the school because their program was ranked very well, and it was affiliated with top hospitals in NYC and Miami.
The problem I then faced was that, not only am I an immigrant, I was also an International Medical graduate. Both of those combined made it difficult to receive residency training. According to the American Medical Association, a medical student has on average 16 interviews. Despite having scored well on all my exams, I applied to 92 programs and was selected to interview by only one.
The one I interviewed with was Baylor College of Medicine, ranked in the top 10 best medical institutions in the country. It was an incredible program, and I connected well with everyone. However, they also interviewed at least 85 other candidates. All of my friends were nervous for me, but I had a gut feeling I received the spot.
After miraculously receiving the spot, I endured three years of sleepless nights, 24-hour shifts, and 6-day work weeks. The hard work made me appreciate the role I always dreamt of becoming even more. Afterwards, I moved to my favorite city, Miami, and am loving every moment of my new journey here.
Has it been a smooth road?
Getting this far is never a smooth road. One of my biggest struggles was moving to multiple different cities & countries throughout my training. This turned out to be a great blessing, but for a person who is very family oriented it was difficult to leave my family and adapt multiple times to different cultures and surroundings.
The uncertainty of not succeeding was also a huge challenge but I learned to enjoy the ride and not just focus on the destination. ultimately it always works out.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with your business – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My residency training is in Family & Community Medicine. This means I have been trained in everything from delivering babies, taking care of the babies and making sure they were healthy, to taking care of their parents and grandparents.
I now specialize in wellness and preventative medicine for all age groups. I still have a large number of patients of whom I manage their chronic medical illnesses, such as Hypertension, Heart disease, Kidney disease, lung disease, Diabetes, Thyroid, etc.
Another specialty I have learned and mastered since being in Miami is Injectable Aesthetic Procedures, such as Botox and hyaluronic acid filler (for the lips, cheeks, nose and wrinkles and lines around the face). Having the eye for Aesthetics is important, but it’s even more important to be taught well because of the level of risk. I am fortunate enough to have been trained by world-renowned Plastic Surgeons from Los Angeles and Miami. Their experience and training has been immeasurably beneficial and led me to build my business quickly with high percentages of returning clients.
I am most proud of the fact that, in addition to being trained at one of the most prestigious institutions in the country, I feel I can really connect with people on a deeper level than just being the doctor and asking all the medical questions. At the end of the day, we should be healers, not robots who check the boxes and write the prescriptions and move on to the next patient room. I take my time with my patients and get to know them on a deeper level.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I wouldn’t change a thing.
Contact Info:
- Website: DrHamadiya.com
- Phone: 305-908-7083
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Dr.HAMADIYA/
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