Taiwo Alonge

What’s up! I was born in Hollywood, Florida and shortly afterwards moved about an hour south to Miami, Florida where I was raised by my Nigerian parents along with my older sister, twin brother, and younger sister. I am a product of Miami- Dade County Public Schools which fully immersed me in so much of the diversity Miami had to offer as well as all the holes within our society when it comes to supporting Black and other minoritized children. I attended college at the University of Florida (Go Gators! Go SEC!) where I studied biology but more importantly it was there that I was first able to explore and develop my interests in humanistic, patient-centered and trauma-informed care through an adolescent and young adult palliative care organization called Streetlight. After graduating, I went straight through to medical school in NYC where I attended Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S) and the Mailman School of Public Health. In medical school I was able to better operationalize and practice providing care to underserved Black and Brown communities in upper Manhattan and the Bronx and in public health school I was able to take a deeper dive into understanding how our current domestic and global policies and systems are not designed with the intention of affirming life particularly for minoritized people, incarcerated individuals, and those who are houseless and/or impoverished. I dabbled quite a bit in several specialties throughout medical school (pediatrics, family med, CT surgery, and orthopedics to name a few) but ultimately and very happily found my home in psychiatry. My interests in the health and wellbeing of minoritized children, adolescents, and adults as well as honoring and affirming the humanity of people left to struggle along the margins through love and abolition fit seamlessly within psychiatry. In addition to all of the above, I love playing and watching sports, music (hip-hop, R&B, and afrobeats), reading, cooking, and taking care of my plants!