About Us

West African Stroke Initiative

The West African Stroke Initiative offers services that deal with cerebrovascular problems involving the brain, spine, and neck region. We seek to establish a private academic partnership that will offer services and train Neurosurgeons, Radiologists, and Neurologists to carry out neck and head interventions for acute stroke patients, aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, brain bleeds, and endovascular treatments in the brain, spine, and neck region while addressing the myths, cultural perceptions, and religious interpretations around these neurological conditions.

 

Unfortunately, few organizations are attending to the needs of these patient populations. Partnering with private and public sub-acute and primary care organizations, we will deliver services to support patients, caregivers, and their families as they transition from the hospital to home to optimize outcomes, including minimizing complications, promoting health, quality of life, and improving patients experience with care while decreasing use of costly healthcare services.

The Team

Dr. Uchenna Okafo, MD

MBBS, MRCSI, FRCSI (SN), FEBNS (Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder)

Dr. Okafo is a neurosurgeon at Westchester Medical Center, New York. Dr. Okafo completed his Endovascular Surgical Neuro-interventional fellowship at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He also completed an Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology Fellow at the University of Minnesota. Dr Okafo also completed a Neurosurgery Residency at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, FRCS(SN). Dr Okafo is a Fellow of the European Board of Neurological Surgery (FEBNS). Dr.  Okafo has both trained and practiced Neurosurgery at Cork University Hospital and Beaumon Hospital in Dublin. He also worked at several Neurosurgery centers in the UK as a registered Specialist with the GMC. He completed Medical School and received his Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

Dr. Onome Henry Osokpo, PhD

PhD, MSc., MSN, RN (Chief Scientific & Operations Officer, Co-Founder)

Dr. Osokpo is an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Chicago and an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a 2024 NIA Butler Williams Scholar, 2024 NHLBI PRIDE-CVD Scholar, and 2023 NIMHD HDRI Scholar. He was a Penn Provost Postdoctoral Fellow at the NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health and a CICADA scientist at the University of Pennsylvania. His research focuses on understanding and addressing the multilevel barriers to healthcare—sociocultural, economic, behavioral, and system-related (e.g., organizational)—that adversely impact the health and outcomes of adults with or at risk for chronic illnesses, including stroke. Dr. Osokpo’s research is deeply informed by his lived experiences and academic and clinical training. He is dedicated to improving health outcomes for vulnerable groups facing adverse Social Determinants of Health, particularly racial and ethnic minorities and individuals in low- to middle-income countries.
 
Dr. Osokpo holds a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a Kass Scholar, a Jonas Nursing Scholar, and a Fontaine Society Fellow. He received his MSN in the Adult and Gerontology Nurse Practitioner Program from the University of Pennsylvania. He earned a Bachelor of Science in nursing degree at Stony Brook University. Dr. Osokpo’s degrees prior to nursing comprise a Bachelor of Science in chemistry education and a Master of Science in analytical chemistry.
 
 

Board of Advisors

Dr. Ramachandra Tummala, MD

Dr. Ramachandra Tummala is a Professor of Neurosurgery and the Program Director of the Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology Fellowship at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Dr. Tummala earned his medical degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and completed his residency in Neurosurgery at the University of Minnesota. He completed two fellowships, one in Cerebrovascular/Skull Base Surgery at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital and another in Neuroendovascular Surgery at the University of Buffalo, NY. He has been a faculty member since 2014 and is currently a full professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

Dr. Henrik Ullman, MD, PhD

Dr. Ullman is a Neuroradiologist, Neurointerventionist, and Assistant Professor at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. Dr. Ullman earned his Medical Degree and PhD in Neuroscience from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. He finished his Radiology residency at UCLA and is a board-certified radiologist by the American Board of Radiology.  Additionally, Dr. Ullman completed a Neurointerventional Radiology Fellowship at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. His professional interests revolve around technical advancements in Neuroradiology and Neurointervention and expanding access to advanced diagnostic and therapeutic technologies to underserved communities.

Meet our Providers

Below is a dynamic team of experienced providers committed to excellence in neurointervention who have embraced WASI’s mission to increase access to world-class neurointerventional services to the people in West Africa, including stroke treatment. Our providers are dedicated to delivering exceptional service and ensuring that patients receive top-tier care every time.

Dr. Uchenna Okafo, MD

Dr Okafo CEO and co-founder of the West African Stroke Initiative. Dr. Okafo is a neurosurgeon at Westchester Medical Center, New York. Dr. Okafo completed his Endovascular Surgical Neuro-interventional fellowship at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He also completed an Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology Fellow at the University of Minnesota. Dr Okafo also completed a Neurosurgery Residency at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, FRCS(SN). Dr Okafo is a Fellow of the European Board of Neurological Surgery (FEBNS). Dr.  Okafo has both trained and practiced Neurosurgery at Cork University Hospital and Beaumon Hospital in Dublin. He also worked at several Neurosurgery centers in the UK as a registered Specialist with the GMC. He completed Medical School and received his Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

Dr. Ramachandra Tummala, MD

Dr. Ramachandra Tummala is a Professor of Neurosurgery and the Program Director of the Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology Fellowship at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Dr. Tummala earned his medical degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and completed his residency in Neurosurgery at the University of Minnesota. He completed two fellowships, one in Cerebrovascular/Skull Base Surgery at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital and another in Neuroendovascular Surgery at the University of Buffalo, NY. He has been a faculty member since 2014 and is currently a full professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

Dr. Henrik Ullman, MD, PhD

Dr. Ullman is a Neuroradiologist, Neurointerventionist, and Assistant Professor at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. Dr. Ullman earned his Medical Degree and PhD in Neuroscience from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. He finished his Radiology residency at UCLA and is a board-certified radiologist by the American Board of Radiology.  Additionally, Dr. Ullman completed a Neurointerventional Radiology Fellowship at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. His professional interests revolve around technical advancements in Neuroradiology and Neurointervention and expanding access to advanced diagnostic and therapeutic technologies to underserved communities.

Dr. Chizoba Ezepue, MD

Dr. Ezepue practices as a specialist in Vascular Neurology and Neuroendovascular Surgery at the SSM HEALTH Hospital Systems in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. He is board-certified in Neurology and Vascular Neurology.  Dr. Ezepue attended medical school at Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Nigeria. He completed his residency in Adult Neurology at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia, USA, followed by fellowship training in both Vascular Neurology and Neuroendovascular Surgery at Saint Louis University.

Dr. Mesha Martinez, MD

Dr. Mesha Martinez is a pediatric radiologist, neuroradiologist and neurointerventionalist. She received her undergraduate degrees in Psychology and Biological Sciences from the University of Delaware in 2005. She gained her Doctor of Medicine from Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 2009, with subsequent training in internal medicine (2010), and completed a diagnostic radiology residency graduating in 2014. She did additional training in pediatric neuroradiology at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and pediatric radiology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children (Philadelphia). She then went on to complete ACGME-accredited fellowships in Pediatric Radiology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (2015), Diagnostic Neuroradiology at the Icahn School of Medicine Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City (2016) and Endovascular Surgical Neuroradiology at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore) (2018). She earned her certification from the American Board of Radiology in 2016. Dr. Martinez specializes in vascular diseases of the brain, spine, head and neck in adults and pediatrics. Her research and clinical interests include diagnosis and treatment of perinatal and pediatric neurologic, neurovascular and psychiatric diseases. She is passionate about medicine and patient advocacy and her practice philosophy is to ensure her patients get the best care. In her spare time she enjoys reading and spending time with her husband and son.

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