When Chigozie Maduchukwu steps on stage to speak at Stanford Medicine’s commencement ceremony June 14, he won’t talk about diagnostics or disease. Instead, he plans to focus on a subject discussed far less frequently in medical school, yet one he believes is of equal importance: storytelling. “I want everybody there to know that each of us has a unique story,” he said. “And it’s important to sit and listen to the stories of others.”
Maduchukwu, who is graduating with a master’s degree in physician assistant studies, learned the significance of listening to patients’ stories through personal experience. When he was in fifth grade, his mother, Ebere, was diagnosed with a brain tumor. An emigrant from Nigeria, she had spent years complaining to her doctor about headaches and other symptoms, only to be dismissed. “She felt her doctor didn’t respect her or listen to her because of her accent or being from a different country,” Maduchukwu recalled.
When she finally requested a new physician, they ordered a brain scan. That’s how the tumor was discovered. Maduchukwu’s mother had brain surgery and fully recovered, then endured a second surgery when he was in high school and the tumor returned.
“I can only imagine what my life would’ve been like if she hadn’t been listened to and had passed away,” he said.
Maduchukwu had been thinking of becoming an engineer, but the ordeal inspired him to pursue a career in medicine. He wanted to become the kind of provider his mother had needed from the beginning — the kind who will “take the time to really listen to people and take their concerns seriously,” he said.
Paving a path to a PA career
Maduchukwu grew up in Elk Grove, California, where his father was an accountant and his mother was a patient support specialist in a psychiatry clinic. He and his three siblings traveled often to Nigeria, where both of his parents were born.
By the time he enrolled at the University of California, Berkeley, Maduchukwu had set his sights on becoming a physician assistant. While in high school he had shadowed PAs and doctors at a neurology practice at the suggestion of his older brother. He was struck by their collaborative relationship and particularly drawn to the relational aspect of the PA’s work. “There was so much opportunity for her to comfortably listen to her patients and see what was going on,” he said. “I knew I wanted to have that level of in-depth time with my patients.”
At UC Berkeley, Maduchukwu received the prestigious Regents’ and Chancellor’s Scholarship, which is awarded to top applicants. He majored in public health to gain a foundation in the complexities of the health care system. He also co-founded a student group for those interested in medical roles such as physician assistants and nurse practitioners and taught a course that helped students prepare for those careers.
Maduchukwu also furthered his commitment to public service, serving as president of an organization that educates seniors and children about bone health and as chair of equity and inclusion for the organization that awarded his scholarship. “I really loved the idea that I could add my voice toward anyone who was struggling and help them navigate life a little better or just show them they’re seen,” he said.
I can only imagine what my life would’ve been like if she hadn’t been listened to and had passed away."
Maduchukwu was also determined to earn 2,000 clinical hours to strengthen his applications for physician assistant programs before graduating from college. He spent more than eight hours a day, three days a week, working as a certified nursing assistant at facilities in Berkeley and Sacramento for patients with dementia, those requiring long-term care and others.
When the pandemic hit in March 2020, Maduchukwu volunteered to work with patients who had tested positive for COVID-19. Watching people die and facilities run low on protective supplies left a lasting impression. “It taught me that in a health emergency, time and again those from minority groups and those with disabilities are going to be the first to get hit and the first to die,” he said. “It also taught me resilience. When everything around you is falling apart, you have to take a step back and breathe and do what you can.”
Maduchukwu gained more perspective while spending three months interning in the emergency room of a Nigerian hospital, one of the few specializing in neurology. “Even when there were doctors doing incredibly good work, it was still not accessible to the majority of people who need it most,” he said. “It was another reason for me to look into what we can do to increase accessibility.”
Care rooted in community
After graduation, Maduchukwu spent two years as a hypertension and obesity health coach before working as a full-time nanny for a little girl. “Seeing her grow up and develop put a love for pediatrics in me,” he said.
When it came time to choose a physician assistant program, Maduchukwu enrolled at Stanford Medicine because of the opportunities it offered to work at an academic hospital and delve into varied specialties. “There was so much support for exploring the different facets of my interests,” he said. Whether it was shadowing an anesthesiologist or a pediatric heart surgeon, “I just ask, and they set it up.”
There was so much support for exploring the different facets of my interests. I just ask, and they set it up."
Maduchukwu also found the program’s small class size to be a supportive environment. “The small cohort helped us feel like a community, like a family,” he said. “Nobody felt left behind.”
In 2023, Maduchukwu received a Community Service Scholarship Award from the California Academy of Physician Associates, which honors PA students who combine academic excellence with public service. For him, that has included serving as a leader in student groups that organized blood drives, health fairs, open mic nights and other events. He also spent two years volunteering as a part-time lab manager at Arbor Free Clinic, which serves patients who lack insurance. “Every medical professional should have ties with the community to see what normal struggling Americans are going through and help out,” he said.
Maduchukwu explored a variety of specialties, including serving as a teaching assistant in courses on clinical anatomy, cardiovascular medicine and cardiothoracic surgery. He settled on family medicine after observing Stanford Medicine’s Stephen Richmond, MD, during rotations at Roots Community Health in Oakland. “He’s the best family medicine doctor on the planet…he’s so sweet and cares about his patients,” he said.
Maduchukwu returned to Nigeria after his first year at Stanford Medicine to shadow doctors and conduct data analysis on infant mortality and in vitro fertilization. This summer, he plans to return for an internship with mDoc, a health technology company that serves patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension.
Afterward, Maduchukwu will start as a physician assistant at Solano County Family Health Services, a community clinic whose patients are primarily people of color, many of whom experience housing insecurity. “I want to work with patients who are typically underserved or ignored,” he said.
Drawing on his many years of community service, Maduchukwu hopes to relay another message to this year’s graduates during his speech: “In a world where medicine is under attack, we need to be a flame of truth and advocacy,” he said. “The road is looking dark, so we’ve got to be the light.”