Growing up in a cramped, three-bedroom house in Huntsville, Alabama, with nine other family members, Gerald Onuoha’s early life was marked by struggle. “We were often moving from home to home,” he recalls. Kicked out of middle school before dropping out of high school, Onuoha says he was often exposed to negative environments during his formative years. “I was not on the trajectory to become a successful human,” he reflects. “I was on the school-to-prison pipeline—a path that is neither beneficial to the individual nor the community.” 

While Onuoha faced a future seemingly constrained by his circumstances, his story is not one of defeat but of transformation and triumph. Today, Onuoha, MD, MS ’15, is a prominent internal medicine hospitalist in Nashville, Tenn., recognized as one of the top ten doctors under 40 by the National Medical Association in 2023. But his journey into medicine has been far from conventional, with early experiences with systemic barriers and personal hardship having profoundly shaped his commitment to health equity and education. 

Onuoha’s turnaround began when his mother, discovering that he was failing in school through his hidden report cards, challenged him to live up to his potential. “You have so much talent,” she told him. “I don’t want you to waste your life when you could be so much greater than you are now.” 

This pivotal moment was the catalyst for Onuoha’s return to education. With the support of his family and mentors, he re-enrolled in high school at age 16, doing day and night school to catch up, and eventually earned a degree in physics from Tennessee State University. A chance encounter with a Black physician inspired him to pursue medicine, leading him to Meharry Medical College and later to The Dartmouth Institute (TDI) for Health Policy & Clinical Practice. 

At Dartmouth, Onuoha honed his skills in healthcare policy, biostatistics, and public health, earning his Master of Science degree in 2015. “Dartmouth sharpened me to be more competent than I was before,” he reflects. This education provided him with the tools to address complex healthcare challenges and reinforce his dedication to improving health systems and outcomes. TDI’s excellent education programs are now more integrated into Geisel’s curriculum and serve as the core of the school’s expansive new Health Sciences programs. 

Onuoha’s commitment to equity extends beyond his clinical practice. During medical school, he co-founded the Project DReam Community Initiative with fellow aspiring healthcare practitioners. The initiative, Onuoha says, “aimed to support underprivileged students through high school and into medical and dental schools, exposing them to medical professionals, and inspiring them to pursue careers in STEM fields.” Although Project DReam paused in 2019, it is set to relaunch with a renewed focus through the “Everybody Wins” program, which aims to increase the number of Black doctors and enhance healthcare access in underserved communities of all cultures. 

“Everybody Wins” is the latest and most extensive initiative of Everybody vs. Racism, a 501(c)(3) organization Onuoha founded to eradicate systemic racism across various sectors, including criminal justice, housing, food insecurity, education, entertainment, and healthcare. “Our mission is centered around unifying communities, and one of our major projects is improving healthcare access for everybody so that we can address the social determinants of health and disease,” he says. “By increasing the presence of Black doctors, we can alleviate healthcare disparities and improve healthcare delivery in marginalized communities.” 

Reflecting on his success, Onuoha says, “I could not have done it without people surrounding me, putting resources and love into where they thought I could be. My family galvanized around me—my mom, my cousins, some of our church friends—and helped me stay focused on my education. So when it comes to the community, I’m passionate because I come from a marginalized community. After going through what I went through, I understand that it takes a village to make successful people.” 

Onuoha’s approach to both medicine and equity is deeply informed by his own experiences of overcoming adversity and the lessons he has learned from diverse perspectives. His work exemplifies a holistic approach to healthcare, where understanding and addressing the social and environmental factors that impact health are crucial. “Life has taught me a lot of lessons,” he notes. “One of the immeasurable skills of being a great physician is cultural competence and meeting people where they are.”  

Currently, Onuoha practices medicine at HCA Healthcare/Envision in Nashville. With over a decade of experience and a compassionate and holistic approach, he treats patients by actively addressing the social determinants of health, such as access to care, education, and socioeconomic factors. A typical day for Onuoha consists of reviewing patient charts, leading and overseeing treatment teams, writing additional orders from overnight admissions, and organizing community outreach initiatives. “Healing the person as well as the community” is one of Onuoha’s mottos. “At Dartmouth, I learned how to ask the right questions, analyze complex problems, and develop practical solutions that help move the needle forward on getting patients the right care,” he says. 

Onuoha’s experience at Dartmouth, surrounded by individuals from varied backgrounds, reinforced his belief in the importance of diverse perspectives in advancing healthcare, he says. For embodying these values, Onuoha first served as the TDI graduate representative before being honored by Dartmouth with the Martin Luther King Jr. Distinguished Alumni Award in January 2024. 

As he continues to advocate for health equity and mentor the next generation of healthcare professionals, Onuoha remains dedicated to the principle that success is not solely about personal achievement but about uplifting and empowering others.  

“Success is multifaceted,” he says. “It’s about waking up every day doing what I love, being surrounded by people I care about, and contributing positively to the community. If I can create positive changes in the community and see students become doctors, I consider that success.”