Dr. Oluwaseun “Seun” A. Adetayo | Surgeon
Dr. Adetayo has received over 50 awards, and her work has resulted in over 60 published works and over 80 presentations at national, international, and regional meetings. Her published works include peer-reviewed publications in leading journals including Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal, Annals of Plastic Surgery, Journal of Craniofacial Surgery, and Journal of Neurosurgery and Pediatrics, published abstracts, and book chapters. She has also been featured in various media outlets—on television, in newspapers and magazines, and in audiovisual formats—such as ABC News, NBC News, The University of Chicago Chronicle, The University of Chicago Magazine, The Eastern Echo Newspaper, Albany Med Today, Times Union Newspaper, Omaha World Herald, Hudson Valley Parent Magazine, Daily Gazette, Medicine on the Midway, and Spectrum News.
Dr. Adetayo has authored several book chapters, including contributions to the second edition of Comprehensive Cleft Care, a leading textbook on cleft and craniofacial disorders and treatment. She also contributed to the Family Companion Guide for families navigating cleft and craniofacial diagnoses and authored a chapter on the treatment of zygoma fractures in the textbook Operative Techniques in Plastic Surgery. Dr. Adetayo plays a significant role in mentoring and education, especially for women in medicine, healthcare, and professional fields.
She is actively involved in advocacy and leadership development for women, served as a guest speaker for various national initiatives such as the Synthes collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Company on Improving Cultural Competence and Ethnic Diversity in Healthcare, Pioneering Women in Reconstructive Surgery International Program by L’Oreal in conjunction with Resurge International, the Healthcare Finance Management Association (HFMA) annual Women In Leadership Conference, and several other community engagement and international invited speaker appearances.
Originally from Nigeria in West Africa, Dr. Adetayo has become one of the very few international Black women in academic plastic surgery in the United States. Although her journey has been arduous, she has not wavered in her commitment to providing top-tier care to her patients, their families, healthcare professionals, and her community.
She enjoys traveling, trying new cuisines, dancing, arts, learning about new cultures, and spending time with her parents and siblings. Her humanitarian work has taken her to different countries including Cuba, Haiti, Nigeria, Peru, and Zimbabwe for medical and surgical mission trips.
Dr. Adetayo is a surgeon, author, and speaker dedicated to patient care, mentorship, legislative advocacy, research, education, community engagement, and leadership. She is dedicated to caring for her patients and their families; mentorship for trainees and other healthcare professionals; advocacy for legislation at a local and national level, research, education, community engagement, and leadership. She is committed to advancing care and equity through all aspects of her work—clinically, academically, and globally.
One of her favorite quotes is from Aristotle: “Where your talents and the needs of the world cross, therein lies your vocation.”
EDUCATION
Dr. Adetayo graduated Summa Cum Laude with her Bachelors of Science with Honors in Computer Science (B. Sc (Hons.) and added minors in Biochemistry and Mathematics from Eastern Michigan University as her pre-medical degree. During her undergraduate education, she received various awards including the Outstanding International Students Award, Black Student’s Academic Achievement Award, the Honors Undergraduate Research Award, and the competitive Senior Achievement Award for Academic Excellence in Computer Science awarded to a single graduating senior that exemplified and achieved the highest academic excellence in Computer Science.
Dr. Adetayo then completed her medical degree at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. During this time, she received several honors and awards including The University of Chicago Ultman Family Scholars Award, Dr. William F. and Erma Borchers Scholars Award, the University of Chicago Pritzker Scholars Award, and the Harvard Medical School Visiting Program Scholar Award. She returned to the University of Chicago where she was honored with the highly prestigious Distinguished Alumni Award for Early Achievement by the University of Chicago.
Dr. Adetayo completed her Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency at Loma Linda University Medical Center where her passion for Pediatric & Adult Plastic Surgery evolved. During her time in residency, she received various honors, clinical recognition, and written commendations from the Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital and Kaiser Permanente Hospitals. She was also the recipient of several awards including the Frank R. Rogers, MD MBA Academic Achievement Award, and was a two-time winner of the J.K. Hardesty MD Best Resident Paper Award amongst all the California Medical School presentations at the California Society of Plastic Surgeons Annual Meetings.
Dr. Adetayo then went on to the University of Pittsburgh where she completed a Fellowship in Pediatric Plastic Surgery and Craniofacial Surgery. Here, she served in the role of Clinical Instructor where she continued in her passion of engaging medical students and residents in the areas of teaching, research, and education. She presented her work at several leading regional and national meetings including the International Society of Craniofacial Surgeons (ISCFS), American Society of Plastic Surgery (ASPS), Northeastern Society of Plastic Surgeons (NESPS), American Society of Maxillofacial Surgeons (ASMS), and the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association (ACPA) annual meetings.
