Professor Anthony Nnaemeka Ikefuna, MBBS(Ibadan); MD; FMCPaed; FRCP Edin; FAMedS; FNAMed,
Professor Anthony Nnaemeka Ikefuna attended Chukwurah High School, Onitsha, Anambra State where he obtained his West African School Certificate (WASC) with Grade 1(Distinction) and earned his High School Certificate at Federal Government College, Warri, from where he attended the University of Ibadan for his medical education. At Ibadan, he was granted a Federal Government Merit Award and thereafter, completed his medical training, in 1981, on a Federal Government scholarship.
After his Housemanship and National Youth Service Corp programmes, respectively, he worked as a Medical Officer at Bishop Shanahan Hospital, Nsukka in Enugu state and later commenced Residency Training, in Paediatrics, at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Enugu from where he obtained the Fellowship of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria (NPMCN) in the Faculty of Paediatrics (FMCPaed) in 1997.
After his Fellowship, he was appointed a Principal Research Officer at the Institute of Child Health, UNTH and later joined the Department of Paediatrics, of both the College of Medicine, University of Nigeria, Nsukka (as Lecturer 1) and her affiliate hospital, UNTH (as Honorary Consultant Paediatrician) in 1999. He was promoted to Professor of Paediatrics in the former Unit in 2011.
He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (FRCP Edin), Foundation Fellow of the Academy of Medicine Specialties of Nigeria (FAMedS) and Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Medicine (FNAMed) respectively. He also holds the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree of the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria in Paediatrics.
He is a former Head, Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) and served his Faculty on many Committees as Chairman or member. Prof Ikefuna is a member of the Senate of UNN, an External Examiner, in Paediatrics, to some Colleges of Medicine in Nigeria and the 149th Inaugural lecturer of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. In addition, he is also a former Pro Chancellor and Chairman of Governing Council, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University, Igbariam – Anambra State-owned University.
Prof Ikefuna has presented papers at National and International Conferences as well as published over a hundred and forty peer-reviewed articles in National and International journals with about sixty of them listed in Thomson Reuter Impact Factor journals. He is listed in Google Scholar with an overall h-index of 26, i10-index of 69 and over 2090 citations. Currently, more than eighty of his academic publications are listed in PubMed.
He authored a chapter, each, in a standard textbook of Topical Paediatrics and child health, another in Paediatric Oncology and also in an Atlas of Paediatric Surgery which are currently used by Medical students and Resident doctors.
Prof Ikefuna has mentored many young colleagues and successfully supervised over fifty-five Fellowship Dissertations for candidates with Fellowship of NPMCN in Paediatrics. Others include candidates with Doctor of Medicine degree of NPMCN in Paediatrics as well as Masters and Ph.D. theses in Tropical Paediatrics. Some of his supervised candidates are either Professors or Associate Professors (Reader) in Paediatrics in their academic institutions.
He served the Faculty of Paediatrics, NPMCN as Faculty Secretary, Third Senate Member and Chairman/ Chief Examiner respectively. In addition, he has either been the Chairman, Secretary or Member of accrediting teams to several health institutions in Nigeria offering Residency training in Paediatrics. He is the NPMCN Coordinator of the Computer Based Test (CBT), Enugu examination Centre. In addition, he is the Chairman of the Quality Assurance and Disciplinary Committees of NPMCN respectively and a member of such statutory Committees of the College as the Senate Committee on Credentials and Fellowship Award (SCCFA) as well as the Doctor of Medicine (MD) program Board. He served in some Adhoc Committees of the College as either Chairman or member. Prof Ikefuna is a member of the Governing Board of NPMCN, an Examiner for the Parts 1 and 2 (final) Fellowship examinations in the Faculty of Paediatrics, NPMCN and College appointed External Examiner to other Faculties for her MD degree examination.
Professor Ikefuna is a member of some professional bodies and has reviewed manuscripts for some National and International journals as well as publications of academic staff of some Universities for Readership or Professorial positions in their institutions.
He loves singing and was an active member of the College Choir in his High school years at Federal Government College, Warri. He has been honoured for his community developmental activities.
Professor Anthony Ikefuna is married and blessed with three children.