Sep 8, 2025

Building Bridges: BMSA Leaders on Creating Community for Black Medical Students

Top Application Tips, Why U of T?

An inspiring conversation with Nifemi and Hephzibah about community, mentorship, and building belonging in medicine

Two smiling persons standing in front of greenery with stethoscopes around their necks

BMS Co- Presidents, Nifemi Adeoye (left) & Hephzibah Ali (right)

Meet the Leaders: Nifemi and Hephzibah serve as 2025-2026 Co-Presidents of the Black Medical Students' Association (BMSA) at the University of Toronto's Temerty Faculty of Medicine. Through their leadership, they're working to dismantle barriers, build community, and create pathways for aspiring Black physicians while fostering excellence in medical education.

Personal Journey & Leadership Vision

What was your "lightbulb moment" that led you to both pursue medicine and become involved with BMSA? How do you envision using your co-presidency to create pathways for the next generation of Black physicians?

Nifemi: My "lightbulb moment" came during a high school co-op placement at McMaster Children's Hospital. There, I witnessed the full scope of a physician's role—not just clinical decision-making, but the crucial communication that underpins patient care. Physicians are interpreters, translating complex medical issues into information patients can understand and act on. They're also facilitators, connecting patients to resources they need to heal.

I saw firsthand—both in my care and that of my family—how damaging it can be when these elements are missing. Understanding your health should not be a privilege, and that realization motivated me to pursue medicine.

At the same time, I recognize that pursuing medicine is an immense privilege. With that privilege comes responsibility: once we've found our footing, we must clear the path for those coming after us. That's the driving force behind our Student Outreach portfolio—engaging high school students early by providing accessible information about the path to medicine and connecting them with ongoing mentorship.

Hephzibah: My lightbulb moment came through a series of family health events that exposed me to the healthcare system. From age 12 to 20, my younger sister underwent two surgeries for an arrhythmia, I had knee surgery, and my father was in an induced coma for 10 days due to hemoptysis.

Throughout these experiences, I noticed the lack of Black representation within the teams caring for my family. This absence was especially notable when effective communication was necessary. I often watched my mother's concerns be minimized and her questions met with oversimplified answers. Her persistence in advocating for clarity highlighted the urgent need for diversity in medicine and the importance of patient-physician trust.

This experience drew me to both medicine and BMSA—a space where I found community and can take active steps in addressing the gaps I witnessed firsthand. As co-president, I aim to continue honing mentorship, create access and tangible pathways for aspiring Black physicians, and ensure they not only enter medicine, but thrive in it.

As a leader in BMSA, what's one systemic barrier you're most passionate about dismantling for Black students entering medicine? What concrete steps are you taking to address it?

Nifemi: The Hidden Curriculum. There's an underlying curriculum in medicine that's solely learned through experience—how to act in the hospital, how to get good evaluations, unwritten expectations. For those with physicians in their family, particularly those educated in Canada, aspects of this curriculum can be easily explained. However, this often leaves those without this privilege unaware of these expectations, disadvantaging them.

To combat this, BMSA runs the Buddy Mentorship Program to match first-year students with upper-year mentors who can discuss their personal experiences and offer advice through each stage of the journey. We also support faculty-led Black mentorship efforts and provide mentorship resources from other organizations.

Hephzibah: I'm passionate about dismantling the lack of belonging that can arise in spaces of higher education. Throughout my academic career, I was often "the only one" or "one of few" students, so I want to ensure that the number of Black students not only increases, but that we exist in a collegial community.

BMSA mitigates this by creating space for students to benefit from community, gain insights, and share lived experiences. Through our Welcome to UofT celebration for incoming students, our Christmas Social, and upcoming shared Study Halls, we ensure students are enriched from both academic and social perspectives. This is especially crucial in navigating microaggressions and bias, which can impact confidence, well-being, and ultimately performance.

Community Impact & Advocacy

Tell us about a specific initiative you've championed or plan to launch that goes beyond traditional programming. How will it create lasting change for Black medical students and the communities they'll serve?

Hephzibah: We're championing a Black Health Fair that goes beyond traditional programming of lectures or panels. Our vision is to create a community-centered event that equips community members with practical tools to take control of their health. We're presenting health issues that disproportionately affect Black populations or are often underrecognized—topics crossing various specialties like central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia (CCCA), bacterial vaginosis, stem cell registration, sickle cell genotype testing, and cancer screening.

This fair is different because it focuses on actionable resources. We won't just share information about sickle cell disease—we'll have Canada Blood Services provide stem cell registration kits and arrange transportation for people to donate blood and get their genotype tested.

Nifemi: Cancer screening discussions will be paired with resources for booking appointments and understanding eligibility. This link between education and immediate, tangible steps creates lasting change in two ways: by empowering community members to advocate for and prioritize their health, and by demonstrating to medical students how culturally relevant, accessible care can transform health outcomes. This event teaches students to lead with both knowledge and accountability to the populations they'll serve.

BMSA doesn't exist in isolation. How are you building bridges with other organizations, institutions, and communities to amplify Black voices in healthcare?

Nifemi: BMSA collaborates regularly with various organizations. We connect with other BMSA chapters through the Black Medical Students' Association of Canada (BMSAC) to support Black medical students nationwide. We volunteer with the Our Community Wellness Fair for Black, African, and Caribbean Peel region residents under the Black Physicians of Ontario (BPAO), providing medical students to assist with screenings. We also work with the BPAO to spread their initiatives through our network.

Hephzibah: We work with the UofT Office of Access and Outreach to deliver CPR classes to Black community members and promote events run by the Community of Support, where we volunteer to support medical school applicants. We collaborate with the undergraduate Black Doctors of Tomorrow chapter at UofT and various community health centres, including TAIBU Community Health Centre in Scarborough. Last year, we raised $2,000 for TAIBU through our MUZIQA showcase.

Mentorship & Support Systems

Many prospective students feel overwhelmed by the medical school application process. What innovative mentorship or support programs has BMSA developed to make this journey more accessible and less isolating?

Nifemi: BMSA has a Buddy Mentorship Program that supports medical students once accepted into UofT, but before that stage, we help support the Community of Support through the Office of Access and Outreach. Many BMSA members provide application review and support throughout the entire process—with the CASPer prep program as teachers or markers, or as MCAT tutors for the MCAT support program. We're everywhere and always open to help.

Hephzibah: Through our events collaborating with the UofT club Black Doctors of Tomorrow (BDOT), we establish informal mentorship with undergraduate students to answer their questions about the application process and share our insights.

Beyond academics, what does holistic support look like for Black medical students? How does BMSA address the unique challenges our community faces in predominantly white medical institutions?

Nifemi: One of our core tenets is community. It can be exhausting to be the only Black student in the room and navigate new spaces as a Black person, so we offer various community and wellness outlets. We have quarterly socials for Black students across all years to come together and take a break. We host study halls for collaborative learning and an annual Mental Health Series to equip students with skills to prioritize their mental health on this journey.

We also host an annual BMSA Town Hall where we gather student feedback on their experiences in courses throughout the year, providing opportunity to voice concerns and identify areas for improvement. Our goal is ensuring Black students feel equipped to thrive at Temerty Medicine.

Hephzibah: It's important that students don't have to compartmentalize who they are to focus solely on academic success. Through events like MUZIQA, we celebrate the talents in our Black medical student community while fundraising for important causes. We host events with the Canadian Black Nurses Association at UofT, like Afro-Caribbean dance classes, fostering community with other Black healthcare workers while moving our bodies. Holistic support means creating events and opportunities to enrich the minds, bodies, and creativity of our multifaceted Black medical student body.

Personal Resilience & Authentic Advice

Medical school is notoriously demanding, and as a Black student, you may face additional pressures. What's one piece of authentic advice about self-care and resilience that you wish someone had shared with you earlier?

Nifemi: Take care of yourself first! There's no shame in prioritizing what helps you mentally and physically. In Black communities, certain health conditions run in our families more—for me, that's cardiovascular and metabolic diseases—so I prioritize my health.

You'll study for countless hours over many years, and it's tempting to say, "Let me study first, then I'll cook, go to the gym, etc.," but you'll find yourself pushing those things further until they're no longer part of your routine. You must prioritize your health and well-being first. For me, this means setting aside weekend hours to plan hairstyles for the week (as a Black woman, this takes planning!) and meal prepping dinner. Before exam study sessions, I go to the gym first, or do flashcards on the treadmill.

Hephzibah: I've found it's essential to make time to connect with close friends and family. It's easy to assume that if you miss a call or milestone, they'll understand—but over time, the distance adds up. At first, it may not feel like it affects you, but I've noticed I feel off-balance when too many days pass without speaking to my family.

To prevent this, I started time-blocking calls with my sisters, parents, and friends outside of medicine. These conversations give me space to laugh, cry (sometimes from joy, sometimes from frustration), and everything in between. Their encouragement always leaves me feeling recharged and ready to tackle whatever I'm working on. Maintaining these ties outside medicine is, in many ways, crucial self-care.

What's something you've learned about yourself through your medical education journey that might surprise our readers? How has this discovery shaped your approach to leadership?

Nifemi: I've learned that teamwork means I'm never alone, and I don't have to make decisions alone. On the path to medicine, you learn about physicians as "leaders," and this is often conflated with being the sole decision-maker. But in medical education, you learn that medicine is a team effort. A physician may be the planner, organizer, and facilitator, but all decisions come from joint consideration of all perspectives.

You're never alone and shouldn't feel pressured to make all decisions alone. You have countless colleagues to rely on for collaboration and the best decisions. This approach is integral to any leadership I take on—our BMSA team all contribute to our decisions; it's never in isolation.

Hephzibah: The medical school application process calls for reflection and learning about oneself. Through my medical education, I've continued to see the importance of reflecting, and I intentionally practice it regularly. After every experience—patient encounter, shadowing opportunity, or project—I take time to consider what went well, what didn't, and how I can improve.

This habit has shaped my leadership by showing me that growth requires ongoing self-assessment and openness to feedback. When I participated in the resuscitation simulation competition, ResusWars, I observed how trauma teams debrief after high-stakes events. These communal reflections help identify mistakes, highlight strengths, and create strategies for improvement. That reinforced my belief that leadership is about fostering a culture of personal and collective reflection to achieve success.

Vision & Legacy

What legacy do you hope to leave for future co-presidents?

Nifemi: A legacy of adaptability and responsiveness. Our major event this year, the Black Health Fair, is a response to needs we heard from our health promotion team leads based on questions and concerns Black community members had about various aspects of their health. We have traditional events each year, but I encourage future co-presidents to adapt to the needs of the community and the changing health landscape year by year.

Hephzibah: I hope to leave a legacy of growth and sustainability. Coming into this position, I see that over the years, BMSA has fostered meaningful partnerships and a strong network. This has allowed us to expand and have a team we can rely on for guidance, support, and delivery of impactful events. In my role, I want to deepen those community connections and cultivate a culture of belonging that empowers Black medical students to thrive. My goal is for subsequent co-presidents to inherit the tools, durable structures, and relationships to take BMSA even further.

If you could sit down with a high school student who's unsure if medicine is "for them" because they don't see enough representation, what would you tell them?

Nifemi: I know it can be hard to envision yourself in a space where you don't see representation, but everything is for us. We—the students and physicians in this space—are working to increase representation and make the path to medicine more accessible. Although you may not have a Black doctor or know one yet, we are here and exist, and we're working to increase these numbers.

Sometimes, you have to be the first, and that may mean bearing the brunt of microaggressions and tirelessly championing new policies and initiatives. But once successful, you can lay the path for those after you, which we're working to do. Unfortunately, there are still many "Black firsts" that have yet to happen. You may be the first Black female neurosurgeon at an institution, or the first Black interventional radiologist. That's hard—it's difficult to be the only one—but find solace in knowing you have the opportunity to open doors for those behind you.

Hephzibah: Absolutely! Your voice, experiences, and perspectives matter—and medicine needs them. The path ahead may seem daunting and at times isn't easy, but start now by practicing reflection, persevering, and seeking mentorship so you'll have tools when challenges come. We're all rooting for you and interested in your success!

Go for what you want and put yourself out there—that's how you grow and gain exposure to things beyond your immediate sphere. Regret is harder than fear, so do it scared, do it unsure, but do it well, and you can look back assured that you gave it your best.

Words of Inspiration

Complete this sentence: "The future of Black excellence in medicine looks like..."

Nifemi: You.

Hephzibah: Excellent care for all, with doors opened wider and voices amplified!

What's your go-to source of motivation when the journey gets tough?

Nifemi: My mom! She constantly pours words of encouragement into me and reminds me that even though "things" are hard, no "thing" is impossible. Don't abandon your support systems through this journey!

Hephzibah: I lean on my mom a lot as well! She raised me with a strong foundation of faith, which I've always held onto. It's not just something I inherited, but a personal choice and relationship that continues to guide me. In challenging times, whether in school or life, I turn to my Bible and draw strength and perspective from my favorite verses.

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