Man Who Worked as Cleaner Becomes 1st Doctor in His Family as He Earns Medical Degree
US

Man Who Worked as Cleaner Becomes 1st Doctor in His Family as He Earns Medical Degree

  • Kwadwo "Kojo" Sarpong has graduated with a medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, DC
  • Sarpong immigrated to the United States of America from Ghana to work as a cleaner before his dream of pursuing a career in medicine
  • Most recently, he became the first doctor in his family after earning his degree from the prestigious university

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Ghanaian immigrant in the US, Kwadwo "Kojo" Sarpong, has graduated with a medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, DC.

He has made history as the first doctor in his family after earning his degree from the prestigious university.

Sarpong's story is that of resilience and determination because of his humble beginning.

Kwadwo Sarpong
Photos of Kwadwo Sarpong. Source: Kwadwo Sarpong
Source: Facebook

How he started

The remarkable young man immigrated from Ghana to start his life in the US as a janitor.

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Sarpong, along the way, founded two nonprofit organisations, got invited to the White House, and ultimately achieved his dream of pursuing a career in medicine, said Medscape.

In 2010, Sarpong worked at what is now the Northside Hospital Gwinnett in Lawrenceville, Georgia, where he cleaned rooms and made beds before he began to consider a career in medicine.

Even though some people looked down on the then-21-year-old, he had his eyes set on his dream.

Determined to change his fate, Sarpong began to ask the hospital's physicians about their jobs.

Sarpong recalls that a thoracic surgeon asked him about his educational goals and invited him to observe the medical staff at work.

Twelve years later, Sarpong has achieved more than he could imagine, including becoming a co-founder of two nonprofit organisations.

Becoming a medical doctor

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Most recently, he graduated with an MD from Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, DC.

''This is the face of the FIRST doctor in my family!'' he said on Twitter, while crediting his parents for his achievement. ''My parents' education ended early in middle school but they sacrificed everything to get me to this point!
''My father worked multiple menial jobs, while my mom did housekeeping. She is 70 and still works as a janitor at Inova Hospital,'' he said.

See his photos below:

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Being a mother is so much more than having babies, it is selflessly giving of yourself to make sure that those tiny humans never feel the pain you experienced and have everything and more than you could ever dream of. Being a mom is giving your life to the life you created.

Source: Briefly News

Authors:
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Kelly Lippke (Senior Editor) Kelly Lippke is a copy editor/proofreader who started her career at the Northern-Natal Courier with a BA in Communication Science/Psychology (Unisa, 2007). Kelly has worked for several Caxton publications, including the Highway Mail and Northglen News. Kelly’s unique editing perspective stems from an additional major in Linguistics. Kelly joined Briefly News in 2018 and she has 14 years of experience. Kelly has also passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative. You can reach her at kelly.lippke@briefly.co.za.

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Naomi Kobbie Naomi is an entertainment writer with 3 years experience in the world of radio and print media. She is a language graduate from the University of Pretoria (2020) and has worked for Briefly News since 2021. Naomi has a passion for the written word, whether through her work as a journalist or as a soulful singer. "When I'm not working, I spend my time producing music, travelling or snuggling up with a good movie and some butter popcorn."

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