“I see a lot of avocado injuries,” admits Dr. Olubukunola Ayeni with a smile.

As a Plastic Surgeon who specializes in hands, Dr. Ayeni treats many patients with trauma injuries that come through the Humber’s Apotex Emergency Department, patients with chronic injuries like carpal tunnel syndrome, and patients with conditions like Dupuytren’s contracture.

“When we speak we use our hands to express emotions,” says Dr. Ayeni. “We eat with our hands, we wipe away tears with our hands . I enjoy hand surgery, because I like being able to restore my patients’ hand function.”

“When we speak we use our hands to express emotions,” says Dr. Ayeni. “We eat with our hands, we wipe away tears with our hands, we text each other with our hands. I enjoy hand surgery, because I like being able to restore my patients’ hand function. It’s a really good feeling.”

Dr. Ayeni was born in Nigeria and raised in Kapuskasing, Ontario. After finishing med school at Northern Ontario School of Medicine, he completed his Plastic Surgery residency at Western University, undertook a Hand, Upper Extremity, and Microsurgery fellowship at Arizona College of Medicine, and then travelled all the way to Milan on scholarship for Hand Microsurgery.

“When I was in Milan, I had to learn some Italian so that I could communicate with the other Operating Room staff!” he remembers.

Dr. Ayeni joined the Humber River Hospital Plastic Surgery team in October 2017, excited about the technology available at Humber. He performs hand microsurgeries using a microscope and fine sutures to make intensive repairs like putting a nerve (thinner than a hair) back together following a nerve injury, repairing veins or arteries, re-vascularizing severely injured fingers, and treating tendons. Some of his longest surgeries last 2-3 hours.

“I’m really enjoying being at Humber,” says Dr. Ayeni. “I was drawn to Humber because of its reputation for innovation and pushing for patient-centered care.”