Dr. Jacob Sawadogo

Dr. Jacob Sawadogo has been a good friend since even before the official existence of the Paam Laafi Association. He grew up in a small village in the north of Burkina Faso as the son of a pastor/evangelist. There was no school in the village.

When Jacob was about 6 years old he was brought to another village far away from his home in order for him to attend school. He know from a very young age that he wanted to become a cardiologist. How? His motto is and has always been the same as his father's : "God will make a way where or when there seems to be no way".

When he almost finished high school, he and his friend, the two best students of the class, were called to the office of the principal who announced to them that it was impossible for them to continue studies since through lack of teachers they had missed a whole lot of science courses. The only way for them was to go to the capital and study hard for their baccaleureat to get accepted in higher studies.

The principal made an exception for them and off they went to study all the sciences they needed in just one year, something others had three years to work for. Jacob succeeded and he was able to start his medical studies. He graduated as a doctor in medicine in 2007 and had already been involved in several medical projects as a volunteer.

In 2011 he finally was able to start his studies to become a cardiologist. In the meantime he got married to Natacha Ouedraogo and they have a child named Ethan. Jacob graduated as a cardiologist in the beginning of 2015 and holds several certificates linked to cardiovascular medicine such as intensive care cardiology, emergency cardiology and cardiac ultrasound.