Dr. Aboaba A. Afilaka, MD, MS, MBBS

Expert Publications

• Study of smoking behavior in asbestos workers.
• Occupational toxicant inhalation injury: the World Trade Center (WTC) experience.
• Vocal cord dysfunction in former World Trade Center (WTC) rescue and recovery workers and volunteers.
• Health care and social issues of immigrant rescue and recovery workers at the World Trade Center site.
• Reflux symptoms and disorders and pulmonary disease in former World Trade Center rescue and recovery workers and volunteers.
• Atopy and upper and lower airway disease among former World Trade Center workers
• Snoring and obstructive sleep apnea among former World Trade Center rescue workers and volunteers.

Media Releases

Get to know Occupational Medicine & Preventive Medicine Specialist Dr. Aboaba A. Afilaka, who serves patients in Stockton, California. 

Dr. Afilaka is an established occupational medicine & preventive medicine specialist working at Kaiser Permanente – Stockton Medical Offices in Stockton, California. 

Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente is recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. The organization currently serves 12.2 million members in 8 states and the District of Columbia. Its mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of its members and the communities it serves.

Dr. Afilaka chose to join Kaiser Permanente because it is well-known for being one of the best healthcare organizations in the country. As a highly active physician within the organization, he also conducts research on various topics, including musculoskeletal disorders, smoking cessation, toxicity, and asbestos related diseases.

In addition to his work at Kaiser Permanente, he is on staff at Livingston Community Health Services in Hilmar, California, and Emanuel Medical Center in Turlock, California. Prior to his current endeavors, he spent eighteen years working on the East Coast. There, he served as an occupational medicine specialist at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, and as an Assistant Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

The doctor’s interest in medicine began in his teenage years when he began spending his free time flipping through his father’s medical books. Fascinated by all of the pictures, his desire to enter the medical field grew. Years later, he went on to attend medical school at the University of Nigeria – Faculty of Medicine in Enugu, Nigeria. After graduation, he completed an internship at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, New Jersey and a residency in occupational medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center. Furthermore, he completed a residency in internal medicine at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center in the Bronx, New York. 

Thriving in his field, Dr. Afilaka is board-certified in occupational medicine & preventive medicine by the American Board of Preventive Medicine (ABPM). The ABPM is a member of the American Board of Medical Specialties that issues “certificates of special knowledge” in the specialty of preventive medicine. 

For the purpose of advancing his efforts, he holds professional memberships with several organizations, including the American Medical Association and the New York State Office of Emergency Management. In addition, he is the recipient of the Center for Multicultural and Community Affairs Award for Research.

Occupational medicine is the branch of medicine concerned with the maintenance of health in the workplace, including prevention and treatment of diseases and injuries, with secondary objectives of maintaining and increasing productivity and social adjustment in the workplace. Preventive medicine, on the other hand, focuses on the health of individuals, communities, and defined populations. Its goal is to protect, promote, and maintain health and well-being, as well as to prevent disease, disability, and death. 

As an occupational medicine & preventive medicine specialist, Dr. Afilaka works to ensure the highest standards of health and safety for his patients. His special areas of expertise include asbestosis, asthma, carpal tunnel, cubital tunnel syndromes, low back pain, and rotator cuff injuries – to name a few. “I believe that medical and surgical specialties seek curative outcomes; being an Occupational Medicine physician allows me to care for and educate members about injury prevention and to promote awareness of their work environment so they can work safely and effectively for themselves, co-workers, and the employer” said Dr. Afilaka about his work.

He attributes his success to compassion, which has allowed him to deliver the highest degree of patient care throughout his entire career. In his spare time, he enjoys reading, biking, hiking, and going on walks. He speaks multiple languages, including Spanish and French.

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