skip to page contents

Dr Lola Oni OBE

Dr Oni manages a multi-disciplinary team of health and allied professionals, providing specialist services for people with and ‘at risk’ of sickle cell, thalassaemia and related conditions in NW London and neighbouring Primary Care Trusts that make up the former NW Thames Region. She is employed by NW London Hospitals NHS Trust and based at the Brent Sickle Cell & Thalassaemia Centre.

 

Dr Oni’s interest in sickle cell was kindled in 1981, whilst working as a midwifery sister on Labour ward in Guys hospital at a time when health professionals lacked awareness and knowledge of the health implications of sickle cell.  After practicing as a generic Health Visitor for a few years she was appointed specialist sickle cell / thalassaemia health visitor at the Lambeth Sickle Cell & Thalassaemia Centre. There she developed clinical management protocols and standards for management of clients in acute and community settings, many of these guidelines have been updated and continue to be in use nationally. 

 

Dr Oni was instrumental in the development of the first professionally accredited haemoglobinopathy course in the UK in 1990.

Dr Oni attended Southbank University, where she obtained a B Ed (Hons) in
Professional and Health Studies, Lecturer in Health Visiting and Nurse Lecturer qualifications. On qualifying she was appointed lecturer at The Nightingale Institute, Kings College London University where she managed to incorporate teaching of haemoglobinopathies into pre and post-registration nurse education curricula. Teaching continues to be her forte and this she does as invited lecturer and trainer nationally as well as internationally, travelling to as far a field as Nigeria, West Indies and Brazil as a
specialist subject lecturer and training facilitator. She attended University of Surrey, Guildford, where she obtained a doctor of Philosophy degree in 2008.

 

Dr Oni joined the Brent Centre as Nurse Director and strategic operational manager in 1995, acting as a role model not only for her staff but for others in the
specialist field. She was chair of the Sickle and Thalassaemia Association of Counsellors for several years and Treasurer of the same organization. She is currently on the Department of Health Antenatal and Neonatal Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia National Screening Steering group. 

 

Dr Oni has written several clinical management guidelines, is co-author of ‘Care and Management of your Child with Sickle cell Disease- A Parent’s Guide’ the resource provided by the Department of Health as the health promotion resource for all parents of newborn babies with sickle cell disease in England. She is lead author of ‘Care and Management of people with and at-risk of sickle cell and thalassaemia’, a
text book for nurses, midwives and other health care professionals, which
is due for publication in due course.

 

Dr Oni enjoys writing short stories and poetry and one of her poems ‘Accept’, was published in ‘Hear Our Voice!’ a book edited by Natalie Nightingale in
2001, published by Women’s Words.  Dr Oni’s community activities include – being a fellow of the Nigeria Leadership Initiative and leading on the Nigeria neonatal sickle cell screening implementation project; secretary to the First Martin Luther King Twelve and executive of the Martin Luther King Memorial Trust; Honorary secretary of Amazing Grace C & Movement International Church and other community initiatives. Dr Oni has been a Moderator for the House of Commons Schools Debating championships; Examining Chaplain for Southwark Diocese; Facilitator for the Southwark Diocese Race Relations Commission Annual Youth Conference.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ms Lola Oni OBE