Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 11-5-21

Feature
Community-Based Doctor Strives To Give His Patients The Best Care
BY MONIQUE STAMPS Sentinel Staff Writer
Born in London to Ghanian par- ents, Dr. Theophilus Sai came into the world as his mother finished med- ical school. His mother and paternal uncle’s medical careers would provide the guidelines for Dr. Sai’s future ed- ucation.
At the age of eleven, Dr. Sai ap- plied for a scholarship developed by the Ghanian government and the Cuba government. The scholarship would be a work study program in Cuba. In 1983, 600 Ghanian students traveled to Cuba to begin the program.
The students would go to school in the morning and farm in the after- noon. It was intense. After graduating, he moved to Havana, Cuba to enter medical school. While there, he met his wife and medical partner, Dr. Vianka Delgado.
To find a job, Dr. Sai would move to the Bahamas in 1996 and worked there for four years. He then migrated
Dr. Theophilus Sai ....Owner and CEO of Palmas Clinic
to Chicago for his residency. The resi- dency was a four-year program with Rush University and Cook County Hospital.
Dr. Sai continued to succeed. After finishing his residency, he founded Esperanza Health Centers and was the Chief Medical Officer until
he moved to Florida.
Dr. Sai moved to Tampa in 2008.
He was recruited by Tampa Family Health Centers as their medical direc- tor. He then joined Humana Health Plans as the Chief Medical Officer for central Florida.
Presently Dr. Sai and his wife own two healthcare locations.
In his East Tampa location, Dr. Sai works to provide healthcare in an underserved area.
He said he was drawn to the area by his mentor and friend, the late Dr. William W. ‘Billy’ Andrews. Dr. Sai would eventually buy Dr. An- drews’ former practice to continue his work.
Dr. Sai and his wife share duties, with Dr. Sai working in the 22nd Street Office while Dr. Delgado works out of the Palm River office. They are the proud parents of three teenage daughters.
Dr. Sai says that his goals are: “To partner with his patients to get them to their best health. I do not believe in
the top-down approach. Making sure that my patients understand their health status, disease origin and pro- gression is paramount. We want to empower them to make the best, in- formed decisions.“
Dr. Sai says that one of the biggest challenges is the corporatization of medicine. Hospitals and other corpo- rate entities are trying to buy out fam- ily doctors and independent practices to the detriment of patients and the doctors themselves. Doctors should be independent so they are not tied to a bottom line and can treat patients as they see fit.
Dr. Sai says that young people looking to go into medicine should be intentional. “They should decide their focus as soon as possible, whether it is concierge medicine, family practice, hospitalists, or other types of spe- cialty.”
The Palmas Clinic is located at 3105 N. 22nd Street in Tampa, and at 7756 Palm River Road, Tampa.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2021 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY PAGE 3-A