George Ndukwe

Consultant Obstetrician-gynacologist, Leading Researcher in
Assisted Reproduction

George started out as an obstetrician with no specific interest in reproductive medicine, but with an intense commitment to developing knowledge in order to improve patients’ lives.

Whilst working as a Senior House Officer in London, George took a locum in a hospital with an invitro fertlisation centre.

It was his first experience of reproductive medicine. Knowing practically nothing about the area, George was keen to learn and so he barraged his colleagues with the most basic questions about what they were doing and why - questions that only an outsider would ask because they were so familiar and seemingly insignificant.

At this point George began to realise that his persistent curiosity and refusal to take everyday issues for granted had the potential to make a real difference to the field. As a new branch of medicine, progress in IVF depended on intellectual curiosity and extensive fundamental research. His belief that ‘you can’t do IVF without asking questions’ has fuelled George’s work in the field ever since.  

Motivated by these aspirations, George joined a university IVF clinic where some leading scientists and clinicians in the field were doing cutting edge research and making huge strides in their work with patients. It was an extremely exciting time for George, as he became involved in studies which, in producing new understandings, were to have a real impact on the practice of IVF. The proximity of other internationally renowned scientists offered the possibility of innovative research collaborations, and the availability of funding and laboratory resources supported these endeavours. However, George quickly realised that in spite of these huge advantages, the environment was intensely political, with competition over funding, influence and career building often over-shadowing the thrill of the science and the joy of helping patients to achieve their dreams. 

Frustrated by these political pressures, some of the senior staff within the centre left to pursue their work independently, taking over a small private sector unit with the intention of growing and developing it. After his colleagues’ departure, George stayed on at the university centre, maintaining its patient base and attempting to pursue his research. However, he too became disillusioned with the constraints of this highly politicized setting, and especially with the obstacles he faced in attempting to do his research.

Once he’d made the decision to leave, George was offered positions in the UK as well as abroad, in both private and university sectors. Eventually, he decided to join his colleagues in what was now a thriving organization. Because they had been concentrating on the business side of their venture, George felt that cutting edge science had been put slightly on one side. Three years later, he saw opportunities in re-igniting their research activities.

Although initially apprehensive in losing the vast, university scientific infrastructure, George quickly realised the advantages of his new environment – especially the freedom it gave him to do the kind of curiosity driven research he most enjoys. He feels that he is no longer bound by the career pressures, political in-fighting or bureaucratic complexity which he had experienced at the university.  Although he misses being embedded within a rich research culture, he has found ways of accessing that outside his organization.

In his current setting he sees research, patient care and business as compatible: ‘the position of [our unit] is as innovators, cutting edge. It’s got to maintain that position because that’s where people see us. It impacts on the business as well because the more we develop things, the more patients will come'.

Above all, George is still motivated by using his knowledge to help patients: ‘central to everything I do is my belief that you need to do research to get the best results. That’s central. And when I see women who have repeated failures and you investigate them with new approaches and then get results, it satisfies you. I’m satisfied in every way’.