We are inspired by our Client of the Month for May, Nathima Atchoo. It is fitting to honor her during this Mother’s Day month as she is a mother of 4 children. We had the pleasure of a phone conversation with Nathima to learn a bit more about her.
Nathima Atchoo was born in Baghdad, Iraq. She’s a very well educated woman and is a retired OB/GYN. While in Iraq, she practiced medicine in 5 different states, over 5 years! Her experiences among those very different states must have been incredible. She came to the United States in 1967. Her husband came to the United States via England where he had been studying and practicing as an ophthalmologist. He was also born in Iraq and graduated medical school there before going to England to specialize in ophthalmology. They were married in the United States and had 3 children, 2 sons and a daughter. They had to return to Iraq for 2 years to obtain an immigration visa and returned to the US. While they were back in Iraq, they had their 4th child, another son. Dr. Atchoo’s parents, sister and brother were already in the United States, so her brother was instrumental in assisting them to return to the US with an immigration visa. When their visas were approved, the Atchoo family of 6 immigrated back to the US. Both Drs Atchoo returned as fully practicing doctors. Dr. Nathima Atchoo practiced as an OB/GYN for 36 years. I asked how many children she may have delivered and she laughed as she said, “oh a lot! Hundreds, at least.”
Dr. Nathima Atchoo retired after practicing 36 yrs and operating 2 offices; one in Waterford and one in Lake Orion. When she retired in 2004, Dr. Atchoo continued to volunteer her services as an OB/GYN in a free clinic for 15 yrs. She was especially helpful to the women that would come from the East side that didn’t speak English. Dr. Atchoo speaks, English, Arabic and Chaldean. What a valuable service and immeasurable kindness Dr. Atchoo provided for so many!
Dr. Atchoo says her best memories are of raising her family and she is so proud that all 4 of her children are college graduates. Her oldest son is a graduate of both medical and law schools! He practices medicine near where his parents had their offices. Her second son is a U of M graduate of finance and lives in Connecticut. Her third son is in Texas working with Southwest Airlines as an inspector. Her daughter still lives nearby and had worked in Dr. Atchoo’s office for 22 years.
Sadly Nathima’s husband passed away in 2008, but she remained active volunteering in the free clinic. She’s quite a remarkable woman! She shared that she has fallen 2-3 times so she now has Affinity come help her with everyday activities. She enjoys when the different caregivers come to help. She’s been a client of Affinity for quite some time. I don’t think Dr. Atchoo is slowing down anytime soon. She is one of our clients that has become extended family. She’s delighted that her children are all doing well. Dr. Atchoo’s sister and brother also live within the area. We thank you, Dr. Nathima Atchoo for your dedication to the community, your family and for sharing your story with us. We wish you a wonderful Mother’s Day and hope you can celebrate with family soon! Until then, thank you for being part of the Affinity Family! We are thrilled to honor you as our Client of the Month for May 2020.
