OUR HIV EXPERTS

Driven by her dedication to those living with HIV or viral hepatitis, Dr. Toyin Nwafor brings an inspired approach and strong advocacy expertise to her work in ViiV Healthcare. As a board-certified Infectious Disease physician and Associate Professor of Medicine, Toyin draws on over 20 years of experience in providing primary and specialty care to adults living with HIV and/or viral hepatitis. Passionate about health disparities, she has an impressive record of developing innovative patient services and support, and is excited to contribute in the context of ViiV’s holistic approach to HIV medicines and care. Well- recognized for her advocacy in the field of HIV, Toyin was recently awarded the “Aging Positively” award by the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.

Current Role

Having joined ViiV in Spring, 2020 as a Regional Medical Director, Toyin serves as a medical educator to the HIV/Infectious Disease medical communities, conveying information on ViiV products and topics of interest to ViiV as well as gathering relevant medical insights to help improve care. She provides scientific and medical expertise for ViiV initiatives, including ViiV-sponsored clinical trials, and will work with healthcare providers to identify data gaps and facilitate new research ideas. Toyin will also continue to provide care at the Ruth M. Rothstein CORE Center in Chicago, for people who are living with or vulnerable to HIV.

Experience

Prior Prior to joining ViiV, Toyin was Senior Director of HIV Services at Chicago’s Cook County Health (CCH), a large health system including the CORE Center—the single largest HIV clinic in the Midwest. In her role, Toyin engaged medical and social services leadership at CORE and CCH ambulatory facilities, ensuring excellence in primary and subspecialty care, health prevention, behavioral health, and other wraparound services. She also oversaw coordination of these efforts with service providers outside of CCH, and with advocacy groups and city/state public health entities. Toyin has served for nearly 20 years as Attending Physician in Infectious Diseases at Cook County Hospital, and since 2020 as Professor of Medicine at Rush Medical College in Chicago.

In 2001, fueled by her passion for addressing viral hepatitis and health disparities, Toyin co-founded the CORE Hepatitis Clinic to improve patient outcomes. In concert with a multidisciplinary team, Toyin launched multiple initiatives that led to the clinic’s recognition as a model clinic within the health system. In addition, she established the CORE Healthy Aging Initiative (CHAI) to address the psychosocial needs of adults aging with HIV. With over 50 publications in peer-reviewed journals, Toyin has contributed as a clinical researcher in the areas of HIV and aging, viral hepatitis, and health disparities. Actively involved in the Illinois “Getting to Zero” HIV plan (GTZ-IL), she is continuing to work with GTZ-IL toward a goal of achieving functional zero by 2030. As a board member and mentor for the I Am Abel Foundation, Toyin enjoys mentoring underrepresented minorities interested in a career in medicine.

Education

Toyin attended the College of Medicine, University of Ibadan in Nigeria. She completed an Internal Medicine Residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago, followed by completion of a Fellowship in Infectious Diseases at Rush University Medical Center and Cook County Hospital in Chicago.
 

Personal Interests

Toyin lives near Chicago in Oak Park, Illinois, where she has resided for 25 years. She has two amazing daughters and enjoys reading, yoga, volunteering, and dancing. As the   host of the podcast series “10 mins with TmFAL”, Toyin delivers messages on a variety of health and personal growth topics with her signature candor and humor.