He dreamed of becoming a doctor as a child, but life took him down a different road. Now at 51 years old, he’s finally living that dream and hoping to inspire others.
Dr. Carl Allamby is an emergency medicine physician at The Cleveland Clinic. But his patients may be surprised to learn he had another successful career before becoming a doctor.
For Allamby, it was a dream delayed but not denied.
“Before I became a physician, I was actually an auto mechanic and also a business owner,” Allamby said.
But at 36 years old, after returning to college to earn his business degree, he decided it was time to switch gears.
“It was during the course of that educational endeavor that I was forced to take a biology course that reminded me a lot of the childhood ambitions that I had to become a doctor,” Allamby said.
From there, he began studying pre-med.
“Usually, it takes about four years to finish pre-med courses,” Allamby said. “It took me five. Just because I had to work and provide for a family and be almost a full-time student.”
It was hard work, but his dedication never wavered. Neither did the support of his family.
“My wife has been a really great supporter of mine,” Allamby said.
In 2019, Allamby officially became a doctor. He was the oldest person in his graduating class.
“Being able to make this transition later in life and to be able to live out this dream I had as a child, it was just a very incredible, phenomenal day,” Allamby said.
Allamby believes his background in the auto industry has really helped with treating patients.
“A lot of what I do in the emergency department is customer relations,” Allamby said.
His advice for others was to have belief in oneself.
“I would say believe in yourself, and you’ll be surprised of what you can accomplish,”
Now that Allamby has achieved his dream of becoming a physician, he has found another passion for pursuing in his off time, mastering the piano.
With that level of dedication, Local 4 fully expects to see him on a concert stage someday.
