Dr. Everest was born into the Okpara family, a middle-class family of three, in Isiekenesi, Ideato-South L.G.A in Orlu, Imo State, Nigeria.
His involvement in his mother’s business during his childhood enabled him gain key financial insight and shaped his business acumen a great deal. He would wake up very early in the morning to help his mother prepare for her catering business even though it was somewhat strenuous for him as a teenager – cutting short his sleep time, cleaning, fetching firewood from Ikpa farmland, Ugwu Ajako farmland as well as Mkpokiri and Nwanuhienta water banks, helping out in the kitchen, assisting in serving customers, etc. On other days, he would help his mother transport some food for sale on his bicycle, at the local market on the Nkwo, Orie, Eke, and Afo market days. This routine became a major learning process for him and helped him imbibe certain qualities that have shaped his business approach till date. These qualities include organization, attention to detail, effective communication, love for humanity, morality, integrity, sincerity of purpose, etc.
He had his primary education at Community Primary School, Dimagu Autonomous Community in Isiekenesi, Ideato South L.G.A., Imo State, Nigeria, where he obtained his First School Leaving Certificate. He completed his secondary education at National Secondary School Ntueke, Ideato South L.G.A., Imo State, Nigeria, where he obtained the West African Senior School Certificate. He graduated from Lagos State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Relations and Personnel Management. In a quest for more knowledge, Dr. Okpara obtained a certificate in Biostatistics and Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA, earned a certificate in Healthcare Management from Lagos Business School, an MBA degree from Charisma University USA, and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree from Charisma University, USA.
The loss of Dr. Okpara’s grandmother due to a misdiagnosis and subsequent improper treatment motivated him to travel to Europe and America to understudy the global standard practices in diagnostics medicine. His memories of this incident transformed into a strong passion for contributing to the growth of healthcare in his country. Upon his return to Nigeria, he decided to establish a multi-specialty medical diagnostic business.
In 2005, Dr Everest established Everight Diagnostic & Laboratory Services Ltd, a company he has nurtured to become a leading provider of medical diagnosis in Nigeria. Under his leadership, in 2019 Everight developed molecular capabilities and was recognised as the first private laboratory to obtain special approval from the Medical Laboratory Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) to offer COVID-19 PCR tests, one of the first sets of laboratories approved by the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) for real-time COVID-19 PCR tests.
Everight obtained ISO 15189-2012 and ISO 15189-2022 accreditations for its laboratory in Wuse 2, Abuja in 2022 and 2025 respectively.
In 2018, he founded Sangtech Technologies Nigeria Limited, an Information Technology (IT) consultancy firm, specializing in software, engineering & development, whose services include Laboratory Information Systems, Radiological Management Systems, and Picture Archiving & Communication Systems (PACS).
In a bid to assist indigent persons who are unable to access quality healthcare, Dr Everest Okpara set up the Everight Healthcare Foundation in 2017. This is a charity organization that promotes health awareness and mobilizes resources for free healthcare to the less privileged. Through the instrumentality of the foundation, he made very crucial contributions towards combating the COVID-19 pandemic by making several life-saving interventions, including donations of more than 100 automated hand-washing machines and more than 500,000 KN95 face masks to public and private institutions, including banks, police stations, hospitals, schools, etc in Imo state. The foundation has also paid the medical bills of more than 13,000 persons and facilitated vaccinations for over 4,500 persons in Nigeria.
In accelerating the achievement of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) for Quality Education, Dr. Everest greatly advocates for the ‘train one, train the nation’ approach. He implements this by providing trainings for individuals, particularly medical personnel, who in turn, can disseminate the knowledge and skills aquired, to a wider audience thereby ultimately contributing to a more skilled and capable society.
Over the years, Everight Diagnostics has also successfully trained and transferred skill and knowledge to over 35, 000 medical students and researchers. It has provided molecular trainings for young medical laboratory scientists and researchers, observership trainings for medical students, medical internship radiographers, as well as medical sonographers and sonologists. It has also duly trained medical laboratory scientists undergoing their NYSC primary assignment, medical & science students on industrial attachment, and contributed to the research works of resident doctors and PhD students, thereby doubling as a medical training facility for medical personnel.
Under his leadership, Everight Diagnostic and Laboratory Services Ltd has cultivated top-tier administrative expertise and proudly boasts a highly skilled team of over 507 medical professionals across its branches nationwide. His other endeavours including the Everight Healthcare Foundation, Sangtech Technologies Nigeria Ltd, Purna Nigeria Ltd however, currently have a staff strength of over 120 employees.
In addition to all the significant hats he wears, Dr. Everest Okpara is also the former National Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), former president of the Owerri Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (OCCIMA), and former NACCIMA Youth Coordinator in the Southeast region of Nigeria. His ascension to leadership positions in OCCIMA and NACCIMA was a breath of fresh air for the organized private sector in Imo State, Nigeria.
He has received several awards in recognition of his stellar leadership and exceptional contribution to healthcare thus:
Award for Excellence in Healthcare Delivery by GulfMedicalUniversity, UAE
Outstanding Leadership Award in Healthcare by Global Skills Hub, UK
Award of Excellence by Guild of Medical Laboratory Directors, Imo State Chapter
Honourable Award by Lagos State University
Meritorious Award by Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria
Honorary Membership Award by Guild of Medical Laboratory Directors
Award of Excellence by Nigerian Medical Association
Kwame Nkrumah Exemplary Leadership Award by ECOWAS Youth Council
Excellence Service Award by the Young Medical Laboratory Scientists Forum
Award for Outstanding Commitment in Laboratory and Diagnosis in the Country by Rossy Foundation International, Germany & Heart of Gold Foundation, Austria
Special Recognition Award by Nigerian Medical Association
Africa’s Most Respected CEO Award by Business Executives in Dubai
Dr. Everest Okpara
