His mother, Veronica Marie Stuart Shaw, a nurse, is of Scottish descent.
[7][8] Agwunobi has held various executive positions in healthcare administration, including chief executive officer (CEO) of the Grady Health System in Atlanta, president and CEO of the Tenet South Fulton Hospital in East Point, secretary of the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, and CEO of Providence Healthcare in Spokane.
He was a managing director of Berkeley Research Group and chief operating officer of the St. Joseph Health System in California.
In this capacity, he oversaw the entire academic and clinical enterprise, including the John Dempsey Hospital, medical and dental schools, biomedical research, a business incubator, and over 5,000 employees.
[9] In 2018, state auditors faulted his approval of salary raises for UConn employees who signed off on a $563,000 contract with Berkeley Research Group, a consulting firm for which Agwunobi worked before he took over as interim CEO.
In 2007, Modern Healthcare named Agwunobi one of the "50 Most Powerful Physician Executives" in the United States.
[12] Agwunobi is married to Elizabeth Nega, an Ethiopian-born physician of internal medicine.