Dr Lupe Taumoepeau FRACS, New Zealand’s only female vascular surgeon, will be the first guest speaker at the Pasifika Health Leaders Breakfast Webinar Series, an event established to help Pacific medical students decide which area of medicine to specialise in after their studies.

Etu Pasifika, the largest health provider for Pacific families in Canterbury, is celebrating the milestone of a Cornerstone accreditation – a prestigious standard of excellence in which recipients have shown exemplary high standards for general medical practice in New Zealand.

Stormy weather and pouring rain did not stop the dedicated Etu Pasifika team from providing free flu vaccinations in a drive-thru clinic for Pasifika families living in the Canterbury area.

Almost a third of the country’s workforce operated from home during Alert Level 4 and now in Alert Level 1, many organisations are reviewing the long-term benefits of flexible and remote working environments for the health of their workers, says a leading Pacific physiotherapist.

A pharmaceutical rule change during Covid-19 restricting the dispensing of funded community medicine to one month’s supply at a time, has been embraced by the Pacific community, says a senior pharmacist.

Nursing director and member of the Pasifika Medical Association Membership Board, Abel Smith says the Covid-19 crisis has brought out the best in Pacific nurses and helped them develop further knowledge of how to care for their community.

Samoan GP and PMA member Dr Maryann Heather says not much has changed for patients since the move to Level 1, as people and medical clinics continue to take precautions to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Failure to address the high health needs of Pacific people in the health and disability sector review is the final report’s most important omission, writes Dr Collin Tukuitonga.

Twenty-eight-year-old Mosana Evagelia grew up in Samoa and recalls her experience volunteering in the hospitals that peaked her interest in a career in medicine.

Invercargill based surgeon and Pasifika Medical Association member Dr George Ngaei FRACS is among those recognised in the 2020 Queen’s Birthday Honours list. He was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to health and the Pacific community. Throughout his career as an endoscopic and gastrointestinal surgeon Ngaei has used his expertise to address Pasifika inequity in various aspects of the medical industry in order to improve and uplift community access to health services.

Nineteen-year-old Ateliana Taufa, is on a mission to make treatments and visits to the dentist more affordable for her community.

Aiono Professor Dr Alec Ekeroma was elated when he was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the latest Queen’s Birthday Honours for his services to health and the community.