Remembering Toakase Fakakovikaetau: Pioneering Paediatrician in Tonga
Respected and pioneering Paediatrician in Tonga, Dr Toakase Fakakovikaetau sadly passed away on Friday the 28th of July after a brief but aggressive battle with cancer.
Tributes have poured in from her homeland of Tonga, across the Pacific Islands and from the Pasifika Medical Association here in New Zealand.
PMA Chief Executive, Mrs Debbie Sorensen, expressed her heartfelt condolences to Dr Fakakovikaetau's family, friends and colleagues.
"Her absence is a tremendous loss to not only the medical sector in Tonga and the Pacific region, but to her community that she so tirelessly served. As a Life Member of PMA, we acknowledge her dedication to child health and the lifelong impact that she has made in the world of paediatrics, both in Tonga and in the Pacific.
"At a personal level, she was also an amazing friend, colleague and a courageous leader. Our prayers are with her family during this time."
Dr Fakakovikaetau studied medicine at the Fiji School of Medicine and did her paediatric training at the University of New South Wales and Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney, Australia.
She then began her career in 1988 at Vaiola Hospital, Tongatapu as a paediatric registrar, setting in motion a 35-year journey in paediatric health. Two decades later, she established the "MAFU SAI" program which aimed to improve morbidity and decrease complications for children with rheumatic heart disease around the country. This program initiated the partnership with Open Heart International to provide open heart surgery for children in Tonga, leading her to receive the 2008 Heart Hero Award from ProCor, a global network that promotes cardiovascular health in developing countries and is funded by the Lown Cardiovascular Research Foundation.
For 8 years she was the only paediatrician in Tonga where almost 40% of the population were under 14 years old and she was struck by the number of cases of rheumatic heart disease she encountered during her first few years.
She set out to tackle the issue, screening Tongan primary school children for rheumatic heart disease and then providing early, effective treatment highlighting the importance of disease-screening and vaccinations.
Dr Fakakovikaetau went on to win numerous awads recognising her work in tackling Tonga's epidemic of rheumatic heart disease.
“The screening helped us put an estimate to the burden of the disease, which had made high demands on our health system with young people needing valvular heart surgery that is not available locally. Patients had to travel to New Zealand or Australia to have valvular surgery."
Jonathan Carapetis, Chairman of the World Heart Federation Scientific Council on Rheumatic Heart Disease worked alongside Dr Fakakovikaetau when she was first setting up the screening program in Tonga and stated in the Lancet that her achievements had been inspirational.
Dr Fakakovikaetau was also New Zealand's first Prime Minister's Fellow for Tonga in 2009.
The Fellowship is designed to focus on current leaders, or emerging and potential leaders, within both the public and private sectors of Tonga, including members of Parliament, academia, business and the media.
During her visit to NZ she met the then NZ Prime Minister John Key and undertook a programme of activities including engagement with New Zealand medical counterparts.
Dr Fiona Langridge, Cure Kids Research Fellow at the Pacific University of Auckland shared a tribute to Dr Fakakovikaetau on her social media and also said that for her personally she was a mentor, good and trusted friend who gave her so much support and direction through and after her PhD.
"She lived a complete life of service including opening her home and wrapping her arms around so many." - Dr Fiona Langridge
'Ofa lahi atu and our condolences to Dr Toakase Fakakovikaetau's extended friends and family.
Cover photo by Haitelenisia Afemui ‘Uhila Angilau from Ordinary Tongan Lives. Read more about Dr Fakakovikaetau in her own words from her interview on Ordinary Tongan Lives here