First Sāmoan paediatrician honoured as a dame

Associate Professor Teuila Percival has been made a Dame Companion of the 2023 New Zealand Order of Merit in the King’s Birthday and Coronation Honours list.

Dame Teuila was the first Sāmoan paediatrician in Aotearoa New Zealand. She is a researcher and part-time lecturer in the Department of Paediatrics and has been a tireless advocate for Pacific children’s health for 30 years.

She began her healthcare career at the University’s medical school where she trained in paediatrics. But she credits her influence to her parents who were both radiographers, immersing Dame Teuila in the hospital environment.

Dame Teuila spent her early childhood years in Sāmoa, and after graduating from medical school, she returned to Sāmoa to work at the National Hospital in Motootua, Apia. 

“I’ve been involved in community and Pacific health from the early 90s. It is difficult to be a paediatrician without getting involved outside of medicine, as much of what determines children’s health sits outside clinical medicine,” she said.

“Pacific health and Pacific children’s health is important because of the continuing inequity and injustice.”

Dame Teuila is a founding member and Deputy Chair of South Seas Healthcare, a community health service providing care to Pacific people in Auckland since 1999, says PM Chris Hipkins in a media release.

“She was also a founding member of the Pacific Medical Association,” Hipkins says.

Dame Teuila holds several leadership roles on government health advisory groups, as well as working full-time as a Samoan consultant paediatrician at KidzFirst Childrens Hospital, situated at Middlemore Hospital.

She has held clinical and research roles with a focus on maternal and child health, climate change and health, child obesity, health systems and informatics.

South Auckland is the primary focus point of her work, where she has been stationed since 1995. In an interview with E-Tangata in 2019, she described South Auckland as “diverse, colourful, and exciting”.

“The community has huge needs and often little money – but, in my experience, South Auckland people are a joy to work with. They are gracious and respectful.”

It’s not the first time Dame Teuila has appeared in the Honours list. In 2010, she became a companion of the Queen's Service Order for her services to the Pacific community, following her role as a leading clinician in the 2009 Sāmoa tsunami disaster response.

Her commitment to serve and provide paediatric support continued in following disasters, Vanuatu’s Cyclone Pam in 2015 and the 2019 measles outbreak in Sāmoa.

Associate Dean Pacific in the Faculty of Medical Health Sciences Associate Professor Sir Collin Tukuitonga, who received a knighthood in 2022 for his contributions to Pacific health, says he is immensely proud to see Percival recognised for her efforts.

“This is a tremendous acknowledgement of Dr Teuila Percival for decades of work with children, young people, and their families,” he said.

"I cannot recall anyone else with the same dedication to children and young people. This is an important achievement."

Dame Percival is one of six new dames and knights this year. In total, 182 New Zealanders were recognised for exceptional community service in the honours list, among them many current and past University academics and alumnae.

Read an interview with Associate Professor Dame Teuila Percival.

The King's Birthday and Coronation Honours List 2023