Lieutenant Colonel Maribel Occhiuzzo, a physician assistant with the 1984th U.S. Army Hospital of the Pacific described her first experience in a Samoan district hospital as being in a combat zone medical facility without having the bullets flying over her head.

The American army doctors are here in Samoa for the Soifua Manuia clinics and while this is a very nice gesture, on the bigger picture this is the result of the growing interest in the Pacific brought about by geo-politics after the western world had thought that China had invaded the Pacific.

It is nothing but diplomacy at its finest. They are here mostly to observe and may return later with perhaps resources that Samoa lacks. There will also be newsletters and reports on how the US Army doctors helped in Samoa.

Unbeknown to our American friends, that is top level healthcare citizens of Samoa get. This says a lot about the state of the public health system in Samoa. The situation of the health system in Samoa is such that in many instances, Samoans do not have access to specialists and specialist care for some of the diseases.

The small district hospitals do not have a radiology department or medical labs either. This should not come as a surprise to our American friends as Samoa is a developing nation and there will always be these gaps in healthcare, education and even in infrastructure.

If someone in Samoa is diagnosed with cancer and they do not have enough money to take themselves to a hospital overseas, then that person is terminally ill. This is the reality of healthcare in Samoa.

The hospitals are understaffed with both doctors and nurses. People have to look after their own relatives if they are admitted in the hospital and on top of that if they do not keep their belongings properly, it gets stolen from the hospital.

There are doctors and nurses in Samoa who are more than dedicated to the course and the Hippocratic oath but what is letting them down is the lack of resources, facilities and their salaries. The focus on the health system seems to be there but more is needed from the Government. There needs to be a major investment into this important sector so even the smallest of the district hospitals do not feel like combat zones to our overseas friends.

If the USA really wants to help the health system in Samoa, they could open up visas and have free medical treatment for cancer patients. They could also help upgrade the district hospitals and equip them with the latest in resources including radiology and labs. On top of that they could provide the army doctors and specialists on a rotational basis.

While still on the topic of health, there is an urgent need for taking a holistic approach and considering mental health as part and parcel of the health system. There is more to be done on this side of the health system. Samoa has only one psychiatrist, the in-patient clinic is run by a concerned charity organisation who are doing a lot on their own.

Perhaps this is an area which Samoa’s diplomatic friends can look into as well by providing funding to set up better mental healthcare facilities, specialists and specialist training.

Samoa’s healthcare system still requires a lot and things are being done slowly. So slow that the demand for healthcare is burdening the current system. The Ministry of Health is well aware of the challenges they face and hats off to the current administrators who in the face of these challenges are doing the best they can do to serve the people of Samoa.

On the second note, the Pacific in the past year or so has become a geo-political football field where the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan, Britain and India to name a few are showing their faces and trying to show that they are truly involved in the Pacific.

More can be done than just showing faces. Invest into the things that need to be improved, provide the specialists and the resources if there is the capability to do so. And even more than this, side with the Pacific when it comes to climate change goals.