Many people in Samoa have continued to ask about the pathways to becoming a medical doctor. The majority of the public, especially parents, do not understand what is involved in the six years of study to become a medical doctor.

Even amongst the local University community and many government agencies, the majority do not understand the training pathways of a medical doctor. Samoa has developed its capability to train doctors locally since 2002. I hope to explain the many complexities in medical training in this article, to assist with and answer some of the many questions that our people are asking about medical training and specialization training. The Samoan Observer articles by Enid Westerlund on 26 October 2023 and 29 October 2023 outlined some very important issues in medical training and specialisation training.

I trained at New Zealand Auckland University Medical School for six years under a NZMFAT Scholarship, then self-funded 10 years of Specialisation Training in New Zealand in Internal Medicine and Cardiology, plus self-funded training for another five years in Australia and the French Territories in Cardiology.

I have been a medical doctor for 35 years, and have been a Cardiologist, Specialist Physician, and Consultant Physician for the last 25 years. I have been back in Samoa for the last 25 years, and have assisted in the development and training of the medical capabilities and medical training facilities in Samoa for the last 25 years.

I have continued to study the different aspects of medicine overseas and update in cardiology to assist our people. I have researched and published many articles, with many types of research focusing on Rheumatic Heart Disease, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. I have also collaborated with research partners in Otago University, and Auckland University Medical School in New Zealand; Yale University, Browns University, Pittsburg University, Washington State University in the USA; and Queensland University in Australia.

I have done a Bachelor of Human Biology (BHB), Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB) from Auckland Medical School; Master of Public Health (MPH) from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Sydney Australia; passed the FRACP via written and oral examinations (Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physician); FCSANZ (Fellow of the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand); FESC (Fellow of the European Society of Cardiology), and FACC (Fellow of the American College of Cardiology).

I was the Dean and Professor of Medicine of the Oceania University of Medicine (OUM) Samoa when it first started in 2002, until 2008. I am currently the Professor of Medicine of the National University School of Medicine appointed in 2020, Professor of Medicine and Interim Clinical Dean for the Oceania University of Medicine (OUM) appointed in May 2023, Professor Adjunct of Epidemiology for the Yale School of Public Health and School of Medicine appointed in April 2023, and the Honorary Fellow of the Otago University.

I am also the Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Church Samoa for the last nine years and currently studying Theology through Malua Bible School and Hebrew Bible School in Israel. I supervise post-PhD colleagues’ research from Yale University, and PhD students from Otago University, and Master of Public Health (MPH) students from Yale University, and supervise Master of Medicine (MMed) students from the Fiji National University.

I used to teach Cardiology in the Emergency MMed program at the FNU. Despite tons of local and overseas medical pressures to leave Samoa to work overseas, and despite overseas financial inducements, I have been “called” by God to stay and assist the development of Samoa and its medical facilities and capabilities, training facilities, and spiritual compass and development.   

The training site for medicine in the Pacific has traditionally been the Fiji School of Medicine (FSM) over the last 100 years. The other training facilities were the Papua New Guinea (PNG) Medical School, Otago Medical School, Auckland Medical School, and recently Australian medical schools. According to the Samoa Government Scholarship Committee, the top students who wanted to do medicine went to New Zealand or Australia, then FSM, then PNG.

My father (Leiataatimu Dr Viali Leiataatimu) and older brother (Dr Hemara Viali) trained in FSM. When Fiji went through several military coups in 1987 by Sitivenu Rabuka and 2000 by George Speight, Samoa did not have any medical graduates for several years from FSM. Some of the Samoa medical students from FSM were sent to PNG Medical School to finish their training in 1987, and 2000. We also stopped sending new medical students to FSM until Fiji had settled. Many of our medical students sent to New Zealand and Australia despite the Government bond, did not come back to work, as salaries in those countries were much higher, except a few.

These are some of the reasons why Samoa started looking for alternatives to train medical students from Samoa. We were pushed to a corner with only PNG or New Zealand or Australia to go to, as FSM was closed due to military coups. Hence the Oceania University of Medicine (OUM) Samoa was set up in 2002 by the Government under an Act of Parliament, and OUM started to provide doctors for the health system in Samoa from 2007 onwards after the first graduation in Samoa. The final exams for 2007 graduates were all done in Australia, by Australia Medical Council examiners, and all the students passed.

The first Samoan graduate from 2007, is still working in Samoa as an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist to this day. He received his postgraduate Master of Medicine in O&G sometime ago. The National University of Samoa (NUS) set up its School of Medicine (SOM) in February 2014. OUM and SOM now provide the majority of the medical workforce in Samoa, and credit to the Parliament and Cabinet for being so visionary.  

Read Part Two in tomorrow’s edition.

Professor Asiata Dr. Satupaitea Viali is the Professor of Medicine of the National University School of Medicine and the Professor of Medicine and Interim Clinical Dean for the Oceania University of Medicine (OUM).