Ifereimi Waqainabete

Dr. Ifereimi Waqainabete is a Fijian politician and Member of the Parliament of Fiji. Dr Waqainabete is currently the Minister for Health and Medical Services in the FijiFirst government. Before entering politics Dr Waqainabete was a general surgeon in Fiji and Associate Professor of General Surgery at Fiji National University, former President of the Fiji Medical Association, President of the Pacific Island Surgeons Association, and former Chairman of Fiji Medicinal Board. He was on leave from his academic and surgical duties to partake in the 2018 elections as a candidate for the Fiji First Party.

In 2018, at the combined GSA/PISA meeting, the Pacific Islands Surgeon Association held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) and elected the board of executives. Dr Waqainabete was elected as the President of the Pacific Island Surgeons Association, taking over from Lord Viliame Tangi, Chief General Surgeon of Tonga.

The continuing relations led to a historic combined General Surgeons Association Australia meeting with the Pacific Island Surgeons Association in Denarau, Fiji 2018 and was attended by over 340 surgeons and trainee surgeons from Australasia and the Pacific.

Dr Waqainabete supports training of Fijian and Pacific women in surgery. During his tenure at CWM as General surgeon and Medical Superintednant, he supported the first three cohort of women in surgery get selected into the Masters of Surgery training program and they have gone to successfully complete the training program to becoming Fiji first group of female surgeons to complete the training program. All three females successfully completed general surgery training and are now branching out into surgical subspecialties in Peadiatric Surgery (Dr Annette Chang), Plastic surgery (Dr Rachna Ram) and ENT (Dr Fane Lord). Since then, more women have joined the surgical training program in Fiji, leading to the first combined sub-meeting of Pacific Women in Surgery and Royal Australasian College of Surgeon's women in surgery delegates at the GSA//PISA meeting in Denarau, Fiji 2018.

In 2018, Dr Ifereimi Waqainabete joined the Fiji First party as a one its candidates for the 2018 general elections in Fiji. Though not on social media himself, his supporters developed a page on Facebook in support with the page generating more than 2000 followers within 10 days.

in 2016, as the President of the FMA, Dr Waqainabete together with the FMA executives petitioned for and successfully persuaded the Fiji First Government to increase salary for all doctors in Fiji by 50-100%. This was passed in the 2016 budget and implemented immediately. Prior to this doctors in Fiji were underpaid and frequently worked many hours over the 76 hours per fortnight without compensation. Fiji constantly suffered from an exodus of highly trained medical professional leaving to work in New Zealand and Australia, citing remuneration as one of the major factors.

He moved back to Fiji to work for few years, then later returned to Christchurch, New Zealand as an Upper GI and Hepatobiliary fellow at Christchurch hospital in 2012. The following year he worked as Breast and Endocrine fellow at Christchurch hospital in 2013.

On return to Fiji from his first set of rotations to New Zealand, Dr Waqainabete practiced as a general surgeon at CWM Hospital. During this time he was appointed as the Medical Superintendent to CWM Hospital, a role that he served from 2009-2011. He left this role in 2012 to take up further surgical fellowships in New Zealand.

He joined the surgical training program in Fiji and graduated with a Master of Medicine in Surgery from the Fiji School of Medicine in 2003.

After being awarded the Rowan Nicks scholar award in 2003, Dr Waqainabete moved with his family to New Zealand and worked in the position of senior registrar in General surgery at the Palmerston North hospital to gain further experience in surgery.

In 2003 Dr Waqainabete was awarded the Rowan Nicks Pacific Island Scholar award by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

In 2000, as the FMA president, the FMA executives petitioned for success increase in on-call allowances. It was common for doctors to work 24 hours straight on call and continue to work the next day with an allowance of only $10 on top of their basic salary.

Ifereimi Waqainabete studied at the Fiji School of Medicine, now under Fiji National University, graduating with MBBS in 1996. He was the President of Fiji School of Medicine Student's Association. During this time, he helped successfully petition for the Autonomy of Fiji School of Medicine from the Ministry of Health. This resulted in the significant growth of the then Fiji School of Medicine and its ability to petition separately for donor support.