Evelyn Lavu (died August 2021) was the most senior pathologist in Papua New Guinea (PNG) and a recognised leader in the fight against HIV, malaria and drug-resistant tuberculosis. She was Director of the Central Public Health Laboratory in Papua New Guinea for over a decade and, in June 2021, became PNG's first and only female Professor of Medicine.

Early life

Lavu was born in the village of Lalaura in PNG's Central Province. Her father was a

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

who also ran the village cooperative store, where she was often called upon to help out. She went to school at

Sogeri National High School Sogeri National High School is a school situated in Sogeri in the Central Province of Papua New Guinea (PNG). It was the country's first national high school and it educates students from all over the country in Forms 5 and 6 (Grades 11 and 12) ...

. She graduated from the

University of Papua New Guinea The University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) is a university located in Port Moresby, capital of Papua New Guinea. It was established by ordinance of the Australian administration in 1965. This followed the Currie Commission which had enquired ...

in 1986 and then did postgraduate studies in haematology at the

Royal Prince Alfred Hospital The Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (abbreviated RPAH or RPA) is a major public teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Missenden Road in Camperdown. It is a teaching hospital of the Central Clinical School of the Sydney Medical School ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, becoming a Fellow of the

Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia The Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia, more commonly known by its acronym RCPA is a medical organization that promotes the science and practice of pathology. The RCPA is a leading organisation representing pathologists and other sen ...

(FRCPA) in 1996.

Career

Lavu was employed as a clinician, researcher and laboratory scientist in PNG's capital,

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New Z ...

, but her activities had an influence throughout the country. She became Director of the country's Central Public Health Laboratory of the

National Department of Health of Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (PNG)’s National Department of Health is a statutory organisation focused on the delivery of better health services for the people of Papua New Guinea. The department’s stated key goals for the period from 2009 to 2013 are: * ...

. Her work included early diagnosis of HIV in infants and HIV viral load testing, which is considered to have had an important impact on PNG's HIV response, permitting children with HIV to grow up as productive members of society. She also researched

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

and

Human papillomavirus infection Human papillomavirus infection (HPV infection) is caused by a DNA virus from the ''Papillomaviridae'' family. Many HPV infections cause no symptoms and 90% resolve spontaneously within two years. In some cases, an HPV infection persists and res ...

(HPV), promoting

Pap test The Papanicolaou test (abbreviated as Pap test, also known as Pap smear (AE), cervical smear (BE), cervical screening (BE), or smear test (BE)) is a method of cervical screening used to detect potentially precancerous and cancerous processes in t ...

s at the village level. Lavu also worked on vaccine-preventable diseases, such as

measles Measles is a highly contagious infectious disease caused by measles virus. Symptoms usually develop 10–12 days after exposure to an infected person and last 7–10 days. Initial symptoms typically include fever, often greater than , cough, ...

and

rubella Rubella, also known as German measles or three-day measles, is an infection caused by the rubella virus. This disease is often mild, with half of people not realizing that they are infected. A rash may start around two weeks after exposure and ...

. Later in her career she studied for a PhD in

genome sequencing Whole genome sequencing (WGS), also known as full genome sequencing, complete genome sequencing, or entire genome sequencing, is the process of determining the entirety, or nearly the entirety, of the DNA sequence of an organism's genome at a ...

, to enable her to contribute to PNG's work related to the transmission pathways of drug-resistant

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. Prior to her death she also played a leading role in the country's response to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Lavu was Chair of the PNG Medical and Scientific Advisory Committee and, shortly before her death, she became the first female Professor of Medicine at the University of Papua New Guinea and a Member of the PNG Institute of Medical Research (PNGIMR) Governing Council.

Awards and honours

*Lavu was one of the recipients of a

Westpac Outstanding Women Award The Westpac Outstanding Women Award (shortened to WOW Award) recognizes exceptional professional work of women in Papua New Guinea. Since its inception in 2006, when it was called the Westpac Women in Business Award, the Award has recognized the a ...

(WOW) in 2015.

Death

Evelyn Lavu died in August 2021. She had two children. In paying tribute, Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister,

James Marape James Marape (born 24 April 1971) is a Papua New Guinean politician, who is serving as the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea since May 2019. He has been a member of the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea since July 2007, representing the el ...

, described her as an "outstanding daughter of the nation".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavu, Evelyn Year of birth unknown 2021 deaths Papua New Guinean women Papua New Guinean pathologists University of Papua New Guinea alumni People from Central Province (Papua New Guinea) Papua New Guinean women scientists