Viopapa Annandale-Atherton

Viopapa Annandale-Atherton (also known as Papali'i Dr Viopapa Annandale-Atherton; 1940 – 4 November 2024) was a Samoan medical doctor who worked to improve the health of women and children in the Pacific Islands. She was the first Pacific Island woman to graduate from a New Zealand university.

Early life and education Born in Apia, Samoa in 1940 Annandale-Atherton was the daughter of Edward Annandale and Sina Nelson. She received a scholarship to study at Epsom Girls Grammar School. She studied medicine at the University of Otago, graduating MB ChB in 1964.

Career After graduation Annandale-Atherton went to Edinburgh where she was a house surgeon at the Royal Infirmary.

Honours and awards Annandale-Atherton received an Honorary Doctorate of Law from the University of Otago in 2019. Her grandfather was Samoan businessman and politician Ta'isi Olaf Frederick Nelson.

She met her husband John Atherton in Edinburgh, where they married in 1965; they had two sons.

Annandale-Atherton died in Samoa on 4 November 2024.