SURGEON AHEAD
Twenty four. That’s how many times Dr Lupe Taumoepeau has been mistaken for the cleaner when she’s entered an operating theatre. New Zealand’s first female vascular surgeon – and the only Pacific Island female vascular surgeon in Australasia – rolls her eyes when our conversation finds its way to the repeated case of mistaken identity.
“Sometimes people think I’m a nurse,” says the 38-year-old. “I’ve also had patients say to me, ‘You can’t be a surgeon,’ because of my age, gender or ethnicity. It’s sad that unconscious bias still exists, that people don’t see women of colour in positions of power. Thankfully, it’s slowly changing.”
Between sips of
