Dr Udaya Samarakkody, of Hamilton, MNZM for services to Paediatric Surgery and the Sri Lankan community
Dr Udaya Samarakkody is a consultant paediatric surgeon and paediatric urologist at Waikato Hospital. She was President of the New Zealand Society of Paediatric Surgeons, and is a member of the Scientific Committee of the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Paediatric Surgeons. She is an instructor for the Australia and New Zealand Surgical Skills Education and Training course of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, and has trained over 50 surgeons. She has published extensively, and her outreach service has improved equity of surgical care for rural and Māori children in the Midland region. Dr Samarakkody is Co-Chair of the Sri Lankan Doctors and Dentists Association in New Zealand and has held governance roles with the Sri Lanka Friendship Society Waikato.