William (Bill) Hewak, B.Sc, M.P.H., M.D., President

Originally from Canada, Dr. Hewak grew up in the Hamilton Ontario area. He has studied in Canada, the United States, and Australia.

As an undergraduate, Bill’s program of study combined Psychology and Physics and involved the manufacture of Fluorine-18 isotope for use in patient PET scans in the McMaster University Medical Center.

As a graduate student, Bill studied Epidemiology and Medical Geography. Bill’s project of a novel device to monitor and display ultraviolet radiation intensity to help prevent sunburn was featured on CNN: vimeo.com/179618403

After graduation, Bill taught six-week field study courses on the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Kauai, Molokai, and Oahu for Wildlands Studies LLC for over a decade.

Bill’s subsequent medical studies in Australia were highlighted by contribution to research that reviewed systematically various physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses: https://www.bmj.com/content/336/7635/77.

Bill was selected to join the 16th generation of the Hawaii East-West Center’s Asia Pacific Leadership Program. Bill focused on the promotion of philanthropy in public health and medicine in the Pacific Region. For the independent study component of the program, Bill participated in the Harvard Lancaster Course in Ophthalmology.

Dr. Hewak has volunteered for multiple medical missions in the past, including Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Fiji, and Yap. Bill also represents Eye Mission of the Pacific in collaboration with UNESCO’s International Day of Light.

Eye Mission of the Pacific welcomes Bill Hewak as our physician-leader and Kokua to our founder, Dr. John M. Corboy.