Rajeev Fernando
Dr. Rajeev Fernando is a disaster medicine and infectious diseases specialist who serves as the Chief Medical Officer for the charities Chiraj and Medical Aid Initiative Norway. Dr. Fernando completed his Disaster Medicine Fellowship at BIDMC/Harvard Medical School. He currently co-chairs the Infectious Diseases Special Interest Group (SIG) for the World Association of Disaster Emergency Medicine (WADEM). Since 2022, he has been periodically operating in Ukraine by providing much needed humanitarian aid and mental health clinics.
Dr. Fernando also serves as Executive Director for Field Operations at the Society of Disaster Medicine and Public Health. He managed critical COVID-19 cases across the world, including in the United States, India, Brazil, and Mexico. Dr. Fernando is a fashion designer and has showcased his work in New York, Paris and Cannes. All profits from his products help fund Chiraj humanitarian projects. Chiraj, founded by Dr. Fernando, focuses on assisting girls and women who have been trafficked in Iraq, Thailand, Colombia and will start a new operation in Los Angeles in 2026. Chiraj also focuses on projects empowering women in Brazil and India.
Dr. Fernando has successfully led, organized, and participated in numerous humanitarian/refugee missions, some of which include:
- Darfur, Sudan on mission with Doctors Without Borders (2008);
- The Rohingya refugee crisis in Bangladesh (2017);
- Türkiye earthquake disaster response (2023);
- Los Angeles wildfire disaster response (2025); and
- Hurricane Melissa response in Jamaica (2025).
Dr. Fernando has consistently been voted amongst New York’s best Infectious Diseases doctors. He has shared his medical opinions on networks including CNN, BBC and Fox News.
