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Bridging gaps in surgical care his vision says Prof. Fernando
View(s):Induction of Sri Lanka College of Surgeons President
By Kumudini Hettiarachchi
Equitable surgical care for all patients, be it in Colombo or the periphery, is the vision of the newly-inducted Sri Lanka College of Surgeons President Prof. Ranil Fernando.
Such equitable surgical care will be based on the “solid foundation” of Postgraduate Surgical Education and Research, promised Prof. Fernando, after being inducted its 31st President on January 19.
The new president being inducted by the outgoing president. Pic by Mangala Weerasekera
In a first for Sri Lanka, the induction ceremony was also graced by President Prof. Norman Williams, Vice President John Getty and Council Members, David Ward and Mike Parker, of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.
Surgical care in any part of Sri Lanka should be of a similar standard, reiterated Prof. Fernando who is Professor in Surgery, Ragama Medical Faculty, University of Kelaniya, whose theme for the College of Surgeons this year is ‘Excellence in Postgraduate Surgical Education, Research and Equitable Patient Care’.
Conceding that, in Sri Lanka, there are gaps in surgical care, he says that bridging these gaps “has been my vision for a long time”.
The next step for the college is reaching excellence, says Prof. Fernando, recalling its “growth” from the stage it was founded to the stage of consolidation. “To achieve excellence, we need to train new generations of surgeons and promote a research culture.”
As Chairman of the Board of Study of Surgery at the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, the strengthening of the training of surgeons would be an achievable task, while Prof. Fernando also envisages the setting up of a ‘Research Fund’ at the college, to enable at least one or two young surgeons to present their findings at international conferences every year. “We need to develop a research culture,” he said.
On how all such activity would benefit the patients, Prof. Fernando’s action plan includes the development of a set of guidelines for surgeries, applicable all over the country. “This will be a step-by-step guide to any surgeon to work on, development of management guidelines for common conditions such as acute appendicitis.”
With regard to the dearth of surgeons in some specialities, he says that the challenge is to balance academic interests and service requirements
Strengthening collaboration with the Ministry of Health to have a minimum standard of care at all hospitals, including facilities and staff needed in operating theatres; using the electronic media and various communication devices, while closely collaborating with the Sri Lanka Medical Association, in efforts to get health messages to the people; reaching out to the regions, rather than being Colombo-centric; and strengthening the numerous international links the college already has, and establishing new ones are also on the cards.
While Prof. Fernando hopes to have at least three regional meetings within the year, one has already been scheduled for end-March in Jaffna.
Some of the other issues which the college will focus on are stations across the country with only a single surgeon, and the lack of communication between two hospitals when transferring surgical patients from one hospital to another. There is a need to regularise such transfers, according to him.
Underscoring the fact that the greatest asset of the college is its capable people and that, the college is for all surgeons, Prof. Fernando says that what he proposes are “not big ideas but things that can be done”.
The college has progressed much, the base is sound, and now we must aspire for excellence in all we do,” he added.
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