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Celebrating the legacy and looking to the future
Unique is what is being stressed, as the countdown for the 150th anniversary celebrations of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Colombo, reaches the final days, minutes and seconds.
As the trees in the quadrangle rise to the sky, those who have passed through the portals of the Faculty of Medicine, Colombo, hope this august institution too would reach greater heights. Pix by Amila Gamage
While the finishing touches are being done, the landmark Koch Memorial Clock Tower down Kynsey Road has got a coat of white paint and nestling within the very arms of this Grand Dame of medical faculties, in the quadrangle, new life in the form of several trees from a carpet of grass are rising to the sky.
The Sunday Times walks into the ‘tasting session’ on Thursday as a well-known caterer lays before a medical team the food that will be served during the celebrations.
Before we get down to the power-packed anniversary celebration agenda which starts off with the Colombo Medical Congress 2020 on the theme ‘Medicine in Sri Lanka – The Legacy and the Future’ at which will gather eminent alumni from here and abroad, Co-Chair Dr. Prasad Katulanda says that they will be trendsetters in the country.
“Take the food that we will be serving….all the meals will have high protein, be low in carbohydrates, high in fibre and low in fat,” he says, reiterating that they will put into action what they have been preaching to the public about a healthy diet. “Everyone attending the congress will get five portions of vegetables and fruit each day,” he smiles.
Then Dr. Katulanda and the other Co-Chair Prof. Saroj Jayasinghe look closely at the in-depth programme planned for next week, starting with pre-congress workshops on February 10, 11 and 12, the inauguration of the academic sessions on February 12, followed by the three-day congress on February 13, 14 and 15.
“The Colombo Medical Faculty’s anniversary is a landmark in the history of Sri Lanka, as it coincides with the introduction of formal medical education and formal higher education in the country,” says Dr. Katulanda, pointing out that the Colombo Medical Congress will be the largest ever medical gathering held here.
It will only be the inauguration (at the Water’s Edge Hotel) and the banquet (at the Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel) which will be held out of home-ground, with the Medical Faculty pulsating with vigour and ideas during the whole week, along with the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL) across the road.
Emeritus Prof. Kamini Mendis
Dr. Prasad Katulanda
Prof. Saroj Jayasinghe
The faculty, in fact, was born at the NHSL (then called the Colombo General Hospital) in 1870, subsequently moving to its current premises on the other side of Kynsey Road…….but never severing the umbilical cord, with generations of medical undergraduates trooping in and out of here to hone their clinical skills. So it is apt that the pre-congress workshops such as surgery and radiology will be held at the NHSL.
There will be three plenaries, six parallel sessions and numerous free research papers as oral presentations or posters during the congress, says Dr. Katulanda, while Prof. Jayasinghe ticks off the countries from which the 300 plus speakers are drawn as Sri Lanka, India, United Kingdom, United States of America, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Russia.
Most of these speakers are pioneers in medicine in Sri Lanka or outside, it is understood and there is an expectation of around 1,500 attending the congress.
With justifiable pride, Prof. Jayasinghe says that the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, will be sending a special message to the congress.
Prevention to curative, the spotlight at this single conference will turn on wide and varied subjects. No issue and no one has been left out, says Dr. Katulanda, reiterating that what is unique is the way the congress is being held and the example during the congress of a healthy lifestyle.
Having earlier referred to food, he talks next of the ethical fund-raising for the congress where there will be no commercial stalls by any pharmaceutical company.
“They have supported us through unrestricted education grants,” adds Prof Jayasinghe.
The Co-Chairs pick out some highlights to give a ‘taste’ of what awaits the participants: Challenges and innovations in public health beyond 2020; Precision diabetes: Where are we today?; The future of medical education; Achieving SDG Goal 5 – Gender equality & empowerment of girls & women by 2030: Role of the medical profession and educationists; Gender-based violence against women: Cross-border perspectives; Maternal ancestry of contemporary Sri Lankans and Vedda individuals; Digital health: Current landscape and future opportunities; Leadership role of the medical school in mental health: Past achievements and future challenges; Boosting the Silver Age; Sexual medicine; Madness, mindfulness and well-being; and more.
Senior Prof. Jennifer Perera
Prof. Chandrilka Wijeyaratne
While there will be a Global Medical Challenge which will see the launch of an annual quiz bringing in several universities, there is also billed a Grand Panel Discussion on ‘Our alma mater: visions for the future. The balancing act: teaching services, research and innovations’.
The pre-congress workshops, meanwhile, range from Gender-based Violence conducted by Sweden, Canada and UNFPA; Immunity by the UK-SL Immunology Foundation, Workplace-based Assessments by Singapore; Communication Skills by the UK Doctors’ Association; Mentoring, Safety & Quality; Mindfulness; Genomic Medicine; to a satellite workshop on Novel Insulin Therapies including the introduction of the insulin pump.
The week will also not be work and work alone but also ‘play’ with the social calendar vibrant with peduru parties, informal batch meet-ups and a historic walk around the heritage buildings of the NHSL rekindling much nostalgia.
What the Faculty of Medicine, Colombo, promises is coverage of the “entire spectrum” of medical and health issues, spiced up with lots of fun activity.
| Eminent alumni from here and abroad to grace inauguration | |
| The star-studded inauguration on February 12 at the Water’s Edge Hotel will see many eminent alumni on the podium, while there will also be a felicitation of about 90 including past Vice Chancellors of the Colombo University and past Deans and past Chairs of the departments of the Colombo Medical Faculty.  Prof. Sir Sabaratnam Arulkumaran The Chief Guest will be Prof. Sir Sabaratnam Arulkumaran, former President of the International Federation of Gynaecology & Obstetrics and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, while the Keynote Address will be delivered by Emeritus Prof. Kamini Mendis, well-known malariologist. Both have passed through the portals of this august institution. With them will be the Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo, Prof. Chandrika Wijeyaratne; the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, Colombo, Senior Prof. Jennifer Perera; and the President of the Colombo Medical School Alumni Association (CoMSAA), Prof. Rezvi Sheriff, once again all who have got their basic medical education from here. Looking back, Prof. Sir Sabaratnam recalls the centenary celebrations when he was a student at the Medical Faculty and appreciates the brilliant teachers and excellent training. “I am delighted that the tradition has continued as witnessed by the quality of teachers and students of this school who have excelled in different subjects of medicine in Sri Lanka and globally. The students from this medical school are recognised for their commitment, compassion, competence, cooperation for good team work and skilled communication. This is our legacy and we should continue these values in practising the art and science of medicine into the future for the next 150 years and beyond,” he says. The plan to continue this conference by the Medical Faculty joining hands with CoMSAA on a regular basis should provide the information to continuously raise the standard of clinical practice, teaching and research. Such conferences should enthuse the younger generation to develop future visions and ambitions in life to contribute to the society for it to survive, thrive and excel, adds Prof. Sir Sabaratnam.
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