News
Neurology care for all
View(s):- ASN assures brain health across all ages with optimal resource utilisation,
cost-effective solutions and multi-sectoral collaboration
By Kumudini Hettiarachchi
The promise to protect the brain health of all men, women and children was fervent.
The Association of Sri Lankan Neurologists (ASN) will serve the country by promoting sustainable healthcare policies drawn on the principles of age-inclusiveness, optimal and efficient resource utilisation, cost-effective solutions and multi-sectoral collaboration, reiterated ASN President Prof. Saraji Wijesekara on Friday evening.
The head-table (from left): ASN Joint Secretary Dr. Anomali Vidanagamage; Dr. J.B. Peiris Orator Dr. Gemunu Hewawitharana; Chief Guest Prof. J. Helen Cross OBE; ASN President Prof. Saraji Wijesekara; Guest of Honour Dr. Padma Gunaratne; and ASN Joint Secretary Dr. Kumarangie Vithanage
Addressing the inauguration of ASNAC 25, the Annual Congress of the ASN, she assured “comprehensive and holistic neurology care across the lifespan”, which will undoubtedly contribute to the development of a healthy nation, galvanised to surge forward towards long-term economic prosperity.
She said that the ASN’s overarching theme of ‘Holistic Care in Neurology Across the Lifespan’ for 2024-25 underscores the commitment to treating the individual as a whole – addressing a person’s physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual well-being, while recognizing the enduring impact of neurological conditions throughout life.
Prof. Saraji Wijesekara
“We have developed a comprehensive plan for neurology cadre development through 2030, which includes a structured hospital network for neurological care delivery. This network will not only improve public access to care but also provide a more supportive framework for neurologists,” said Prof. Wijesekara, spotlighting the National Epilepsy Centre at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL), Colombo, as a state-of-the-art institution. It has all the latest investigations and treatment modalities including epilepsy surgery and other minimally-invasive procedures and intra-cranial monitoring for complex epilepsies.
Looking at the patient information webpage of ASN on common neurological diseases, she said that it is in simple language. The neurology clinics at both government and private hospitals display the QR code and link to the site. “It is encouraging that people from all corners of Sri Lanka are accessing this information.”
Prof. Wijesekara focused on the “pivotal” role played by ASN in advocating for sustainable and cost-effective health policy, prioritising optimal resource allocation to ensure equitable patient care. The efforts to streamline the use of essential, yet often, expensive medications had been noteworthy.
With regard to research, she said that ASN’s Guillain-Barre Syndrome study has grown into a multi-centre one with 44 co-investigators from 20 sites. The ASN had also joined the Global Parkinson’s Genetic Program (GP2) study in 2023, marking a first participation in an international collaborative research project.
Prof. Saraji Wijesekara presents the Certificate for the ‘Prof. Saman Gunatilake Prize for the Best Research Publication’ to Prof. Thashi Chang who collected it on behalf of the research team headed by Dr. Padma Gunaratne. Pix by M.A. Pushpa Kumara
| ASNAC 2025 The four-day 18th annual congress of the ASN – ASNAC 2025 – will conclude tomorrow, March 3, in Colombo. The keynote address on ‘Moving forward in epilepsy care’ was delivered at the inauguration by Chief Guest Prof. J. Helen CrossOBE. Based in the United Kingdom (UK), she is the Prince of Wales’s Chair of Childhood Epilepsy; Director, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health and President, International League Against Epilepsy. The Guest of Honour was Senior Consultant Neurologist Dr. Padma Gunaratne, while the Dr. J.B. Peiris Oration on ‘An accurate and practical approach to predicting developmental outcomes in high-risk infants’ was by Consultant Paediatric Neurologist Dr. Gemunu Hewawitharana of the Ninewells Hospital NHS Tayside, UK.
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