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Respected Prof. Ganguly, President of the Institute, Dr. H. Sudarshan, our Chief Guest, Prof. A.K. Das, the Medical Superintendent, Prof. K.S. Reddy, the Dean, Prof. B. Gitanjali, the Staff Advisor to students, Mr. Jeyaraj , President of JIPMER Students Association, Outgoing Graduates and their proud Parents, Distinguished Guests, Faculty, Staff and Students, Members of Print & Electronic Media, Ladies & Gentlemen,
I extend a warm welcome to all of you.
We are all immensely happy to have Dr. H. Sudarshan as our Chief Guest today. Dr. Sudarshan hails from Yemalur in Bangalore East. He was graduated in Medicine from Bangalore Medical College. Though a doctor by profession, he is well known for his contributions to the upliftment of tribal people of Karnataka. Attracted by the ideals of Swami Vivekananda, Dr. Sudarshan became a staunch social worker after finishing his graduation and started serving the tribal community through his profession. He started Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra for the integrated development of the tribal people of Karnataka, and he is also the founder of Karuna Trust which is dedicated to rural development.
Dr. Sudarshan has held many positions in his career. He was the Chairman of the Task Force on Health and Family Welfare formed by Government of Karnataka, and Chairman of the Task Force on Public Private Partnership formed by National Rural Health Mission of Government of India, and Institute of Health Management & Research, Bangalore. He was also a Steering Group member of the Planning Commission on the Empowerment of Scheduled Tribes in India's 11th Five Year Plan.
In recognition of his selfless services, the Government of India has awarded him with Padma Shri and he was given the Rajyotsava State Award for social work by the Government of Karnataka. Dr. Sudarshan was also felicitated with the Right Livelihood Award in Sweden.
We all know how former President of India, Dr. Abdul Kalam commended his services when he addressed us on an historic occasion in this Institute recently. He is, thus, a source of inspiration to all those involved in this noble profession and we extend a hearty welcome to you, Sir.
We are greatly honoured by the gracious presence of the President of our Insitute, Prof. N.K. Ganguly. Prof. Ganguly is the former Director General of Indian Council of Medical Research and presently, Advisor, Tranalational Health Science & Technology Institute, New Delhi. He has taken time out of his busy schedule to be with us, and we are extremely happy to have him with us to preside over the function today.
Now, I would like to present a brief introduction about this Institute followed by the annual report for 2008 :
Started in the year 1956 as Dhanwantari Medical College, this Institute was upgraded as a Postgraduate Institute in July 1964 and was named as Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research, familiarly known as JIPMER. Over the years, it has grown as one of the premier medical institutes of the country offering medical education of high standard and quality healthcare. The year 2008 is yet another milestone in the history of this institute. It was in this year, Government of India has accorded the status of Institute of National Importance to JIPMER by an Act of Parliament. The Act was passed in the Parliament in April and notified in the Gazette of India in May 2008. It has come into force with effect from 14th July 2008. JIPMER was dedicated to nation as an Institute of National Importance by the former President of India Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on 15th October 2008 in a grand function presided over by the Hon’ble Union Health Minister Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss. JIPMER has attained this prestigious status due to the personal interest and strenuous efforts taken by our Hon’ble Union Health Minister Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss. This would help this institute to expand beyond the barriers and attain excellence in all spheres of healthcare, medical education and research.
Apart from the undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses, post doctoral courses such as M.Ch. in Urology & CTVS, DM (Cardiology) and paramedical courses such as M.Sc. (Medical Biochemistry), B.Sc. (Medical Laboratory Technology) B.Sc. (Nursing), B.M.R.Sc., short term Medical Records Technician training, and Ph.D. programme in Para-clinical departments like Anatomy, Microbiology, Physiology, Pharmacology etc. are presently conducted in this Institute. Admissions to these courses are made through entrance examinations conducted at all India level and merit is the only criterion for admission. With the newly accorded status, JIPMER can develop its own curriculum and award its own degrees. As such, more new courses would be started to produce manpower in various specialties, super specialties and other paramedical subjects which is the need of the hour of our country.
The Institute has an attached hospital with 1050 beds catering to the healthcare of not only the people of Puducherry but also the neighbouring Tamil Nadu and even Andra Pradesh, Kerala and other States. The bed strength would go up further with the commissioning of the newly constructed 360 bedded Super Speciality Block and 82 bedded Regional Cancer Centre which are expected to become fully functional during this year.
Now, I would like to present a brief report on the performance of our Institute in the year 2008:
Academic Activities & Achievements by students
During the year 2008, 271 students were admitted altogether in all courses and as on date our students strength is 826.
The pass percentage in MBBS is 83.90 %, PG courses 94.36%, M.Sc.(Medical Biochemistry) 83.33%, and rest of the courses, it is 100%.
Following are some of the achievements by our students during last year:-
Dr. Y. Gopi Krishna, Senior Resident of Department of TB & CD was awarded Fellowship in the American College of Chest Physicians (ACCP), Illinois, USA.
Dr. Femela Muniraj, a PG student Pathology department, won the award for best poster in the session on Tropical Medicine at ISHTM 2008.
Dr. Paari Murugan, former Junior Resident of the Pathology department won the award for the Best Paper presented in JIPMER Scientific Society.
The PGs of Dermatology department Dr.Balaji Adityan got first prize and Dr. Anuradha Priyadarshini got second prize for case studies in the 18th Annual Conference of Indian Association of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists. Dr. Balaji Adityan and Dr. Sakthi Kandan secured 2nd Prize in the quiz competition in the same conference.
Dr. Rashmi Kumari of Dermatology department won 2nd Prize for the paper presented in ASTICON 2008.
Dr. Anuradha and Dr. Abarna of Department of Dermatology got prizes for paper presented in 17th Annual Conference of IADVL. Dr.Nidhi Singh and Dr.Abhijit Chougule won the first prize in the quiz programme.
Dr.Mallikarjun , Senior Resident, Orthopaedics got third prize for the paper presented in the 7th annual conference of OASIS held in September.
Dr.Arun Babu and Dr. Rojo Joy, PG students of Paediatrics department have won second prize at national level in the Quiz Programme conducted by National Neonatology Forum.
Dr. Deepak Balasubramanian, Junior Resident of ENT department, won the Padmashri Prof. Kameswaran Gold Medal second year in a row for the best Post Graduate paper at the AOI Conference held in September.
Dr. Kirubha Shankar, Junior Resident of ENT department won the gold medal for the Post Graduate Quiz at the AOI conference held in September.
· Dr. M.M. Sumanth, postgraduate student of P.& S.M. department got the best poster award in the 52nd National Conference of Indian Public Health Association held In March.
· Dr. Ramapriya Chinna, an Intern, got the award for the best paper presented by an undergraduate student in the 35th Annual National Conference of Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine (IAPSM) held in January.
Mr. A. John Robert, a III MBBS student, received Dr. Leela Krishnamurthy Prize from Indian Association of Biomedical Scientists for the best research work carried out by an undergraduate medical student.
Dr. C.V. Shankar Ganesh of Neuro Surgery department attended the 7th Asian congress of Neurological Surgeons held at Beijing in the month of June.
The annual college festival, ‘Spandan’ was exquisitely organized by our students which had a wide participation of about 60 colleges from all over the country. Besides bringing out the best of their abilities in sports, Spandan also throws open a wide platform to students to exhibit their talents in various cultural and literary competitions conducted as part of this festival. In the sports events of Spandan, JIPMER’s Hockey Team emerged as Winners-up and the Men’s Basket Ball team came out as Runners-up. In the Inter-collegiate tournament of Pondicherry University, Men’s Basket Ball Team of JIPMER won as Winners-up while the women’s Team came out as Runners-up.
Achievements of faculty
Dr. K.S.V.K. Subba Rao, Director, received Prof. Sundaram Subramaniam Oration Award in the 29th Annual Conference of Indian Association of Biomedical Scientists held at Chennai in December.
Dr. Ashok Kumar Das, Director-Prof. of Medicine and Medical Superintendent has been elected as a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. He has delivered Dr. B.R. Sengupta Memorial Oration at the Annual Conference of the West Bengal Chapter of Association of Physicians of India. He was also elected as Dean of Indian College of Physicians and organized APICON 2009 CME programme and edited the book “Postgraduate Medicine 2009.”
Dr. Vikram Kate, Prof. of Surgery, was appointed to the Panel of Examiners for the Intercollegiate MRCS Examination by the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, UK. He has also been appointed as the National Joint Secretary of the Indian Association of Surgical Gastroenterology from 2007-2009.
Dr. M. Bala Soudarssanane, Prof. & Head of the Department of P. & S.M., attended WHO Regional Conference on “Revitalizing Primary Health Care” at Jakarta, Indonesia in August. He was elected as the President of the Indian Association of Preventive and social Medicine (IAPSM) at the National level for the year 2008-2009. He got the Vijay Narain award for the Best Paper presented in the 35th Annual National conference of IAPSM held at JIPMER.
Dr. S. Jagdish, Prof. & Head of the Department of Surgery, attended the “Regional Patient Safety Workshop on the Integrated Management of Emergency and Essential Surgical Care at Bentota, Sri Lanka in January.
· Dr. Pankaj Kundra, Prof. of Anaesthesiolgy, attended Clinical Meetings at Caritas Medical Center and Prince of Wales Hospital, Hong Kong, in May.
Dr. DM Thappa, Prof. & Head of the Department of Dermatology, has taken over as Chief Editor of Indian Journal of Dermatology, Venereology and Leprology. He has authored and published 1st edition of “Clinical Pediatric Dermatology”, and brought out 2nd revised edition of “Essentials in Dermatology”.
Dr. S. Mahadevan, Prof. of Paediatrics, has been nominated as a Member of National Snake bite Management Task Force formed by Ministry of Health & F.W., GOI.
· Dr. Karoon Agrawal, Prof. & Head of the Department of Plastic Surgery has been elected as the National President of National Academy of Burns – India.
Dr. Gopal Krushna Pal, Professor of Physiology, has received the R. C. Shukla Oration Award of the Association of Physiologists and Pharmacologists of India (APPI) for best research publication in Cardiovascular Physiology. He has also been elected as the Editor of Indian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology, the indexed medical journal of APPI, for a tenure of three years.
Besides the above, our faculty and students have attended about 98 conferences and workshops within the country during last year and presented about 104 research papers. Also, 138 papers have been published in various national and international journals. 55 research projects funded by WHO, ICMR, DST and other agencies have been undertaken in various departments of our Institute.
Conferences/Workshops/CMEs
The following conferences, workshops and CMEs were conducted at JIPMER during last year:
· Department of Preventive and Social Medicine organised the 35th Annual National Conference of Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine from 23-25 January 2008. The conference was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Anbumani Ramadoss. About 600 delegates participated and about 350 papers and posters were presented in the Conference.
· The P.& S.M. department also organised the Training of Trainers Workshop for 20 District Level Chief Medical Officers of Uttar Pradesh from 21-26 April 2008 under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP).
49th Annual Conference of Indian Society of Haematology Transfusion Medicine (ISHTM-2008) was jointly organized by the Departments of Medicine, Paeditrics and Pathology at JIPMER from 18th to 21st September 2008. The conference was attended by delegates numbering more than 500 from all over the country. Three international speakers, from U.K., Australia and Malaysia, also addressed the gathering.
Department of Orthopaedics in conjunction with the Pondicherry Orthopaedic Association organized the Regional Conference of the Orthopaedic Association of South Indian States (OASIS) at Pondicherry in August 2008.
Department of Radio Therapy organized the 14th Annual Conference of Association of Medical Physicists of India, Tamilnadu and Puducherry Chapter, on 21st & 22nd December 2008
Department of ENT along with All India Institute of Speech & Hearing, Mysore, organized a Video Conferencing Workshop on Audiology in December. The aim of this workshop was to impart core and advanced training in the field of Audiology to the post graduate residents from JIPMER, Mahathma Gandhi Medical College and Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Puducherry. Other centers in different parts of the country also participated in this workshop.
Department of Plastic Surgery organized “2nd Operative Workshop on Hypospadias” from 22-24th August. 100 delegates and Faculty participated in this workshop.
Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology conducted a workshop on Intra Uterine Insemination in October.
Hospital Services
Despite the mushrooming medical colleges in and around Puducherry, the number of patients availing treatment in JIPMER is always on the rise. This is because of the quality of medical care available in a sanitized environment in our hospital. The OPD attendance has increased by 4% than the previous year. On an average, about 5000 patients are attending the OPDs and the bed occupancy rate is more than 100% at all times. A total number of 13,15,116 patients were treated in the OPDs and the number of in-patients treated was 57,020. Emergency Medical Services has recorded an attendance of 1,00,770 patients. A total number of 14,269 deliveries were conducted and 32,410 surgeries were performed during the year. The number of investigations carried out was 16,13,893.
Treatment is totally free of cost in OPDs and for in-patients admitted in general ward patients including their diet and medicines.
Several costly hi-tech equipments were acquired for improving facilities for patient care, medical training and research. Some of them are -
State-of-the-art Digital X-ray Radiotherapy Simulator with flat panel technology.
Spectrofluorometer and Platelet Aggregometer.
Operating microscope, high speed pneumatic drill, Mayfield head clamp, self retaining Leyla retractor.
Two Ventilators.
Video laryngoscope with incorporated 15º telescope and a set of micro-laryngoscope, Debrider for Endolaryngeal and endonasal surgery.
Flexible Fibreoptic Laryngoscope, Basic Life Support Manikin, Humidifier for ICU ventilators.
Two centrifuges, Blood cell counter & NIKON penta-headed teaching microscope.
Diabetic foot pressure machine
Some new surgical procedures have been started during the year. The Department of Neuro Surgery has started doing Cerebrovascular surgery and surgery of Craniovertebral junction. They have also started Artifical cervical disc replacement surgery and Nerve transfer surgery for brachial plexus injuries for the first time in JIPMER. The Department of Orthopaedics has commenced Extra Corporal Irradiation for limb salvage of malignant bone tumors.
The Teleophthalmology Project under the National Programme for Control and Prevention of Blindness (NPCB) of the Ministry of Health was inaugurated on 8th October 2008. It is a joint project of the Departments of Ophthalmology and Preventive & Social Medicine. Under this project, fully equipped vision centres have been set up in the Primary Health Center and Rural Health Center of JIPMER which are linked with the Ophthalmology Department of JIPMER using telecommunication devices. Patients will be screened in these vision centres for diabetic retinopathy, cataract, glaucoma and age related macular degeneration etc. and treatment will be provided by sending the pictures to the main hospital and getting the feedback using the telecommunication devices. Patients requiring further intervention like Laser treatment or Surgery will be treated at the main hospital.
45 voluntary blood donation camps were organized by the JIPMER blood bank during the year.
The budget allocation for the year 2008-09 was Rs.265 crores including 125 crores for capital works. Out of the sanctioned staff strength of 3513, 2107 staff are on roll at present. 12 new faculty members have joined this Institute last year.
New facilities
Several turn key projects which were started a couple of years back with M/s Larsen & Toubro Ltd. as EPC developer and M/s Hindustan Latex Ltd. as in-house consultant have been completed during the year.
Hon’ble Union Minister of Health & F.W., Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss, inaugurated the newly constructed buildings of Regional Cancer Centre and Patients Shelter, Nursing College & Hostel, on 23rd January 2008. He also commissioned the newly acquired equipments such as 1000 mA Digital X-ray machine and Colour Doppler Ultrasound machine on the occasion.
The other projects such as of Super Specialty Block, Trauma Care Centre, Burns Unit, and a 4-lane road from main entrance to Emergency Medical Services have also been successfully completed by M/s L & T and handed over to us. The Auditorium where this function is being held now has been beautifully constructed by CPWD. These new projects were inaugurated by the Hon’ble Former President of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on 15th October 2008 when he dedicated this Institute to the nation as an Institution of National Importance. The function was presided over by Hon’ble Union Health Minister and graced by His Excellency the Lt. Governor, Hon’ble Chief Minister and Health Minister of Puducherry, Hon’ble Members of Parliament and other distinguished guests and invitees.
The Super Specialty Block is housing Cardiology, Cardio-Thoracic & Vascular Surgery, Neurology, Neuro-Surgery, Nephrology, Urology, Medical Gastroenterology, Surgical Gastroenterology, Medical Oncology, Surgical Oncology, Endocrinology, Nuclear Medicine, Plastic Surgery and Paediatric Surgery departments. This block has a total bed strength of 360. There would be 10 Operating Theatres and 2 Interventional Endoscopy Theatres. State-of-the-Art Diagnostic and Interventional Equipments have been installed in this block. The Patient Care Services would be greatly augmented in terms of Interventional Cardiology, Open Heart Surgeries, Acute Stroke Care, Neurosurgery, Renal Transplantation, Management of Gastro-Intestinal Emergencies, Laser Microvascular Plastic Surgery, Surgery on Neonates, Infants and Children.
The Trauma Care Centre has been constructed above the existing Emergency Medical Services Department. Departments such as General Surgery, Orthopedics, Emergency Medicine, Anesthesiology and Critical Care are housed in Trauma Care Centre. This centre has Two New Multi Slice CT Scans and State of the Art Equipments for trauma care like High Profile Operating Tables for Neuro-Surgery and Orthopedics, Micro-Vascular Instruments, Image Intensifier for Intra-Operative Fracture fixations. Two High Tech Ambulances equipped with both basic and advanced patient care support and communication facility are available in this Trauma Care Centre.
The Auditorium has a Central Hall of 750 Seating Capacity with Ground Floor and exquisite balcony in the style of the Classic Bolshoi Theatre.
More expansion projects are in the pipeline. A proposal for setting up of Teaching block, 400 bedded Women & Children hospital, New Hostel Complex and Augmentation of existing specialties has already been submitted to Ministry and cleared by the Expenditure & Finance Committee. It is awaiting the approval of Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs. Work will start once the proposal is approved by CCEA.
A total number of 551 posts have been created for Super Specialty Block, Trauma Care Centre and Regional Cancer Centre. With further expansion, more employment opportunities would be generated.
Dignitaries visited:
Following dignitaries visited this Institute during the year 2008:
1. Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, Former President of India, visited JIPMER on 15th October 2008 on the occasion of dedicating JIPMER to nation as an Institution of National Importance.
2. Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss, Hon’ble Union Minister for Health & F.W., visited JIPMER on two occasions during the year. He visited on 23rd January to inaugurate the new buildings of Regional Cancer Centre, Nursing College & Hostel. He visited again for the inaugural function on 15th October.
3. The Standing Parliamentary Committee of Ministry of Environment & Forests, Govt. of India, visited JIPMER on 15th September with regard to Biomedical Waste Management.
Acknowledgements:
I take this opportunity to convey my hearty congratulations to all the outgoing batch of students, and I wish them all the best for their bright future.
I express my sincere thanks to our Chief Guest, Dr. H. Sudarshan, who readily agreed to our invitation and being with us on this memorable evening.
I express my sincere thanks to Prof. Ganguly, President of our Institute, who has come here all the way from Delhi to grace this occasion amidst his busy schedule.
I would like to express my thanks to all my teaching, non-teaching, technical, nursing and ministerial staff, and students for their cooperation in carrying on the day-to-day activities of this Institute.
I would like to thank the officers of Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and F.W., New Delhi, for their constant guidance and support.
I thank the Vice Chancellor of Pondicherry University and other staff members of the University for their continued support.
I would also thank the officials of CPWD, PAO, and various authorities in the Govt. of Pondicherry for all their assistance.
I would like to thank M/s L&T and HLL who have executed the projects in a record time.
I would like to place on record my appreciation of the services of the staff members who have superannuated during the year.
Last but not the least, I would also like to thank the members of the Print & Electronic Media who render a nice coverage to all our programs and events.
I would like to conclude with a quote from Swami Vivekananda,
By doing well the duty which is nearest to us, the duty which is in our hands now, we make ourselves stronger; and improving our strength in this manner step by step, we may reach a state in which it shall be our privilege to do the most coveted and honored duties in life and in society.
Thank you all,
Jai Hind.
7th February 2009 PROF. K.S.V.K. SUBBA RAO
DIRECTOR