The USA Board
In Partnership with CMC

Combined Federal Campaign, SEFA  and United Way.  The Vellore Board is listed for these campaigns under ID # 10765. Please note this is a new number.

 In its partnership with CMC, the Vellore CMC Board office in New York has:

• Filed 19 successful grant requests with the American Schools and Hospitals Abroad (ASHA) program of the U.S. government, garnering over $8 million in commitments since 1982. 

• Raised $1.6 million and contributed a total of $2 million for the Ida S. Scudder Building for Women and Children.

• In the last decade, underwritten senior training fellowships in the U.S. and many other countries for 61 CMC faculty.  Financial support for the program to date totals $330,000, much of which is paid for out of current giving. 

• In the last ten years, assisted 193 volunteers from the health professions to work at CMC.  The value of their time comes to $1,317,820.

• During that same time period, helped to orient 136 medical students who went to CMC for elective studies.  Students came from nearly every major medical school in the country.

• This past year, raised over $150,000 for the Tsunami Relief Fund at CMC.

In sum, over the last ten years, the Vellore Board has raised money for disaster relief, poor patient care, medical student scholarships for disadvantaged students,  new equipment, and continuing education for staff totaling over $11 million.

WINTER SYMPOSIUM 2008

The Christian Medical College's sixth Winter Symposium on Cardio-vascular Sciences ran from January 10 -12, 2008. Profes-sional organized by Dr. George Joseph and his team, a host of leading national and inter-national researchers and speakers participated, de-livering important papers on recent advances in Cardio-vascular Sciences over 3  days.

The symposium was inaugurated by Dr. M.S.Ananth, Director, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, who encouraged medical and engineering specialists to work together to provide indigenous solutions to India’s problems. A progressive feature of the symposium was equal participation of basic scientists and clinical researchers in the academic sessions. As a result, the symposium was successful in linking the biology of cells relevant to the cardiovascular system with clinical disease and its medical and surgical treatment.

The high point of the symposium was the keynote address, delivered by the 2003 Nobel laureate in Chemistry Dr. Peter Agre, who involved the audience with his description of the journey that led him to the discovery of aquaporins, ubiquitous water channels in the cell membrane that were hitherto unknown.

Equally informative was the plenary lecture delivered by Dr. Kenneth Chien, Professor of Medicine from Harvard University, on cutting-edge research in cardiovascular regeneration using islet-1 progenitor cells. The symposium attracted a diverse audience, with students from local colleges turning up in large numbers. The poster session provided an opportunity for researchers from nearby institutions to showcase their research; college students participated. Dr. Kenneth Chien enthusiastically and competed keenly to win prizes awarded for the best posters.

The symposium provided a great opportunity for students to interact with the distinguished faculty, many of whom mingled freely with the students. Hopefully the experience provided by this winter symposium will spark a lasting passion for research in these young, eager and impressionable minds.

New Leadership Announced at CMC

At the June Council Meeting, Dr. Suranjan Bhattacharji, Head of the Rehabilitation Institute, was appointed  Director for a 5 year term.  He has succeeded  Dr. George Chandy whose term ended in September 2007.  The Council also announced the following additional appointments:

• Dr. Anand Job, Professor of ENT, was appointed Principal, effective September 2007, for a 5 year term

• Dr. Lionel Gnararaj, Professor of Urology, was appointed Medical Superintendent ,effective July 2007, for a 5 year term

• Dr. John C. Muthusami, Professor of General Surgery, was appointed Council Secretary, effective July 2007, for a 3 year term

• Dr. Ravi Jacob Korula, Professor of Orthopaedics, was appointed Associate Director, effective July 2007, for a 4 year term

• Dr. C. E. Eapen, Professor of Gastroenterology, was appointed Deputy Medical Superintendent, effective July 2007, for a 4 year term

• Dr. Edwin Stephen , Associate Senior Reader in Surgery, was appointed Deputy Medical Superintendent effective July 2007, for a 4 year term

• Mrs. Vathsala Sadan, Registrar, College of Nursing was extended until December 31, 2007

• Mrs. Selva Titus Chacko, Professor of Nursing, was appointed Registrar-Designate and with take over as Registrar January 1, 2008
  
   

India Today Ranks CMC #1 (Factual)

	Dear colleagues & friends, I am happy to report that the INDIA TODAY (June 4, 2007) - AC Nielsen Survey of Academic Excellence has given CMC, Vellore the FACTUAL rank as Number ONE amongst Medical Colleges in the country, based on the facts identified through an extensive, nationwide study. The PERCEPTUAL rank, i.e. the perception in the minds of the people who were interviewed ranks CMC third behind AIIMS, Delhi and AFMC, Pune. In an interview with NDTV, Mr. Raj Chengappa, Managing Editor of India Today, stated that as per the data relating to excellence in education, nurture, facilities, faculty, etc., CMC ranks Number One (FACTUAL). George Chandy Director
from INDIA TODAY: ...‘With a promise of "high class education" and a training that reiterates the duty of a medical professional to reach out to the marginalised masses, CMC has consistently occupied pride of place among healthcare institutions. "We’re constantly striving to motivate people to be interested in healthcare not as a commodity but as a healing ministry", stresses Principal, Dr. Jayaprakash Muliyil. With unflinching focus on research, this 107-year- old institution has been doing exemplary research in stem cells. Equally important is its curriculum that caters to the most relevant requirements of the country. Dr. Muliyil explains, "Our students work in mission hospitals across the country. This hands-on experience is really what sets us apart". (Click on thumbnail above right to see India Today's listing)

The Fight Against Pediatric AIDS

The Vellore CMC Board was visited at its spring meeting by Dr. Valsan Verghese, the CMC pediatrician playing a leadership role in fighting AIDS among children.  Dr. Verghese described the prevention regime he administers in coordination with the obstetrics/gynecology department for HIV positive pregnant women.  During the pregnancy, CMC provides the women with drugs that greatly reduce the risk of transmission to the infant before or during birth.  Caesarian delivery is performed.  The child is prescribed preventive drugs, and the mother is discouraged from breast feeding. 

 In New York, Dr. Valsan Verghese, CMC pediatrician, discusses
HIV/AIDS prevention with Board member Dr. Rabia Mathai   .

The major difficulty with this treatment program is that formula feeding is fraught with danger in developing countries where mothers have little money and impure water supplies.  The pediatrics department monitors the children over the first year of life, and about a third of them suffer from serious diarrhea and malnutrition.  This number can be reduced through coaching and monitoring by a social worker along with supplies of special foods that can be better utilized by infants in a weakened state.  The Board is seeking assistance from donors to pay for a home-visit social worker and the special foods needed to save these children. 

Dr. Verghese is in the United States as a Board-sponsored Senior Training Fellow.  He is spending several weeks at the University of Miami and at Johns Hopkins University studying new anti-AIDS drugs that are not now but soon will be available in India. 

 

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This page was last updated: Wednesday April 23, 2008

CMC News

An Important Partnership:
CMC with Karolinska Institute

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the 107-year-old CMC, Vellore and the 197-year-old Karolinska Institute of Stockholm, Sweden, covering regular student-teacher exchange programs and joint research projects.

The MoU was signed by Dr. George M. Chandy, CMC's Director and Dr. Carani B. Sanjeevi, Scientific co-ordinator for Karolinska - India Initiative and Head of Molecular Medicine, KI and an internationally known authority on Diabetes, on Saturday June 30. Earlier in the day, Dr. Sanjeevi addressed the Quality Circle with an excellent presentation on Diabetes.

Karolinska is the fourth largest medical university in the world and its Nobel Forum selects the nobel Prize winner in Medicine each year. The partnership would benefit both institutions through academic exchanges, cultural inter changes and co-operation in teaching, training and research. KI has the technological backup and enormous funding opportunities, while CMC has a wide variety of disease profiles and large patient numbers. Karolinska has over 2000 researchers engaged in Ph. D., work alone at any given time.

Dr. Jayaprakash Muliyil, Principal, pointed out that the tie-up would help both institutions share their resources for the common goal of bringing relief to the diseased. Scientists across the nations coming together with mutual trust and support for better health of mankind. According to Dr. Sanjeevi, under the Indo-Swedish agreement on co-operation in science and technology, enormous opportunities for institutional level collaborations and funding of scientific venture will be possible. It is agreed that the undertakings of CMC and KI would comply with all recognised international laws, regulations and guidelines in the relevant fields, such as UNESCO Declaration on Ethics. The MoU is valid for a period of five years. In the meantime Dr. C.B. Sanjeevi has been appointed as a visiting faculty here.
 

CMC Begins Mission Workshops

CMC conducted its first Missions Workshop on April 20 in the Senate Hall. About 50 delegates from various mission bodies attended the workshop, which addressed the practical problems encountered by mission hospitals in India. Many of them are facing difficulty in remaining viable and relevant and urgent steps are needed to restore and strengthen them.

At the outset the delegates were encouraged to voice their expectations from the workshop. They unanimously agreed that they were keen to get to know, interact, partner and network with one another. Is Christian Medical mission relevant? Are the existing mission hospitals relevant? How can we become relevant? These were some of the issues discussed. According to Dr. Vinod Shah, co-ordinator for Distance Education in CMC, unless mission hospitals become the custodians of true caring they will become a forgotten entity. Faculty from CMC, Christian Institute of Management, Christian Medical Association of India, Evangelical Medical Fellowship of India and others led the sessions.

The mission representatives appealed to CMC to look into the urgent need for networking the Christian mission hospitals. We thank our Lord and Saviour The Lord Jesus Christ for His abundant grace and look forward to continue the good work that He has begun.
 

CMC is first to receive the GurkulJyoti Award.

The GurukulJyoti Award for excellence in education is aimed at promoting and nurturing excellence in education through identifying, encouraging and honoring all the educational instituted that have dedicated themselves to the lofty task of pursuing excellence.  The Christian Medical College, Vellore is honored to receive the first award as the best medical college in India.  The award was presented to Director George Chandy by R. C. Lahoti, Former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India in a ceremony in New Delhi on February 25, 2007.

New Lodgings for International Students

The Manis (r.) at the dedication ceremony for the new student hostel.

Dr. Mani M. Mani, Alumnus of the Batch of 1955 served in CMC in the Department of Plastic Surgery and later worked for several years in the University of Kansas. Dr. Mani arranged a MOU between CMC Vellore and the University of Kansas. While doing this, he saw a need for accommodation for international students who come to do electives in CMC. Dr. & Mrs. Mani and the Modayil family responded to the need in true CMC fashion, by planning an International Students Home and by donating the funds needed for the facility.

The construction of the Modale Mani International Students Home has been completed and the facility was dedicated on 3rd February 2007 at 11.30 a.m. This facility is now available for occupation. Priority will be for students from the University of Kansas.


Dr. Mani (r.) and Mrs. Rebecca Mani cut the ribbon to open the new Modale House at CMC as Director George Chandy waits inside to greet them.

Dear friends,

The Madras Medical Mission instituted the ‘MMM Award for Excellence in Healthcare’ as part of its Silver Jubilee Celebrations which has been awarded to our institution.

We thank the Lord Almighty for this prestigious award which will be a source of encouragement for all of us.

With warm regards,
George Chandy

(For more information about the award, follow this link: MMM Award (pdf  920Kb))
 

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