E-mail from Prof. Saroj Jayasinghe

Saroj Jayasinghe	00:26 (7 hours ago)
to Colombo, bcc: me

Dear friends..... Please inform your batch mates.......

ONE more day left to submit your proposals for guest lectures, panel discussions and seminars (30th of September). The deadline for abstracts for oral presentations and posters is the 31st of October 2019.

Call for abstracts and proposals for presentations are now open. The Congress will include an inauguration, a grand banquet and many more social activities.... batch get-togethers etc.

Please visit the website for further details.colombomedicalcongress.org

Please use the email address of the congress given on the website for correspondence.

Apologies if you have already received this email. 

Kind regards

Saroj

Saroj Jayasinghe

MBBS (Col), MD (Col), MRCP (UK), MD (Bristol), PhD (Col), FRCP (Lond), FCCP

Chair Professor of Medicine University of Colombo

Founder Head, Department of Medical Humanities, Faculty of Medicine

Hon. Consultant Physician, National Hospital of Sri Lanka, Colombo

saroj@clinmed.cmb.ac.lk

sarojoffice@yahoo.com

+94-11-2695300

+94718619331

Waste not, want not! Save the planet!

By Zita Perera Subasinghe

What is it with humans!! We are so productive that over the past few millennia we have conquered the land, sea, air and outer space. We have climbed the highest mountain, dived into the deepest sea. We have made discoveries which have made life easier, given enjoyment, helped the needy and healed the sick.

We have produced fine art of immense value; unravelled scientific principles which helped understand life and made inventions of great value. We have, in the last 70 years understood the principles behind computers (complex devices which make fast calculations, understand what is called cyberspace, and advanced in the science behind computers so much that it has crept into every nook and cranny of life and it dominates our world. But these make life enjoyable.

But man has been so busy in his quest for going forward that now he is threatened by his own success as the world and the environment we live in are retaliating and opposing man by showing its disapproval. What it means is ‘we’ve become our own enemy’. We are slowly poisoning our own environment, the air we breathe, the earth we stand on, the water we drink and the food we eat. We have managed to bring about a climate change detrimental to the world, to the life on it and in it. We are slowly killing the trees, contaminating the water, poisoning the air we breathe and killing fish and animals.

So where has man gone wrong? Is it all man’s fault or is it the natural outcome of evolution and advancement?  Even if we do not have satisfactory answers, we must say STOP! Think! Change what you do, reverse your cars into the garages and go back to a more primitive life if necessary, eat less meat and burn less of fossil fuels.

Turn your inventive power to run equipment by solar energy and produce less and less carbon in day to day activities.

Think of efforts made by governments, various treaties made over decades, further green technologies. Let’s start today. Save every drop of water, every smidgen of energy and follow examples of green activists.

Think of Greta Thunberg the 16-year-old climate activist. She crossed the Atlantic by a sail boat to go to the US to continue her climate activist work there.

I suggest that we each bring forward what each can offer this debate. We can have a simpler way of life on earth, save life in the sea, give our children, nephews, nieces and grandchildren a healthier planet to live on at least as good as we have enjoyed.

Tales from my Rocking Chair

By Nihal D Amerasekera

My creaky Edwardian rocking chair is my refuge from the trials of the day. When the day is done the wisdom of Rabindranath Tagore does enrich my soul:

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high

Where knowledge is free

Where the world has not been broken up into fragments

By narrow domestic walls

Where words come out from the depth of truth

Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection

Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way

Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit

Where the mind is led forward by thee

Into ever-widening thought and action

Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.

Rabindranath Tagore

Through sheer circumstance I had a privileged childhood. This was enhanced by being an only child. I was a little emperor to my parents, wellat least some of the time. There was always a maid to look after me during my early childhood. The maids treated me with great affection and were ever willing to please me. My most frequent request was for bedtime stories which they seemed to have a plethora in store. Many were about kings and queens but a few were of demons and darkness which were a huge part of village life faraway from the bright city lights.I distinctly remember the fearsome figure of a demon called “Mahasona”. These fantasy folktales had an impact on my psyche. Like most kids of my generation I developed a fear of the night and ofdarkness.

My paternal uncle was a “PeryaDorai” in a tea estate in Neboda in the Kalutara district. It was called Geekiyanakanda Estate, an appropriately sublime and gorgeous name. This was the early 1950’s and we hadn’t given up our British way of life. He had a buttler and a retinue of servants. The food served was British through and through – 3 course meal starting with a soup and ending with a dessert. My uncle and aunt had no children. They were very fond of me. I well recall the “Tom Brown’s Schooldays” they gave me for my 12^th birthday. I was fascinated by  theThomas Hughes’  classic that revealed the jolly romps of students at Rugby School near Birmingham.

I remember well a visit to Neboda with my parents during my school holidays. They had the most beautiful estate bungalow built on to a hillside. The elegant house was surrounded by a lovely terraced garden that was immaculately maintained. There were fountains and a pond with fish and water lilies. The garden was a haven for bees and butterflies. I played table tennis with my uncle before dinner. In those days children were to be seen and not heard. After dinner we all sat in their spacious lounge. They all chatted away about local politics and family gossip. It was around ten O’clock when I began to yawn.  My aunt took me upstairs to the guestbedroom.It was such a huge space for a bedroom. She asked me if I was happy to sleep on my own as everyone else slept downstairs. I saw no problem there.

The room looked like a library with several cabinets full of books some of which wereleather bound and ancient having turned brown with age. The prose ranged from Shakespeare to Dickens and poetry from Chaucer to Wordsworth. A stack of magazines on a chair caught my eye.  I picked up “The Ceylon Causerie”. This was the “Hello” magazine of the day and contained the latest gossip of the great and the good in Ceylon. It also had a collection of wedding photos of the rich and famous with vivid and colourful descriptions of the attendees. Towards the end of the magazine were some fascinating stories, one by R.L Spittel on wild life and the other by SWRD Bandaranaike captioned “Mahahene Riri Yaka”. I read both those wildly diverse narratives with great interest.It waswell past midnight when I switched off the light.

Like most kids I always enjoyed unbroken sleep until dawn. Being rather tired I fell asleep swiftly. It may have been several hours later I felt a cold hand on my neck. I do not quite know if I was awake or still asleep. The fingers on my neck tightened very gradually and haltingly until breathing became intolerably difficult. It was a most frightening experience. I tried hard to open my eyes but I just couldn’t. When I felt I was on deaths door the tightness on my neck was suddenly released.  I could now open my eyes and saw the garden light through the window. All seemed quiet around me. For a 13 year-old this was a distressing episode. I plucked up some courage and switched on the bedside lamp. Being too shy to shout for my parents I bottled up my fear and emotions until the next morning. I wasn’t brave enough to mention this until several months had elapsed.

I am still unclear if this was a mere nightmare after reading SWRD Bandaranaike’s chilling tale or the work of a resident poltergeist who loved to surprise the unwary. Belief in the supernatural and paranormal is old as history itself. Spooky stories of  ghosts, spirits and of apparitions are in existence in every continent and in every country.These figures have been linked to religion and to death and afterlife. There is no real proof that they exist. It is easier to pooh-pooh the claims of its existence than to make a critical study. More work needs to be done to prove or disprove these stories. I have written to this blog of a similar encounter which I called “A Silent Guest”. Despite my experience I am still unclear if they were merely my mind playing tricks on me, an unwanted relic of those childhood stories of old.

E-mail from Suren Iyer's wife Swini

Dear Lucky

Firstly I want to  thank you for the grand job you are doing with the blog.

A boy by the name Saman whom my wonderful husband helped to educate, found out through your blog the sad demise of Suren. Suren and I lost touch with Saman once he completed his education. I was so pleased to find Saman’s message on your blog requesting for my contact details on the 25th March 2019.  I am  happy to say that I have been in touch with Saman and he was thrilled to hear from me and saddened to hear of the passing of Suren. Suren would have been proud of Saman’s achievement.

I am grateful to your blog. Please keep up the good work..The time and effort you put in to keep this blog alive is much appreciated.

Thank you kindly.

Wishing you the best,

Swini.

MEETING RAJAN RATNESAR AND HIS WIFE QUEELAN IN LONDON

When Rajan(Patas) emailed me that he would be in London in August –September and said he would love to meet me, I had no hesitation in doing my best to fit a suitable date and time. He was in London in time for the 2^ndTest Match at Lords on August 18^th between England and Australia and then off on a Balkan cruise coming back to London via Southampton. We decided on the 6^th of September evening and the Hoppers restaurant in Marylebone , London as the venue. We tried to get ND too, but unfortunately, he couldn’t make it.

There are two Hoppers restaurants in London, one in Marylebone and the other in Soho. They are both Sri Lankan restaurants and provide gorgeous hoppers, both plain and egg.

We met at Hoppers as planned and had top quality Sri Lankan style hoppers with chicken curry, seenisambol and prawns. The meal was nice but the company and chat even more so. We reminisced a lot and also spoke about our own families. We recalled the days when we studied together in the small back room attached to the garage at Edward Lane, Kollupitiya where I lived while I was a Medical student. Lubber and Vishweshwara joined us at times. We remarked on how relatively well we have negotiated the passage of time and spared a thought for those colleagues who were less fortunate.

Rajan came with his cheery and lovely wife Queelan and they both yet again asked me to visit them in San Francisco. I have been to his house a few times in the past and always enjoyed their hospitality and also meeting batch mates who live within visiting distance.

It certainly was lovely to see them, and we both feel privileged to have maintained contact for over 50 years. We laughed a lot and reflected on George Bernard Shaw’s observation,  “You don't stop laughing when you grow old, you grow old when you stop laughing.” 

Speedy “Mahendra” Gonsalkorale

7^th September 2019

Pictures from CoMSAA Get-together 2019

Sadly, only Sanath Lama, Pram and myself attended the CoMSAA 2019 Get-together.

In response to ND's "Musings"

By Zita Perera Subasinghe 

Reading Nihal’s musings from his rocking chair gives one the idea to look back on one’s own life. Nihal has the knack and talent to analyse his memories of the past and relay it in an interesting fashion!

  In my case, I can look back on words, phrases, principles or rules and snippets from stories which I often ‘muse’ on. I like to look back on ‘Pearls’ which teachers have told us. One was,  ‘Never put off for tomorrow, what you can do today’.   Another ‘rule’ was ‘things are never just black or white but they are usually shades of grey, not always right or wrong but something in between. Situations you face are not ‘clear cut’ and decisions dictated by them could give you a dilemma. In this case, you have to choose the lesser of the two evils, i.e. you have to make the best of a bad job. Another is, if your instinct tells you something is wrong, you’re probably right. Also remember, two wrongs don’t make one right, even though in Maths -x- (minus x minus) is plus.

 Making lists is a good habit. It may be about what to buy, what to do, who to invite and who to avoid! You are your best companion, so spend time with yourself: thinking, planning, laughing even laughing at yourself! Use the abbreviation etc. as little as possible. Write full lists.

 A person’s name is the most important sound in the language to that person. So, listen to and remember the names of a friend, a foe, a teacher, a student or that of the stranger in the gym. At a party when you meet new people learn their names and remember using a clue e.g. Pearl (she shines like a pearl), Saman (a samanalaya and picture it in your mind).

 Other useful rules:

1.    Treat others as you would have them treat you.

2.    Two wrongs don’t make one right

3.    When someone gives you a lemon, make lemonade. (That came from Dale Carnegie)

4.    Reading maketh a man (or woman)

5.    People bring what they are capable of so when it’s your turn do the best you can.

6.    Finally, the Gentle art of Blessing (from the book of the same name)

However badly others treat you, do not curse them but Bless them in your heart. Keep doing so till you feel the hurt is gone. You will be surprised when they come back and apologise for what they did or said, or do something good to you!

In the book, they cannot explain how this happens except that we humans can communicate spiritually or mentally.

I think that is enough! Good bye and Good Luck! All Blessings!

More Encomiums for Sanath Lama

Sanath Lamabadusuriya honoured. Congratulations Sanath!

An Appreciation - Prof. Carlo Fonseka

It is with the deepest of regret, that I record the sad demise of Prof. Carlo Fonseka.

In 1962, and as a medical student, fortune smiled on me when I had this great man, as a Lecturer and Tutor in Physiology, at the Faculty of Medicine in Colombo!

    He was an erudite gentleman and his very personality,charm and sense of humour impressed me most. I was privileged indeed,to meet this great human being!  His very demeanor disseminated love,compassion and kindness to all!  

He possessed the unique 'gift' of being able to take on  the most complex problems and dissect it into fragments, so that it could be easily understood by all.  Truly a brilliant teacher!

 I had  often heard of the immense respect and veneration he commanded from his patients, when he was a young medic, on the wards.

As time went by, I soon realised that he was reputed to be  a great exponent of the 'Truth', and  a firm believer of the "Theory of Impermanence".  He discarded  belief in the 'supernatural' and viewed everyone as 'equals'.

In respecting the true teachings of the Buddha, he dispelled rituals, false beliefs, fire walking, fasting and idol worship.

On a personal note-  this supreme being and his charming wife, Pearl, stepped in to help me and my wife, at a very desperate juncture of our lives.  With no food for sustenance,  no fixed abode, and no income, they offered us our basic needs. 

It was an old 'storeroom'  with only a single bed!  My wife and I remember so vividly his very words to the both of us : " This is, and must be, the worst place for a future Doctor and a future Lawyer to live and sleep in, BUT - under the circumstances it is a Palace"!!!  It certainly was!

We were given all our meals, and the use of all the household facilities, for a month, until we later moved on and found alternate  accommodation. 

When we could afford to pay them back, as an expression of gratitude ,we offered payment for looking after us so well- in our hour of need.  They both accepted it in the true and traditional 'Sinhala' style, and then to our shock and surprise, returned it immediately, saying "thank you for the payment, and would you now please accept our Wedding gift, to the both of you"!!!  

"Small men think they are great, but great men have no time for such small things"!!

I have no doubt that the many thousands of students' lives you have touched, would agree with my sentiments. Your departure has left a vacuum in this world. May your journey in Sansara be short.

Goodbye, my good teacher and mentor, you are truly a 'Bodhisattva'!

                     "Thousands of candles can be lit from just one candle,

                       yet the life of the candle is not shortened .

                               Happiness never decreases from being shared"            

                                                                                                    Sidarth Gautama.

Dr. Ranjith Dambawinna

Essex, England.

Musings from my Rocking Chair

By Nihal D Amerasekera

As I moved house and downsized I have insisted on taking my rocking chair with me. It has become a silent companion in my retirement. This is the next best thing to a traditional Sri Lankan Hansi-Putuwa that my granddad spent his leisure. Sometimes I slowly rock myself into a slumber. There are times I reflect lazily on the twists and turns of my life.It is a perfect posture to meditate, ruminate and cogitate when the days work is done. I am partial to a glass of vino to help lubricate my thoughts.

Memories of Sri Lanka where I grew up are always with me. What stands out is my deep and lasting gratitude to my country for giving me the education at school and University for free. The all-round education was of the highest order and I couldn’t have had it better anywhere else in the world. It is some comfort and consolation that I worked as a doctor for 7 years in Sri Lanka.

Still there are times I dream I’m in the Mens Common Room in the Medical Faculty at Kynsey Road. Such is the depth of feeling for my alma mater. There I feel close to the friends who made it so special. GHC with its iconic long corridors was our workshop where we learnt our trade. I like to think it was a splendid institution, yet, no organization is perfect. There are many things I disliked in the faculty. Starting at the very beginning it was the rag. The psychopaths had a field day every day of those 2 weeks. It is incomprehensible that the management turned a blind eye to this obnoxious and vulgar behaviour. Old habits die hard as the vestiges of the rag still haunt the freshers.

There was far too much anatomy taught and the detailed study seemed so pointless, as I look back. The signatures and revisals were conducted as if they were a matter of life and death. The Block had a sinister and toxic ambience. Some of our teachers reveled in our stress and discomfiture. Surely there are better ways to teach and learn. Thankfully the ’syllabus’ has been scaled down.The pendulum has now has now moved too far in the opposite direction. Some students think the posterior fornix is in the back of the eye!!

There was an amiable man, whose name I cannot now recall, who taught us pharmacy. He showed us how to make the once ubiquitous mixtures, Carminative, Pot Cit and Sodi Sal. These were dispensed by the gallon up and down the country at government hospitals. We learnt about tinctures that made up these mixtures and how they were poured into narrow bottles with a zig zag slip of paper to indicate the dose. He demonstrated how the ointments are made. This was light entertainment for us after the sweat and toil for a multitude of subjects for the 3^rd MB.

Forensic medicine was taught in great detail as it was bound to come in handy for many of us to perform autopsies and attend courts as  DMO’s. There was so much emphasis on M'Naghten rules.A generation of medical students failed if they could not repeat the rule exactly at the viva voce examination. I do not think any one of us used the M'Naghten rules ever in our lifetime and will never ever do. Prof HVJ and Dr WDL Fermando conducted these Vivas. I forgive them for this grave‘miscarriage of justice’ for their wonderful rendition of the popular song “Officers daughter” at an event at the Health Department Sports Club at Castle Street. It was done with such intense passion, forensic detail and greatpoignancy. This received a rapturous ovation.

The doctor series of books written by Richard Gordon glamourized the medical profession.They gave the general public a rare glimpse into the lives of hospital doctors. The arrogant, imperious and revolting behavior of theSenior Surgeon, Sir Lancelot Spratt, stood out as he carried out his surgical duties.His condescending treatment of medical students gave us an impression of the tough life of students and staff in London in the 1950’s. Our clinical teachers who had worked in Britain conducted themselves in a similar manner. They behaved as demi-Gods treating everyone else with contempt. The suggestion of having a second opinion was anathema to them. I hasten to add there were many exceptions. Having said all that with frankness and sincerity it must also be said our clinical teachers were some of the best in the world. This was the golden era of medical education in Sri Lanka. Everyone of them without exception gave of their best to the students and to their patients. I just wished they showed a bit more kindnessand less of their enormous egos to usstudents as we learned our trade.

I take a cue from the title of the 1996 song by that English Rock Band - Oasis – Don’t look back in anger. 

The wind of change has blown across medical education worldwide. I had the privilege to teach radiology registrars from the Royal Free Hospital and also medical students from the Royal Free and Cambridge University.Teaching is now done with mutual respect and is great fun and satisfying to all.There is far more friendly banter now. The medical curriculum too has undergone an enormous transformation,teaching what is relevant.Whenever a doubt exists a second opinion is encouraged by clinicians. There are better text-books than we’ve had. Much of the theory of medicine is now available on Google. Hence the students ask far more searching questions than we ever did.Teachers can’t get away with thosewoolly answers.

The great heights our batch-mates have reached in almost every sphere of medicine shows without doubt how well we have been taught. I do not think any of us have been hampered adversely by the toxic atmosphere and the aggressive teaching methods. It was simply unpleasantat the time when there was no real need for it.

As I reflect and reminisce ours was a most remarkable batch. Friendships are a divine gift. It brings great sadness to lose so many so soon. May they find eternal peace

Prof. Carlo Fonseka

One of our remaining teachers from Medical College has passed away. The only living teacher now is Prof. Priyani Soysa.

Prof. Carlo Fonseka passes away at age 86

September 2, 2019   01:45

Renowned physician and academic, Professor Carlo Fonseka has passed away, today (02), at the age of 86 years, family sources told Ada Derana.

Professor Carlo Fonseka was a former dean of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya and a former president of the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC).

Being a political activist, Professor Fonseka was a prominent member of the Trotskyist Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP). He was a member of the party’s central committee and politburo and lead its branch in Kotte.

He was a vocal critic of private medical education and campaigned against the NCMC in the early 1980s.

Fonseka was also a lyricist and composer and has produced a number of albums including Carlochita Gee (1992) and Raththaran Duwe (2006).