Health professionals in the Northern Province were recently beneficiaries of a visit by a team consisting of three doctors and a senior nurse from the Christian Medical College, Vellore, India who conducted symposia and training. The team consisted of Prof.Nihal Thomas, Dr.Riddhi Dasgupta and a senior diabetic nurse and educator Mrs.S.Bharathi from the Dept. of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism. The fourth member was Dr.Bobeena Chandy a physiatrist from the Dept. of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. For three members of the team it was their first visit to this country.

Internationally acclaimed Endocrinology Unit

The Endocrinology Unit from Vellore has received international recognition and awards for their innovative and multidisciplinary team approach to the management of diabetes. Since diabetes mellitus is a major problem in northern Sri Lanka it was felt appropriate to have such a respected team visit and update local health professionals. The visit was arranged by Dr.Aravinthan (Consultant Endocrinologist, Diabetic Centre, Teaching Hospital, Jaffna) and Dr.D.C.Ambalavanar (Visiting Lecturer in Surgery and himself an alumnus of CMC).

Symposia and Training

The team was in Jaffna for five packed days of activities. These included sessions for primary care physicians, consultants, doctors and nurses from the Teaching Hospital and Jaffna district as well as for doctors and nurses from the mainland provincial hospitals that was held in Kilinochchi.

The teaching sessions were very practically oriented and covered important topics in diabetes such as current management, insulin injections techniques and gadgets as well as the very important topic regarding the management and prevention of diabetic foot complications. The sessions were very interactive which the visitors also thoroughly enjoyed. Senior doctors commented on how relevant and practical the sessions were.
The nurses, who had separate sessions, were very interactive, found the practical sessions very beneficial and felt empowered by seeing one of their own being such an integral part of this team. The fact that she spoke to them in Tamil made it even more enjoyable and useful! What was an additional and important benefit of these sessions was that they clearly demonstrated the importance of a multidisciplinary team approach and the great prominence given to the role of nurse educators. The symposia in Jaffna were done in collaboration with the Jaffna Medical Council while those in Kilinochchi with the Provincial Ministry of Health.

In addition to these symposia, the team also made two visits to the Jaffna Jaipur Centre for Disability and Rehabilitation where they not only saw a few patients but also advised the staff on the basics of diabetic foot care and showed samples of appropriate footwear. The CMC team also offered to help with training of staff from the centre.

The team also spent time in the Diabetic Centre at the Teaching Hospital, Jaffna where they advised on management and provided further training for the nursing staff. The physiotherapy department was also visited. They also managed to squeeze in a couple of lectures for Final Year medical students!

Potential Long term benefits

The visit of the CMC team was fruitful not just in terms of what they did during this visit but the potential for further visits not just from this group but other specialities from there. Not only is CMC just across the water but they deal with a similar population mix and encounter similar day to day problems. Prof.Nihal Thomas who is also Assoc.Director at the CMC Hospital has promised to help in cooperating with requests for training by staff from the region here. This should very useful to our staff and easier as they speak the same language there! The ethos that permeates through all aspects of life in CMC will also expose our staff to a different culture of care which can only be beneficial to even better patient care.

Links between CMC and Jaffna

Many from Jaffna have benefited by undergoing training as doctors and nurses in CMC. Nurses and doctors from Jaffna have undergone short periods of training there this century too and a few specialists have done their periods of overseas training in that institution. However the links between Jaffna and CMC were laid nearly two hundred years ago when the first medical missionary in the world, Dr.John Scudder, established a medical clinic in the village of Pandeterippu. After serving there for several years he moved to Tamil Nadu where he continued his work. It was his granddaughter, Dr.Ida Scudder, who founded CMC at the beginning of the twentieth century!
The visiting team had such a packed schedule that they had only a little time for sightseeing. However, it was arranged for them to visit Scudder House in Pandaterippu where Dr.John Scudder once served the people of Jaffna. For the team members it was akin to a pilgrimage!

Acknowledgements

Thanks a plenty to the team from CMC for their visit and the whole hearted manner in which they involved themselves while here. They also had arranged for their travel costs from India to be covered. This visit would not have been possible without the additional financial support given by the Australian Medical Aid Foundation (AMAF).Thanks are also due to the Diabetic Centre staff, Dept. of Community Medicine, Jaffna Medical Association, the Northern Provincial Health Ministry, staff of the Medical Students’ Hostel and the many sponsors of the symposia that were conducted.

We look forward to many more such collaborative efforts with the prestigious Christian Medical College.