70th annual armed forces medical conference held in Pune

The conference, which is the high point of the AFMS’s calendar, discussed a wide spectrum of professional issues. It was inaugurated by Surgeon Vice Admiral Rajat Datta, director-general of the AFMS, from New Delhi virtually.

He also presented awards for academic excellence in postgraduate and in-service training courses as well as the Medical Journal of Armed Forces of India’s awards for the best paper and the best reviewer.

The principal investigators of five best AFMRC projects in internal medicine, surgery, pathology, community medicine and dental surgery were felicitated. Five best research papers published by AFMS doctors were awarded the chief of army staff award, the chief of naval staff award, the chief of air staff award, the director-general’s medal and the late Lt Gen R S Hoon award.

To foster cooperation with the civilian medical community, several guest lectures were organized. Dr Sushma Bhatnagar, head of onco-anaesthesia and palliative medicine at the AIIMS, New Delhi, delivered a lecture on palliative care. Dr Amit Gupta, a professor of trauma surgery and critical care at the AIIMS, shared his insight on reducing the burden of injury.

The Medical Journal Armed Forces India oration for 2022 was delivered by Dr T Jacob John, an eminent virologist, on the topic “polio eradication: the journey and where we have reached”.

At the core of the deliberations was the AFMRC’s sixtieth annual meeting held on February 3 and 4. The AFMRC provides a platform to AFMS researchers all over the country to contribute to the service’s enormous research and learning process. This year 151 new research projects were discussed.

The director-general congratulated the AFMS for stellar services rendered during Covid-19 pandemic and asserted the service’s roles and responsibilities in south east Asia and beyond. He said AFMS assets deployed in the most difficult of terrains—be it the Himalayan peaks or high seas—were fulfilling their responsibilities with utmost dedication and ensuring clientele satisfaction.

A session on challenges included talks by Major General Sandeep Thareja, commandant of the Command Hospital, Lucknow, on “comprehensive medical services during the pandemic”; Brigadier Manas Chatterjee, of HQ 14 Corps, “on combat healthcare management challenges in high-altitude areas”; and Brigadier D Vivekanand on “HR challenges of meeting individual aspirations and organizational needs”.