Awards and Recognitions
Dr Geeta Joshi bestowed with the ‘Life Time Achievement Award’ by ISSP on 7th February, 2025
We are elated to share that Dr Geeta Joshi (President, IAPC) had been bestowed with the ‘Life Time Achievement Award’ by the Indian Society for Study of Pain (ISSP) on Friday, 7th February, 2025.
The award was presented to Dr Joshi during the ISSP’s 39th Annual National Conference held at Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, in recognition of Dr Joshi’s significant contributions in the field of pain management throughout her career. The Award also honours her lifetime of service to the medical community and to the ISSP society itself.
On this occasion, Dr Joshi shared, “I am humbled by this recognition which motivates me to work harder and alleviate the pain of those who are suffering with serious health related illnesses. I urge all my colleagues to treat chronic pain as a disease in itself, and to remember that those who are suffering from chronic pain require holistic care and an integrated approach for pain relief!”.
Congratulations Dr Geeta Joshi! We wish you further accolades.
Dr Umesh Bhadani presented with the ‘We serve India Awards 2024’ on 28th January, 2025
We are happy to share that Dr Umesh Bhadani (Professor and Head, Anesthesiology; Incharge, Palliative Care, AIIMS Patna) was the recipient of the Forbes India ‘We Serve India Awards 2024’ presented by the Lions Club International at an event held at Guwahati, Assam, on Tuesday, 28th January, 2025.
The award presented region wise, recognises social change champions across India. Dr Bhadani was presented the award for the East Zone in the category of ‘Healthcare and Sanitation’ in recognition of his remarkable contributions in healthcare and particularly palliative care in Bihar and for the significant impact he has made in the lives of countless individuals and communities.
A humble Dr Bhadani shared, “I am grateful for this acknowledgement. This award highlights the growing need and also the recognition that palliative care is receiving these days. I am grateful to my team and my fellow colleagues for all the support they provide during our shared journey of making palliative care accessible to those who need it in the region”.
Congratulations Dr Bhadani! We wish you continued success!
Military Hospital, Meerut, and CanSupport, jointly inaugurated a 10 bed Geriatric and Palliative Care ward on 4th February, 2025
It is heartwarming to share that on the occasion of World Cancer Day, Tuesday, 4th February, 2025, Military Hospital (MH), Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, and CanSupport, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and also inaugurated a 10 bedded Geriatric and Palliative Care Ward for Armed Force personnel, their families and veterans (includes former Army, Navy and Airforce personnel).
Patients of both cancer and non-cancer will be able to avail free-of-cost palliative care services at the new ward. To begin with, palliative care services will be offered to adult patients and over time to pediatric patients as well.
Until now, in-service personnel, their families and the veterans from surrounding districts of MH, Meerut, availed medical care at the center. For palliative care services they were referred to either CanSupport’s home based program, or were asked to go to Delhi or any other private hospital for in-patient care. The constantly increasing load of patients in need of palliative care services propelled the initiation of in-patient services to be made available at MH, Meerut.
When we reached out to Brig. Vikram Patra (Commandant, Military Hospital, Meerut), he shared, “This is a much needed service to improve the quality of life of our colleagues and our veterans. Until now we referred patients to CanSupport’s home based palliative care services operational in the region. However, over time, we realised the imminent need for an in-patient facility to complement the home-based service. We therefore formalised our association with CanSupport and began the in-patient ward as well to ensure continuity in care and to alleviate the suffering of our patients.”
To avail services at the center please reach out to Lt Col Siji K Madhavan at +91 9130553938.
Congratulations to both teams! We wish you the best in this endeavour.
8 Pain Management Units inaugurated in 8 hospitals across West Bengal in February, 2025
We are thrilled to share that 8 pain management units were inaugurated across West Bengal during February 2025. These units were inaugurated at the Hooghly District Hospital, Asansol District Hospital, Chanchal Super Speciality Hospital, Suri Sardar Hospital, Dinhata Sub Divisional Hospital, Garden Reach Sub Divisional Hospital, M R Bangur District Hospital, and Kharagpur Sub Divisional Hospital.
The launch of these units are a part of the State Palliative Cell, National Health Mission, Government of West Bengal’s initiative to implement and operationalise the National Program for Palliative Care (NPPC) to alleviate suffering and ensure that patients and their caregivers are pain free.
All the newly inaugurated pain management units will function twice a week, i.e every Tuesday and Friday, during Out Patient Hours along with the palliative care / oncology unit. The units will cater to the needs of both cancer patients and non-cancer chronic cases, elderly and children with life limiting cases.
On behalf of all those involved, Dr Debasish Jatua (Secretary, IAPC West Bengal Chapter) shared, “Pain management being an integral and essential part of palliative care, one of our primary objectives was to ensure that our patients are pain free and are able to access pain medication closer to their homes instead of travelling long distances. Through this initiative, we hope that palliative care services are now easily accessible even in the remote areas of our State. We are grateful to Dr Sushma Bhatnagar for her persistent support towards making this initiative a reality”.
Congratulations to all those involved. We wish you a fruitful journey.