The Indian Panorama

Tag: Dr. Anjana Samadder

  • AAPI’s 41st Convention will Focus on: “True and Total Health is the Wellbeing of Mind, Body, and Spirit”

    AAPI’s 41st Convention will Focus on: “True and Total Health is the Wellbeing of Mind, Body, and Spirit”

    CHICAGO (TIP): “True and Total Health is the Wellbeing of Mind, Body, and Spirit” will be the theme for the 41st annual Convention 2023 of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) planned to be held at the iconic Marriott Downtown in Philadelphia, PA from July 6th-9th, 2023” Dr. Ravi Kolli, President of AAPI announced during a press meet on April 25, 2023.
    The virtual press conference was addressed by Dr. Ravi Kolli, President of AAPI, Dr. V. Ranga, Chair of AAPI Board of Trustees, Dr. Satheesh Kathula, Vice President of AAPI, Dr. Meher Medavaram, Secretary of AAPI, Dr. Sumul Raval, Treasurer of AAPI, and Dr. Sreeni Gangasani, CME Chair, who has been newly elected as the Treasurer-Elect of AAPI.
    Dr. Kolli informed the media that AAPI successfully concluded its annual election with the participation of over 5,000 members to elect a new leadership team that will be taking charge at the convention. Headed by Dr. Anjana Samadder, the only 5th woman president of AAPI in its 41 years long history, the new team will comprise of Dr. Satheesh Kathula as the President-Elect, Dr. Amit Chakrabarty as the Vice President, Dr. Sumul Raval as the Secretary; Dr. Sreeni Ganagasani as the Treasurer; and Lokesh Edara – as the Chair, Board of Trustees.
    Dr. Ravi Kolli will continue to serve AAPI as the Immediate Past President of AAPI and help the leadership in their tasks as needed. In response to a question on his tenure as president of AAPI, Dr. Kolli said “I maintained good relations with everyone, every group, every region, and everybody. I am very proud of my contributions in bringing people together and reaching out to team members to reach their full potential.”
    While describing the schedule for the three-day convention, Dr. Kolli said, the convention will be addressed by eminent speakers, including Indian- American Congressmen, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi, and Ami Bera, and Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal as well as senators, Governors of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Mika Singh will perform at the convention along with other artists, and Miss England will also attend as a special guest.
    Additionally, Spiritual guide of Heartfulness Meditation and Padma Bhushan awardee, Kamlesh Patel commonly known as Daaji, Her Holiness Jagadguru Sai Ma, representatives from Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), and other spiritual institutions have been invited. CME speakers and faculty from prestigious institutions including U Penn, Harvard and Stanford will also participate in the convention, AAPI president Ravi Kolli informed.
    Dr. Kolli said that the event will host panel discussions on the future of health care, CEO forums, and sessions on artificial intelligence and emerging technologies in conjunction with entertainment and cultural sessions.
    According to Dr. Ranga, “The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin Convention offers an exciting venue to interact with leading physicians, health professionals, academicians, and scientists of Indian origin. Physicians and healthcare professionals from across the country will convene and participate in the scholarly exchange of medical advances, to develop health policy agendas, and to encourage legislative priorities in the coming year.”
    “AAPI Convention will focus on addressing physician burnout and the Convention team has planned several wellness packages,” said Dr. Anjana Samadder, President-Elect of AAPI. “As we witness a significant increase in physician burnout, Convention will be an opportunity to relax, interact with your colleagues, and learn effective ways to address the challenges in caring for patients and care for self and thus avoid burnout,” Dr. Samadder added. “Our Annual Convention in Philadelphia is just around the corner. Our team is working very hard with great enthusiasm, and they are all very excited to see you at this fantastic memorable event. Some of the highlights of the convention are: Very informative CMEs, product theaters; Women’s Forum, CEO Forum, Financial Seminars, Spiritual sessions &Yoga, Obesity awareness walk, Alumni reunions, Local Tours, Special programs for non-physician spouses, and lots more,” said Dr. Raghunandan Lolabhattu, CEO & Acting Chair of Convention 2023 and Vice Chair of Board of Trustees, AAPI.

    “We will have one of the very best conventions in history,” Dr. Kathula said. “The convention will focus on Mental Health as well as Physical health and various other medical specialty updates, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Convener of the Convention stated that “Medical Jeopardy, Research, and Poster presentations by medical students, will be a great way to bring the next generation of physicians into AAPI and will help accomplish the mission of AAPI. In addition, advocacy to dismantle the stigma of mental illness and Suicide Prevention will be the highlight of the program.”
    While describing the many initiatives of AAPI both in India and the United States over the past four decades, Dr. Medavaram said, “The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin Convention offers an exciting venue to interact with leading physicians, health professionals, academicians, and scientists of Indian origin. Physicians and healthcare professionals from across the country will convene and participate in the scholarly exchange of medical advances, to develop health policy agendas, and to encourage legislative priorities in the coming year.”
    Dr. Raval said, “The scientific program, comprising of CMEs and workshops at the convention are developed by leading experts with contributions from the Scientific Advisory Board and the International Scientific Committee. The workshops will be led by world-famous physicians on topics relevant to the needs of the time.” Discussions and deliberations will address the Stigma of Mental illness, Suicide prevention, Management of Chronic diseases and NCD and, other health issues including Climate Change and its impact on health will be discussed, he added.
    Dr. Gangasani referred to some of the topics for the CMEs will include Psychiatry, Ophthalmology, Pediatrics, Gastroenterology, Neurology, and Oncology. “In our efforts to realize the core mission of AAPI, which is to share the best from leading experts from around the world, to collaborate on clinical challenges, the convention will have clinical tracks that are of vital to healthcare leaders and members,” Dr. Gangasani added.
    While urging all AAPI members to make plans and be part of the historic Convention, Dr. Kolli said: “We have a wonderful team planning and organizing the event to make the 2023 annual convention a memorable experience. Please reach out to any one of the representatives from the Philly team for any of your queries and visit www.aapiconvention.org for more details or call the AAPI office at (630) 990 2277 for further information.
    (Press Release)

     

  • AAPI’s 17thGlobal Healthcare Summit Announced During Curtain Raiser in Delhi

    AAPI’s 17thGlobal Healthcare Summit Announced During Curtain Raiser in Delhi

    NEW DELHI / NEW YORK (TIP): “After the highly successful Global Healthcare Summit in Visakhapatnam last weekend, I am happy to announce that the 17th annual Global Healthcare Summit will be held in New Delhi from January 2nd to 4th, 2024,” Dr. Anjana Samadder, President-Elect of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) announced here during a Curtain Raiser held at the prestigious Constitution Club in New Delhi on January 9th, 2023.

    Organized under the leadership of Dr. Udaya Shivangi, Women’s Forum Chair of AAPI, the kickoff event and press conference was attended by nearly 50 journalists from the nation’s capital and several leaders of APPI, who had come all the way from the United States to be part of this important ceremony. Prominent among those who attended the event included Dr. Seema Arora, past BOT Chair of AAPI, Dr. Raghu Lolabhattu, vice chair of AAPI BOT, Dr. Gautam Samadder, past president of AAPI, Dr. Sreeni Gangasani, Dr. Amit Chakrabarty, Dr. Raj Bhayani, and Dr. Joseph Chalil. Dr. Sampat Shivangi, Chair of AAPI’s Legislative Chair joined the meeting through a message of felicitation sent to the media and AAPI leadership.

    In her address, Dr. Anjana Samadder said, the theme for the next global healthcare summit will be “Maa Bachao,” meaning, protecting the mother, which will be a great way to strengthen families and humanity as a whole.

    Dr. Sushi Singh, chief guest at the event said, saving the mother and giving her due respect and honor is essential today more than ever. She pointed to the high infant mortality rate in India and urged all sections of society to work together to save girl children.

    Shri Karthikeyan, a decorated former IPS Officer, in his keynote address,  shared of the many sacrifices and contributions by the fraternity of doctors, and lauded them for their services to humanity, especially during the covid pandemic. He shared with the audience his personal experiences working with the most vulnerable people across society and urged everyone to work compassionately towards the poor and help uplift their lives.

    At the Delhi Press conference. From L to R: Dr. Anjana Samadder, Shri Karthikeyan, Dr. Sushi Singh , Dr. Udaya Shivangi

    In a message, Dr. Ravi Kolli, president of AAPI said, “The Global Healthcare Summit held annually in India across several states, has become a major contributing factor, where Indian American Doctors focus on various programs and policies in their efforts to make a huge difference in the delivery of healthcare in India.”
    “Coming from a nation that has given us so much, today Physicians of Indian origin have become a powerful influence in healthcare across the world,” said Dr. Shivangi.  “Nowhere in the world is their authority more keenly felt than in the United States. The overrepresentation of Indians in the field of medicine is striking – in practical terms, one out of seven doctors in the United States is of Indian Heritage. We provide medical care to over 40 million of the US population.”

    During an interactive session with the media persons who had filled the meeting venue, the leaders of AAPI shared with them of the numerous initiatives taken up by AAPI during the course of the past four decades in India as well as in the United States.

    “We the physicians of Indian origin are proud of our great achievements and contributions to our motherland, India, our adopted land, the US, and in a very significant way to the transformation of Indo-US relations and help India to have a cost-effective, efficient and advanced healthcare delivery benefitting India’s 1.4 billion people,” they pointed out.

    The Global Health Summit held annually in India has been a major contributing factor by Indian American Doctors, focusing on various programs and policies, and making a difference in the delivery of healthcare in India.

    In addition to educational seminars/workshops on current topics, the GHS includes a well-organized CEO forum with a panel of eminent healthcare leaders from the US and India, reinforcing the need for preventive care rather than disease management, to control the non-communicable diseases which are the biggest silent killers.

    Areas of ongoing skill training, investment in infrastructure, modernizing healthcare delivery, and private-public collaboration specific to each state in the healthcare sector are discussed and specific plans laid out, which are sent in a White Paper report for follow up in the coming months.

    Over the past 17 years and beyond, AAPI leadership has been able to establish Collaboration and multiple medical organizations – ACP – FSMB – ECFMG – NMC (India) – IMA (India) – GAPIO – UNICEF – Red Cross Society – CWC – Lifestyle Medicine – MDTok – Apollo Groups, only to name a few. These connections and collaborations are vital for us to stay connected and make a powerful impact on our communities.

    Through AAPI’s charitable activities with service to our motherland as the motto, AAPI has several programs in India and the United States.  Despite the Covid challenges of Delta and Omicron waves, in spite of limited resources, AAPI blood donation drives were done in several cities with several of them organizing multiple events.

    Journalists at the press conference

    Among several other initiatives, AAPI’s “Adopt a village” Rural Preventive Healthcare Screening Initiative in India, where free health screening camps with free physician consultations were done in several Indian rural villages in the middle of Covid pandemic.

    Continuing the efforts towards the Covid-19 Fund – Post-Covid Relief Activities, AAPI has raised over $5 million during the delta wave in India. The ongoing Covid-19 relief work in India is in progress, donating lifesaving equipment to support critically ill patients – Biochemical Analyzers, Ventilators, Oxygen Flow Meters, and Oxygen Plants. The funds will continue to support Covid patients in rural hospitals. Since its inception 40 years ago, AAPI has served as a link to foster stronger US-India relations and has been lauded by the governments of both nations for their great achievements and contributions.

    “We urge you to be part of this event in January 2024 and help create awareness and reach our services to the neediest in India and the United States,” said Dr. Anjana Samadder. For more details about AAPI and its many noble initiatives, please visit: www.aapiusa.org

  • AAPI’s National Blood Donation Drive and Stem Cell Registry Launched, Honoring Fallen Covid Warriors

    AAPI’s National Blood Donation Drive and Stem Cell Registry Launched, Honoring Fallen Covid Warriors

    CHICAGO, IL (TIP):  “I am grateful to the dozens of local AAPI Chapters who have initiated and organized Blood Donation Drives and Stem Cell Registration across the nation, in honor of the Fallen Heroes of Covid-19, and as India is celebrating 75 years of our Independence, we have taken  this initiative to do National AAPI Blood Donation Drives in 75 cities,” said Dr. Anupama Gotimukula, President of American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI,) the largest ethnic organization in the United States.

    “On the occasion of the 75thIndependence Day of India, we the physicians of Indian origin serving every 7th patient in the United States, are excited to launch this unique and noble initiative and Stem Cell Drive”  in 75 cities across the United States,” Dr. Gotimukula added.

    The launch event of the Blood Drive was organized in Chicago on August 7th under the leadership of Dr. Meher Medavaram, Chair of AAPI’s Blood Donation Initiative. “Several cities that have organized the Blood Donation Drive, include Dayton (OH); Oakbrook village (IL); Ridgeland, Mississippi; Dallas (Tx), and Columbus (SC). Dozens of other cities have planned to organize similar events across the nation in next few months,” she said.

    “AAPI has launched 75 city blood donation drive. It only takes 15 minutes of one’s time and can save and sustain 3 lives with each pint of blood. So let us all be the heroes and life savers. We all are one humanity and one family, Vasudhaiva Kutubakam,” said Dr. Ravi Kolli, President-Elect of AAPI.

    Describing the benefits of Blood Donation, Dr. Meher Medavaram said, a single donation can save three lives. Each blood component of whole blood transfusion can help up to three different people. Pointing to the fact that Blood cannot be manufactured despite medical and technological advances. The only way we can give blood to those who need it is through donation. It doesn’t cost us anything to donate but your donation saves lives. Blood is needed every two seconds.

    Nearly 21 million blood components are transfused in the U.S. every year. While not everyone is able to donate blood, Dr. Gotimukula pointed out that only 37 percent of the country’s population is able to donate blood. On why she and the AAPI leadership chose this as a priority\, Dr. Gotiumuka said, “The 3rd Covid Wave is causing increased ICU admissions again. There is a dire need for blood. Your friends or family may need blood someday. And this noble cause helps save many lives.”

    Dr. Kusum Punjabi the Chair of Board of Trustees of AAPI, said “As the pandemic has exhausted all the resources, especially the lifesaving and much needed Blood across the nation and the world, AAPI is in the forefront, once again, spreading the message for the need to donate blood and save lives.”

     Dr. Anjana Samadder, Vice President of AAPI, said, who herself has experienced the ordeal with Covid -19, and has come out stronger, resilient and tenacious, quoting Red Cross said, “Blood is essential for surgeries, cancer treatment, chronic illnesses, and traumatic injuries. Whether a patient receives whole blood, red cells, platelets or plasma, this lifesaving care starts with one person making a generous donation.”

    “With the ongoing pandemic, the United States and the world need the help of blood and platelet donors and blood drive hosts to meet the needs of patient care,” said Dr. Satheesh Kathula, Secretary of AAPI, he being an Oncologist is much aware of the national shortage

    “It is very difficult to find a matched stem cell donor for Southeast Asians should they need a bone marrow or stem cell transplant and this drive will help increase the number of potential donors.” Dr. Krishan Kumar, Treasurer of AAPI said, “Blood donation helps save lives. Since blood has a limited shelf life, the supply must constantly be replenished by generous blood donors.”

    I urge others to take the lead in your town and help in AAPI’s blood donation drive. Thank you and truly appreciate your support in helping our blood banks.”  For more details to organize Blood Donation Drive in your city/town/region, please contact: Vijaya Kodali, AAPI Office Manager at: vkodali@aapiusa.org. For more details on AAPI, please visit: www.aapiusa,org

    (Press Release)

  • Women Lead AAPI

    An Independence Day Salute to them

    CHICAGO, IL (TIP)“It’s been truly historic and a very proud moment for American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) to have a majority of the current leadership of this noble organization being held by Women Leaders,” Dr. Anupama Gotimukula, President of AAPI, declared here today. “Never has there ever been such a strong representation of women leaders in AAPI’s leadership positions. It’s been a privilege and a challenge to be lead AAPI as AAPI celebrates 40 years of dedicated service to the United States, India and the world.”

    Dr. Anupama Gotimukula, President of AAPI

    Dr. Gotimukula, the only 4th woman president of AAPI in the 40 years old history of AAPI has a strong and dynamic leadership of women leaders at AAPI for the year 2020-21. Dr. Kusum Punjabi serves as the Chair of AAPI Board of Trustees; Dr. Soumya Neravetla is the President of Young Physicians Section (YPS,) while Dr. Ayesha Singh is the President is the Medical Student/Residents & Fellows Section (MSRF.) Dr. Anjana Samadder, who serves as the Vice President of AAPI is in succession for the top AAPI leadership position in the year 2023-24.

    A resident of San Antonio, TX, Dr.Gotimukula is a board-certified Pediatric Anesthesiologist, practicing since 2007, has beenan active member and leader of AAPI over a decade.

    As a Healthcare Leader, Dr. Gotimukula recognizes that “AAPI has power. We have legitimate respect and trust of our communities in every corner of America. AAPI will leverage that power of our purpose and networks to help address specific challenges related to affordable healthcare delivery.”

    Dr. Kusum Punjabi, Chair of AAPI Board of Trustees

    Dr. Kusum Punjabi, a very young and energetic leader of AAPI, assumed office as the Chair of Board of Trustees of AAPI on July 4th. The youngest to date to be holding this position in AAPI’s 40 years long history and the first person to go to medical school in the USA, Dr. Punjabi says, “My goal as Chair of the Board is to develop long lasting programs within AAPI that promote professionalism, unity, mentorship and inclusivity. I hope to clearly re-define AAPI’s mission of service, academic achievement and supporting Indian Physicians working in America through advocacy and leadership. I want patients to know the value of the care they receive from our ethnic group and our mission of promoting the safest and best healthcare practices for our patients.”

    Dr. Anjana Samadder, Vice President of AAPI

    Dr. Anjana Samadder, Vice President of AAPI says, “My journey with AAPI in the past 20 years taught me lots of lessons, skills and molded me to take more responsibility in the organization. I will bring to the organization the level of commitment, hard work, experience and skill set needed to accomplish the various goals for AAPI and its members.”  Her vision for AAPI is “to help build an ethically strong, morally straight and fiscally responsible organization. It is also vitally important to bring much needed diversity to keep AAPI thriving.”

    Dr. Soumya Neravetla, President of Young Physicians Section (YPS,)

    A second generation Indian American, born, raised and educated in the US, Dr. Soumya Neravetla, president of YPS, is a Cardiothoracic Surgeon actively engaged in the welfare of physicians of Indian Origin and the general public. She has extensive Trans catheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) experience including launching and directing TAVR programs.  She has also directed and spearheaded Robotic Thoracic Surgery and lung cancer related programs. In spite of her busy work schedule, she collaborates with her father, Dr. Surender Reddy Neravetla (author of Salt Kills), in his mission to spread awareness about prevention of cardiovascular disease, which disproportionately affects physicians and people of Indian Origin. She is a popular medical speaker and has given several talks to medical communities and the general public, including an invitation to personally speak to the Governor of Ohio and the Ohio Department of Health.

    By her example, Dr. Neravetla wants to motivate physicians of her generation to engage in their communities and AAPI. She has been an active member of AAPI, serving on many committees over the years with the hope of helping AAPI evolve into a meaningful organization for future generations.“Empowering Indian physicians and fostering career growth have been passions of mine,” says the multi-talented dynamic leader of AAPI. In her role, she hopes“to increase career networking and mentorship opportunities, and arm physicians and physicians in training with tools to better navigate their careers.  In addition, I am working to amplify AAPI’s virtual presence by enhancing website features and introducing an app.”  Understanding the current challenging situation due to the ongoing pandemic, Dr. Neravetla says, “We hope new activities like virtual job fairs, interactive chat functions and amplifying our social media presence will engage current and future generations.

    Dr. Ayesha Singh,President, Medical Student/Residents & Fellows Section (MSRF.)

    Ayesha Singh, a 4th year medical student at the University of Louisville (Louisville, KY), had joined AAPI in 2017 and held her first leadership position on the MSRF board as Secretary in 2018. In 2019, she was elected as MSRF Vice President. She is passionate about her clinical research in atherosclerosis and spends most of her free time volunteering as Director of Patient Services for a free cardiovascular specialty clinic in the Louisville area. Ayesha is currently applying for Internal Medicine residency with plans to pursue a career in Interventional Cardiology.  Singh’s vision for MSRF is “to connect, inspire, and grow our community. I hope to further our reach to Indian American medical students by developing the mentorship program, providing research and academic opportunities, and hosting student-specific events on Step 1/2/3 prep, residency/fellowship applications, interview workshops and more.”

    The young and aspiring Medical Professional is grateful to AAPI as “AAPI has enriched my life professionally, socially, and personally. I’ve found mentors, role models, and friends that share my heritage, passion for medicine and commitment to community service. I believe aggressive outreach that highlights AAPI’s vast network, resources, and benefits will inspire membership among young professionals and future leaders that will be dedicated to preserving the legacy of this organization.”

    Other leaders who constitute the current executive committee include Dr. Ravi Kolli, President-Elect, who will be the President of AAPI in 2022-23; Dr. Satheesh Kathula, Secretary and Dr. Krishan Kumar, Treasurer of AAPI.

    Dr. Ravi Kolli is a Board-Certified Psychiatrist with additional qualifications in Addiction, Geriatric and Forensic Psychiatry, and serves as Psychiatric Medical Director of Southwestern Pennsylvania Human Services. Dr. Satheesh Kathula is a clinical professor of medicine at Wright State University- BonshoSchool of medicine, Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Krishan Kumar is a pediatric emergency medicine physician in East Meadow, New York and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the New York region.

    “While in the 176 years of American Medical Association (AMA) there have been only five women Presidents,” Dr. Ravi Kolli noted. “AAPI, now only in its 40th year, has the 4th female president. Dr. Anupama Gotimukula and a galaxy of women leaders are leading all the sections of AAPI, including BOT, YPS and MSRF. This is a proud moment for AAPI and a testimony of AAAPI ‘s commitment to diversity and equality in all aspects of its functioning.”

    Quoting statics, Dr. Kolli pointed out that in the United States, women physicians comprise of nearly 37.8 % of all practicing physicians (390,202 of 1,058,628) and their numbers are rising fast. The proportion of female physicians under the age of 35 in the US is 60.6% and in the age group of 35-44, it is 51.5%. So, there will be a welcome sea change in the leadership of Health Care in the USA going forward. The good news is that patients hospitalized under the care of female physicians had better outcome and lower re-hospitalization rate according to a 2016 Harvard study (December 19, 2016, in JAMA Internal Medicine). Dr. Kolli said, “American Health care and its leadership is in safe hands, and I am so proud to support them in any way in my capacity as the President-Elect of AAPI.”

    Serving 1 in every 7 patients in the US, AAPI members care for millions of patients every day, while several of them have risen to hold high flying jobs, shaping the policies and programs and inventions that shape the landscape of healthcare in the US and around the world.

    “Fortunate to be leading AAPI with this amazing group of dedicated women leaders,” says Dr. Gotimukula. “We at AAPI have so much more room to grow and serve. I challenge myself, my Executive Committee to rise up to the task of building on our accomplishments and successes over the last several decades. My team, along with the dynamic group of women leaders has defined several goals for this year to further AAPI’s mission.”  For more details, please visit: www.appiusa.org