The 47th Annual Conference of Indian Society of Aerospace Medicine (ISAM)

• The 47th Annual Conference of Indian Society of Aerospace Medicine (ISAM) was held at its traditional venue, the Institute of Aerospace Medicine, IAF, Bangalore from 31 Oct 2007 to 02 Nov 2007. .



• The chief guest for the inauguration was the Patron of the Society, Air Chief Marshal FH Major PVSM AVSM SC VM ADC Chief of the Air Staff, Indian Air Force. Besides, there were several dignitaries in attendance, both from operational and medical streams. The inaugural gaiety was all the more palpable during this conference, where making a departure from the past, the inaugural ceremony was simplicity redefined. Starting with an audio-visual 'Tribute to the Indian Air Force', Air Cmde Pankaj Tyagi VSM welcomed the guests and delegates; Air Marshal JK Gupta AVSM PHS, President of the Society outlined the focus of the conference and its relevance for aviation safety. The Chief Guest stressed that the theme of the Conference 'Operational Aerospace Medicine' is appropriate for IAF and other aviation communities and the medical fraternity must understand the stresses on an aircrew and provide appropriate solutions for not only enhancing safety but also mission effectiveness.






Chief guest addresses

• The annual Air Marshal Subroto Mukherjee oration was delivered by Capt GR Gopinath, Executive Chairman, Air Deccan about the story of making of Air Deccan. This was a moving story from the heart of a man with dreams and courage and determination to strive to make those dreams come true.



• Another highlight of the conference was the inaugural AVM Srinagesh Memorial Oration, as a tribute to the father of Aviation Medicine in India. The oration was delivered by the renowned Scientist and former Director DEBEL, Dr CA Varghese. He started his career in 1959 in IAM till he took over the reins of DEBEL. He took everyone in the audience down the memory lane...the fledgling years of practice of Aviation Medicine, vision of early pioneers and the firm foundations laid by them.






Dr. C.A Varghese rendering the inaugural Srinagesh Memorial Oration

• The first two days of the Conference saw dedicated theme based scientific sessions, including long duration flying, night operations, spatial disorientation etc. In addition, there were two panel discussions: one on musculoskeletal disabilities and another on Aeromedical Decision Making (ADM) in Civil Aviation. The moderators for both the panels were either stalwarts in the field or the decision makers. These panels also saw, some of the young MD Av Med residents rubbing shoulders with some of the well-established speakers in their respective fields. Besides, almost all the final year and second year residents had an opportunity to present their papers in the posters category.






Delegates representing Civil Aviation

• There were five awards for best paper and the awardees are- Institute - Lt Col Anuj Chawla, Field - Surg Cdr Samir Kapoor, Civil Aviaiton - Dr S Bhatankar (Jet Airways), Poster - Ms K Anand (Psychologist, DFS), First Time Presenter - Dr A Sridharan (Class II AME, anaestheisologist and diabetologist)






Proud moments_award for standing first in MD



Proud moments_award for standing first in Primary aviation Medicine

• The Society Dinner was held on the evening of 31 Oct 2007 at Hotel Royal Orchid. The venue was spacious, the music loud, entertainment smoky and most of the delegates spent the evening amidst old friends and colleagues, catching up on each other or others.



• The ISAM General Body Meeting was held on the afternoon of 01 Nov 2007, and was a quiet affair. The Society elected two new Fellows, Air Cmde RK Ganjoo AVSM VSM and Gp Capt Deepak Gaur. Also there six Associate Fellows were elected. They are Dr S Parvati Gopal, Wg Cdr R Baijal, Wg Cdr PC Ghosh, Wg Cdr R Ravi, Wg Cdr Vipin Sharma and Wg Cdr MS Nataraja. And their election was indeed welcomed in true style; with the inaugural Fellows Night held at a poolside get together at Hotel Royal Orchid on 01 Nov 2007. It was an evening of youngsters rubbing shoulders with the elders in a relaxed and laid-back evening filled with lovely music and the right ambience.



• The Continuing Medical Education (CME) Programme was held on 02 Nov 2007 in two sessions dedicated to Medicine and Surgery and allied specialties, respectively. The topics were aimed at the Primary Health Care Provider and Family Physicians. This was followed by 48th Senior Medical Officers (SMOs) conference. This was one of the most open and frank meetings, with full encouragement from the Chair to the delegates to speak freely. It was as if fresh breeze is blowing through.



• The curtains may have come down on the 47th Annual Conference of ISAM, but the meticulous planning, dedicated hard work and the lessons learnt in organizing such a mega event shall definitely stay in memories for all who were part of the Organizing Committee. More importantly, the positive strokes provided by the guests and delegates has helped the Organizers get over the pains of preparations, the agonizing moments and anxiety that the things must go right all along, and feel grateful that the delegates and guests participated in full measure through out the proceedings of the Conference.