“Seasoned to serve the community”
Department of Community Medicine of VMCH&RI is primarily vested with the responsibility of imparting community-based education, which is essential to acquire skills for providing primary health care. The domain of the subject is extensive, ranging from the promotion of health and prevention of diseases to the implementation of policies and programs using socially-oriented strategies. The goal of the specialty is to ensure that students achieve broad public health competency for providing comprehensive care, taking into consideration the various principles of primary health care.
VISION:
To produce skilled, knowledgeable, morally responsive and empathetic doctors, capable of providing need-based services to the community. The students shall also be a good researchers, an excellent communicators and lifelong learners who are ethically responsive to the community.
MISSION:
The department emphasis teaching medical students the issues beyond clinical illness, especially biopsychosocial aspects, communication, epidemiology, the natural history of diseases, health systems and the role of support mechanism, the knowledge of which is crucial in providing comprehensive care to the patient. Students are also trained to identify the socioeconomic inequalities as determinants of health and suggest interventions based on moral values at individual, family and community levels. The faculty in the department is practicing pioneering teaching-learning methodologies to achieve the same. Instructional methods adopted are learner-centered; invoke critical thinking, promote self-directed learning and motivate them to become lifelong learners.
The community medicine department of VMCH&RI gives special importance to creating a supporting and collaborative learning environment for students. The department has successfully incorporated student-centric learning strategies like problem-based learning (PBL), team-based learning (TBL), flipped classroom, e-learning and blended learning to facilitate higher learning skills among MBBS students. The department has also designed and developed a flexible and convenient E-learning platform to teach new topics and improve the teaching outcomes.
Problem-based learning (PBL)
Problem-based learning (PBL) is a student- centered structured approach which stimulates learning by confronting students with problems from practice. The faculties of the department are actively involved in teaching various topics using problem based learning.
Team based Learning (TBL)
Team-Based Learning (TBL) combines reading, testing, discussion, and collaboration to achieve both knowledge and higher order cognitive learning objectives. The faculties facilitate the process of establishing, maintaining the teams and create the team assignments to activate learning.
Flipped Classroom
Students are encouraged to learn the basic concepts in pre-class learning by providing them the course contents and the class time is utilized to teach applied aspects.
Blended Learning
Blended learning is a combination of traditional face-to-face learning and asynchronous e-learning. It is used to teach new topics to the students.
| Number of Publications | |||
| S.No. | Faculty | Designation | No. of Publications |
| 1 | Dr. SamirBele | Professor and Head | 20 |
| 2 | Dr. Trupti | Professor | 22 |
| 3 | Dr. Sudhir Ben Nelson | Associate Professor | 11 |
| 4 | Dr. Munish | – | – |
| 5 | Dr. Sudharsan | Assistant Professor | 2 |
| 6 | Dr. Sriandaal | Assistant Professor | 3 |
| 7 | Dr. Omar Faizal | Assistant Professor | 1 |
| 8 | Mr. Vijay Anto J | Statistician | 7 |
| Current ongoing projects: | |
| Faculty | Topic |
|
Guide: Dr. SamirBele Students: Dr. Balakumaran |
Health related quality of life and socioeconomic burden of diabetic foot ulcer among patients attending tertiary care hospital in south India |
|
Guide: Dr. Trupti Students: Ms Advaitha |
A study on the effect of anaemic status of an adolescent on their cognitive function and school performance |
Rural Health Training Centre:-
Rural Health Training Centre (RHTC) is located in Ladanendhal in Sivagangai district, 23 km from Velammal Medical College Hospital & Research Institute, which showcases a primary health care service delivery model. Intensive coverage area includes Ladanenthal, Thiruppuvanam, Kottangulam, Thiruppachethi, Panaiyanendal, Thoothai, Valaiyanendal covering the total population of around 22,428.
Services provided at RHTC
Curative Services:
Preventive services:
OPD functions every weekday from 8.00 AM to 4.00 PM, with specialist visits on five days a week, with the involvement of the department of General Medicine, Surgery, Orthopedics, Pediatrics, and Obstetrics & Gynecology. On an average, the centre receives around 60-80 OPD patients per day. The Institute extends its healthcare services free of cost to the villagers. Essential drugs and services are also given free of cost. RHTC is providing a wide range of services to the villagers including health promotional activities, prevention of disease, curative services for minor ailments and referral services in complicated cases. The lab facilities are available at RHTC and baseline investigations are carried out especially on the specialist camp day. The RHTC is participating in several national health programs with a major focus on maternal and child health and non-communicable diseases. It serves as an ideal platform for community-based learning for both undergraduates and postgraduates. The department of community medicine is undertaking several epidemiological surveys and community-based research at Ladanenthal.
URBAN HEALTH TRAINING CENTRE :
It is located in Viraganoor in the Madurai-Rameshwaram Highway, 6 km from Velammal Medical College Hospital & Research Institute. The total population covered by the UHTC is around 24,209 and it includes areas like Puliangulam, Silaiman, Viraganur, Pirakkudi, Kiladi, and Manalur.
Services provided at UHTC
Curative Services:
- OPD
- Daycare services
- Referrals
- Basic Laboratory services
- Minor OT
- Specialist services
- Emergency services
Preventive services:
All the services including medicines and injectable are provided free of cost to the patients. The other services include Antenatal Clinic, Postnatal Clinic, Family Planning Services, TT immunization and referral of patients to Velammal Hospital as and when required.
The Medical students posted in the community medicine department during their third-semester posting are made to visit the centres to study the structure process and outcome of the centre. Similarly, interns will be posted to the centres for a period of one month on regular basis as a part of their compulsory rotator internship where they will be trained to deliver primary health care to the community.
We are conducting CME every year in the name of VIEWS. The department is all set to conduct ISA Sponsorship in 2020
I am text block. Click edit button to change this text. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.