Mangalore: Role of Biochemistry in Medicine is Irreplaceable; Dr R Bhat

Media Release

Mangalore, 10 Apr 2014: ‘Biochemistry is a vast subject; it has become an important pillar of medicine. In 1990 experience based medicine was eroded and evidence based medicine started coming in.  While evidence based treatment is more prominent, the experience based medicine still retains its importance,’ said Dr Raghavendra Bhat, Professor & head of department of medicine, Kasturba Medical College (KMC), here.
 
            
Dr Bhat was the chief guest addressing the gathering during the inaugural function of  State level CME on Evidence - Based Laboratory Medicine: A Biochemical Approach and Scintilla 2014 - regional intercollegiate quiz competition for medical undergraduate students organized by the department of biochemistry, Father Muller Medical College at their decennial memorial hall, here on Wednesday April 9.
 
Father Muller Medical College Hospital administrator Fr Richard Coelho presided the programme.
 
Father Muller Medical College dean Dr Jayaprakash Alva, Dean, head of department of biochemistry and organizing secretary Dr Malathi were present on the dais.
 
Dr Bhat added, Biochemistry helps in diagnosis and also gives the prognosis. It helps the clinicians to substantiate his diagnosis. It provides an invaluable help to the clinicians.  It is only through evident based practice the clinician is able to find out the extent of the disease and the medical condition of the patient. Therefore the role biochemistry in the field of medicine is irreplaceable. Evident based practice should be made best of use so that the doctors and the patients fully benefit.

 

 
Fr Richard Coelho in his presidential address, citing examples of the eminent doctors, he said, ‘Experience is the best teacher. The doctors because of their experience are well versed with the diseases and the treatments.’  He further said, ‘In the present scenario it is not only experience but evidence is needed. Such is the order of the day that without evidence nothing is proved in any field. The investigations performed in the laboratories help the clinicians diagnose the diseases. The clinicians and the biochemists should work hand in hand to bring out the best in them in order to provide a quality health care system.’ He congratulated the department of Biochemistry for organizing such a programme which will help in enriching a large number of people with the advances taking place in this field.
 
Important topics like, biochemical diagnosis of renal diseases, arterial blood gas analysis in critical care and lab diagnosis of anemia was covered during the programme. This Continuing Medical Education (CME) provided an opportunity for clinicians, biochemists and all those involved in patient care to learn, share and interact. It was an opportunity for the participants to enrich their selves with advances in laboratory medicine.
 
The CME was followed by Scintilla 2014 - an intercollegiate regional level quiz competition in biochemistry for the first year MBBS students from Medical Colleges of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts.
 
Dr Shivashankar, department of biochemistry was the quiz master. He came up with mind boggling questions that had participants and as well as the audience racking their brains.
 
The students from KMC Mangalore were the winning team. Students from Father Muller Medical College were first runner up team and the students  of K S Hegde Medical Academy were the second runner up team.