Dr P Raghu Ram conferred with Honorary Fellowship of Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland

New Delhi: Dr P Raghu Ram, a Padma Shri awardee, an OBE & the Founding Director, KIMS- Ushalakshmi Centre for Breast Diseases has achieved the rare distinction of being conferred with Honorary Fellowship of the Association of Surgeons of Great Britain & Ireland (ASGBI), an Organisation that represents the surgical fraternity in the United Kingdom & Ireland.

Mr Neil Welch, President of ASGBI bestowed the honour upon Dr Raghu Ram during the 100th Centenary Annual General Body Meeting of the Association, which was held virtually at 11 pm on 20 July 2021.

Addressing the annual GBM, Mr Neil Welch said, "Raghu Ram is the first surgeon of Indian origin to have this honour conferred on him in the 100 years history of ASGBI and we are delighted to welcome him as Honorary Fellow of ASGBI".

Honorary Fellowship is the highest honour & recognition, which is conferred by ASGBI to select few surgeons from world over who have made significant contributions to surgery & surgical care.

The award is prestigious &limited by statute & according to the ASGBI Constitution; the number of Honorary Fellows can never exceed sixty.

Responding to the honour bestowed upon him, Dr Raghu Ram addressing the ASGBI GBM said, "This is a great honour to India and I dedicate this prestigious award to the Indian surgical fraternity world over for their outstanding contribution towards promoting the art & science of surgery, and equally, to my patients who have given me an opportunity to be involved in their care. Over the past 14 years, I have strived to replicate & exemplify the best of British practices and served as a "Living Bridge" between the UK and India in an earnest endeavor to improve the delivery of breast healthcare in my motherland. My profound gratitude to everyone who made this journey possible."

Established 100 years ago in 1920, ASGBI is a world-renowned Organisation that represents surgeons from all surgical specialities practising in the UK & Ireland. This includes those practicing the art & science of Breast Surgery, Upper GI Surgery, Colorectal surgery, Laparoscopic surgery, Endocrine and Thyroid Surgery, Transplant Surgery &Vascular surgery. The Membership also includes surgeons in armed forces, Academic &Research surgery and surgical trainees in the UK& Ireland.The founding objective of ASGBI, which is celebrating its centenary year, is "the advancement of the science and art of surgery".

Earlier this year, Dr Raghu Ram became one of the youngest Surgeons of Indian origin in over 100 years to be honoured in the 2021 New Year's Honours list by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth 11 with the prestigious OBE – Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, which is the second highest ranking Order of the British Empire award (excluding a knighthood/damehood)in recognition of his "outstanding services towards improving breast cancer care and surgical education in India and to UK/India relations."

A Padma Shri & Dr BC Roy national awardee, Dr Raghu Ram is a Fellow of all four Surgical Royal Colleges in the British Isles (London, Edinburgh, Glasgow & Ireland) & the American College of Surgeons. He is also a recipient of Honorary Fellowships from The Royal College of Surgeons of Thailand, The College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka and the Chinese College of Surgeons.

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