NUMC’S DR. KUMAR CHAIRS CONVENTION ON EMERGENTY MEDICINE IN INDIA

Over 350 physicians and other healthcare professionals attended the Second International Emergency Medicine and Disaster Preparedness Conference (INTEM) in New Delhi, India, November 17-19. Nassau University Medical Center’s Emergency Department Attending Physician Krishan Kumar, MD chaired the convention in India.

Emergency Medicine is not yet a recognized specialty in India.  The members of the Society for Emergency Medicine in India as well as ACEP and AAEMI representatives spoke on possible next steps to obtain recognition.  As part of this effort, several invited Indian politicians were invited and spoke to the conference including the past Minister of Health for New Delhi,  Harsh Vardhan, MD an ENT surgeon.  The opening ceremony was honored by the Home Minister of India giving a speech thanking those in India who work in Emergency Medicine. 

A private meeting was also held with the United States ambassador to India, David Mulford. The delegation advocated support by the US mission for support in improving India’s EMS system and emergency medicine systems.  Included in the requests to the Embassy was that the mission support recognition of emergency medicine as a specialty in India.  Also discussed were ways ACEP and AAEMI members might help in US efforts to assist India.  The delegation received information about joint US and Indian planning on a possible avian influenza outbreak and discussions regarding disaster planning.

Left to right: David Mulford, United States Ambassador to India and Krishan Kumar, MD, Attending Physician Emergency Department, Nassau University Medical Center.