Gopal Debnath
Staff Reporter : Kolkata, 19th. February 2024. When you unlock your smartphone nowadays, you’ll notice the alarming levels of pollution in various cities across the nation, urging people to stay indoors, a directive that seems impractical for many of us.. Consequently, pollution-related allergies, asthma, COPD, and common colds are on the rise. Other respiratory issues such as nose, ear, throat, as well as head and neck, larynx, and vocal cord cancers are also increasing. Hospitals and ENT clinics are experiencing a surge in patients. Today’s medical science has made remarkable advancements, making what once seemed impossible now achievable or common to people. Even in the realm of nose, ear, throat, we are keeping pace. Awareness among the general public and the medical community, along with effective guidelines for progressive Asian countries like ours, is imperative. Today, our country’s ENT healthcare system needs to be more agile and productive.
It’s a matter of pride and joy for Bengal that this vision was first conceived by the nation’s ENT specialists, with Dr. Dwaipayan Mukherjee being elected as the newly appointed Bengali President of the national organization ‘The Association of Otolaryngologists of India’ (AOI). Yes, after many years,a doctor from Bengal has assumed the national presidency of any medical organization in the country. Dr. Mukherjee was honored at an event organized by AOI’s West Bengal branch at the Kolkata Press Club. During a press conference, Dr. Amitabh Roy Choudhury, President of the West Bengal branch of the Association, expressed that today marks a day of pride and joy for Bengal’s doctors, as Bengal can play a crucial role in shaping the country’s ENT healthcare policies and engaging in discussions with the central government.
The Association’s State Editor, Dr. Snehashish Barman, shared that at AOI’s recent national conference in Bangalore, Dr. Dwaipayan Mukherjee was unanimously elected as the national president by all ENT doctors across the country. Actually, he is the youngest President in the Association’s 76 year history. Another notable aspect of this election is the relocation of the organization’s internationally renowned research journal or index journal, the ‘Indian Journal of Otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery,’ from the national headquarters in Bhopal to West Bengal or Kolkata for a period of six years. Publishing research papers of international standards in such journals is essential when pursuing a doctorate or DM from any institute or advancing to the position of a professor in a medical college, especially focusing on specific treatments or research topics. With the journal’s relocation to Kolkata, the quality assessment and publication of research papers presented by ENTI doctors nationwide will be conducted.
In addition, Dr. Utpal Jana, the president-elect of the state branch, Dr. Ajay Khawas, the treasurer, Dr. Bidhan Roy, the state journal’s editor, and Dr. Soumendranath Bandyopadhyay, the chairman of the state editorial board, along with other ENT specialists present at the meeting, shared their insights.
Dr. Dwaipayan Mukherjee expressed gratitude to all attendees in his speech and thanked all the ENT specialists across the country for electing him. He emphasized that all treatments here adhere to European and American standards, and assistance is required from the information of all those countries. However, the weather, physical structures of people, customs, everything differs from the West. Hence, it’s crucial to have guidelines tailored for Indians across all branches of medical science. Additionally, the work of collecting information at the local and national levels regarding ENT treatments will commence shortly. He also appealed for the cooperation of all his colleagues and the media in this endeavor.
