IMANE IMANE News

Dr. Chander Kapasi's 50 years of service celebration

Sun, 06 Oct 2024 16:59:11 GMT

Dr. Chander Kapasi celebrated 50 years of distinguished service, and the Harvard University School of Public Health honored her with an award in recognition of their remarkable contributions. Her family organized celebration at Paani restaurant on September 28th which was a wonderful event, attended by family, friends, and local community groups, all of whom came together to offer their heartfelt congratulations and support. She has been a past president of IMANE. Dr. Sonali Khond current president represented IMANE along with other members Dr. Pramod Shah, Dr. Devila Shah. Dr. Khond gave a brief speech to congratulate Dr. Kapasi on her accomplishments.

Dr. Chander Mukhi Kapoor Kapasi, a highly accomplished preventive medicine specialist, was born in Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, and excelled both academically and in extracurriculars from an early age. After completing her medical education at Lady Hardinge Medical College in Delhi, she pursued advanced studies and fellowships abroad, including an MPH from Harvard University. Dr. Kapasi’s career spans decades of leadership in public health, particularly in preventive medicine and family planning. In Kenya, she directed mobile health clinics for the International Planned Parenthood Federation, and in the U.S., she has held significant roles, including CEO of Prevention Pro Medical Center. Her work in women’s health, family planning, and preventive care has earned her widespread recognition, and she has been an active advocate for women’s leadership in healthcare.

Dr. Kapasi's association with AAPI has been groundbreaking, becoming the first woman to chair its Board of Trustees, leading efforts to promote international medical graduates and expanding charitable initiatives like the AAPI Charitable Clinic in Mandi. Her leadership extends to her presidency of the Indian Association of Greater Boston, where she fostered community engagement and cultural programs. Over five decades, she has made a significant impact in both the Indian-American medical community and beyond. Dr. Kapasi, a cancer survivor, continues to contribute to public health through her work and community service, recently being honored by Harvard University for her lifelong contributions.

Dr. Chander Kapasi celebrated 50 years of distinguished service, and the Harvard University School of Public Health honored her with an award in recognition of their remarkable contributions. Her family organized celebration at Paani restaurant on September 28th which was a wonderful event, attended by family, friends, and local community groups, all of whom came together to offer their heartfelt congratulations and support. She has been a past president of IMANE. Dr Sonali Khond current president represented IMANE along with other members including Dr Pramod Shah, Dr Devila Shah. Dr. Khond gave a brief speech to congratulate Dr. Kapasi on her accomplishments.

Join us for a community event on January 27th at the IAGB's Republic day celebration!

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 03:45:30 GMT

Attend the community event commemorating India's Republic Day on January 27th, 1PM at IMANE's booth presented by IAGB! Stop by our booth for complimentary blood pressure and blood sugar screenings, and receive valuable nutritional guidance. Let's collectively focus on our health!

IMANE to Showcase Key Note by - George M. Abraham, MD, MPH, FACP, FIDSA President of American College of Physicians December 11, 2021

Sun, 05 Dec 2021 17:16:58 GMT

After a long hiatus IMANE leadership team is proud to share that we will be hosting 2021 Annual CME and Evening Social Reception for all IMANE Members, Non-Members & Community Partners.

This event will follow all CDC guidelines, MMS safety procedures and open for fully vaccinated individuals ONLY with limited capacity.

Registration is open for limited time only

Event will be hosted In-Person only on Saturday, December 11, 2021 at

Massachusetts Medical Society

860 Winter Street, Waltham, Massachusetts

CME Event

Nasir Khan Memorial Lecture Series Risk Management CME - 2021 Live Educational Program

12:00 PM - 5:35 PM

Click here for details and to register- https://www.imanemd.org/event-4495685

Annual Social Reception

Click here for details and to Register- https://www.imanemd.org/event-4522333

We are proud to showcase our Keynote Speaker

George M. Abraham, MD, MPH, FACP, FIDSA

President of American College of Physicians

Dec 11 2021 Keynote Speaker Biosketch - https://www.imanemd.org/.../Dec%2011%202021%20Keynote...

Recent Interview of Dr. Abraham conducted by Dr. Manju Sheth

We are also going to Launch our "Annual Souvenir 2021 & Share the Warmth - Share-A-Blanket Program" during these events.

IMANE would like to show our sincere gratitude and thank you all for your dedication in helping our communities. Please join us in welcoming the 2022 IMANE Leadership team as we continue our journey together to further IMANE mission and goals.

IMANE wishes you and your families a very safe, happy and healthy new year.

Thank you

IMANE 2021

Dr. Tejaswini Shah (1940-2021) - Funeral Services Announcement

Mon, 04 Oct 2021 14:26:54 GMT

Dear IMANE Community Members,

It is with great sadness we share this news regarding Dr. Tejaswini Shah, MD Past President IMANE 1993 who passed away on Saturday October 2nd, 2021. She has been part of IMANE community for many years and has served in many leadership roles including Chair of Board of Trustees, Treasurer and more. We will all miss her greatly.

Following is the announcement and funeral services details from family:

It is with deep sadness that we share the heartbreaking news that our Mother, Tejaswini Shah passed away peacefully Saturday evening, October 2nd, 2021, surrounded by her family. She was a beloved mother, grandmother, and friend to so many. She lived her life with passion and strength. She was an amazing doctor who had a magic touch with her patients, an entrepreneur, community leader and even dabbled in politics. Mostly we remember her dedication to helping others and her unrelenting commitment to her family.

We will be having final rites and cremation at the below location and time.

Attendees must be vaccinated and wear a mask.

Date: Tuesday October 5th 2021

Time: 3:00 pm

Location: Carrier Funeral Home, 38 Range Road, Route 111, Windham NH 03087

In lieu of flowers, we request memorial contributions be sent in her name to:

The Indian Circle for Caring USA, 20 Hope Avenue, Suite 309, Waltham MA 02453

Sincerely

IMANE Leadership Team

Women Who Win Launches “The Shoe Project” in collaboration with IMANE to Provide Footwear and Health Education to Underserved Communities in India, Donates 700 Pairs of Shoes”

Sat, 24 Jul 2021 16:34:55 GMT

BOSTON— Women Who Win, a Massachusetts-based women empowerment media platform, recently launched “The Shoe Project” charity program, which aims to provide footwear and health education to underserved global communities. It also donated over 700 pairs of shoes to underprivileged communities in Mumbai.

Dr. Deepa Jhaveri, co-founder of Women Who Win and a podiatrist, said that India has a slum population of over 80 million people, and slum residents have to walk miles every day to find back-breaking and grueling labor.

“They often work without proper (or any) footwear. Additionally, there is a significant population of women in slums and villages who live and work barefoot,” Dr. Jhaveri said in a statement. “This inspired the team to provide good quality, podiatrist – approved, and weather appropriate shoes to these communities because proper footwear is essential in preventing foot disease, infections, and amputations, and to keep safe while working.”

Dr. Jhaveri, who co-founded Women Who Win along with Dr. Manju Sheth and Shaleen Sheth, said that with thousands of people working barefoot everyday, they face significant risk to the health of their feet.

“Further, there are 62 million diabetics in India, and 25% result in DFUs (Diabetic Foot Ulcers) and 20% need foot amputations,” said Dr. Jhaveri.

With this in mind, not only are they providing the shoes, but the Women Who Win team is collaborating with podiatrists across the U.S. to educate and provide guidelines on foot health, which will also be donated with each pair of shoes.

Women Who Win collaborated with the Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) to provide the shoes and educational materials on proper foot health.

This summer, organizers received an outstanding response to their pilot program. They partnered with Lions Club of Juhu in Mumbai, to donate over 700 pairs of shoes to the women of the Adivasi village.

“These women were excited to finally have the right footwear to complete their work, and showed sincere blessings to our entire team,” said Dr. Sheth. “The donation of shoes project to those who need it the most has been the fulfillment of the dream of our co-founders. As a physician, I have seen up close the devastation caused by multiple medical conditions including diabetes on the feet including ulcers, gangrene leading to amputations. Many complications are preventable with good shoes and education on how to protect your feet. As always, good intentions bring together like minded people. We are very blessed to have received the support of great organizations like Lion’s Club, especially the women’s team of Juhu, Mumbai and IMANE, led by Dr. Dhrumil Shah. It will be an ongoing project with multiple organizations In India followed by other places in the world as we are a global platform.”

Going into the next phase of the project, the team hopes to reach different underserved communities across India, providing all different kinds of footwear.

“It was striking to see how much receiving a simple pair of shoes can mean to people. I would love to provide different types of shoes for different needs as we grow the project – athletic shoes, shoes for particular health conditions etc.,” said Shaleen Sheth. “I would be most excited to partner more with women-led shoe companies and manufacturers, supporting their businesses, and helping in the cause of women empowerment, the mission of our platform. As a non-healthcare worker, I learned a lot about why taking care of your feet, and your body as a whole is so important, and a privilege in some way. Not all communities have the resources to do that, so it’s exciting that our organization can help solve a part of this.”

Added Dr. Jhaveri: “This project is very close to my heart as it ties in my profession and my Indian roots to create an immense impact in the daily lives of hundreds of people by preventing limb threatening foot infections. This project has also created a buzz in the podiatry community, particularly with Indian-American podiatrists as well as major footwear companies who have offered tremendous support of this initiative.”

Founded by three South Asian women from Boston, the platform is coming to its one-year anniversary, showcasing the stories of leading women across industries and all walks of life to an audience of thousands of people in over 80 countries. The team has created a global community with a passion for women empowerment, with weekly stories and forums for all topics such as women’s health, lifestyle, inspiration, business & entrepreneurship, and more. To join this dynamic community, share your story, and be a part of initiatives like this, email the team at womenwhowin100@gmail.com

To donate to the cause, and for more information, visit their site below

https://www.womenwhowin100.com/shoes

Check out a video of their pilot program with the Lion’s Club of Juhu and Indian Medical Association of New England linked below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOuD-M5BjjE

Highlights of the 2 Vaccination Camps on May 1st & 2nd

Mon, 03 May 2021 15:32:13 GMT

Thanks to the many volunteers, medical staff, organizations and community members that made the two vaccination camps on May 1st and 2nd such a huge success. Dr. Dhrumil Shah, IMANE President, coordinated with IAGB and ISW on medical logistics, including IMANE member medical staff volunteers who administered the vaccine. The 2nd dose of the Pfizer-BionTech vaccine will be offered in 3 weeks (Sat, May 22nd and Sun, May 23rd) at the same two locations: Evergreen Adult Day Health in Woburn, MA and the ISW India Center in Shrewsbury, MA. For photos from the May 1st/2nd event, please visit: FB Photos and Posts from May 1 and 2 Vax Camps

Dr. Manorma Saini (1928-2021) - Funeral Services Announcement

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 12:53:53 GMT

Dear IMANE Community Members,

It is with great sadness we share this news regarding Dr. Manorma Saini, MD of Cambridge, MA, who passed away on Monday April 12, 2021.

Her son & daughter-in-law law, Dr. Sanjay Saini & Dr. Priti Saini, of Weston, MA, share the following announcement and funeral services details:

Please join us in remembering the life of Dr. Manorama Saini.

Time: Apr 15, 2021, 2:15 PM Eastern Time

Join Zoom Meeting Link:

https://zoom.us/j/2253680525?pwd=Rm5KRXhQTlpqRVJoQ0FJVld1Q3FCUT09

Meeting ID: 225 368 0525

Passcode: Saini

Dr. Manorama Saini passed away on Monday April 12, 2021 at home in Cambridge, Massachusetts surrounded by her family. She was alert and independent until the very end and expired peacefully.

She was born in Jalandar, India in 1928 where her parents Narain Singh Banwatt and Vidya Vati were practicing physicians. Not surprisingly, she followed her parents’ footsteps and entered Lady Hardinge Medical College at the age of 16, graduating in 1949. She trained to become a Radiologist in India, Canada and US and for over 30 years served on the faculty of Tufts University School of Medicine attaining the academic rank of Assistant Professor of Radiology specializing in bone radiology at the Boston VA Medical Center. She was also active in the local community serving as the first female President of the Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE).

She was married to Virender Kumar Saini, a cardiothoracic surgeon, for 61 years, who passed away in 2011. Their children honored their parents by establishing the Manorama and Virender Saini Chair in Radiology Education at the Massachusetts General Hospital.

Sincerely

IMANE Leadership Team

AAPI General Body Meeting Update - by Dr. Chander Kapasi

Sun, 28 Mar 2021 21:32:59 GMT

Heartiest congratulations to FAPI executive & AAPI executive committees, specially Women Physicians team for organizing such an outstanding GB meeting & CME. Special thanks to amazing leaders Anjana Samadder, who fought tooth & nail surviving all odds after COVID , Aarthi Sanjeevi, Udaya Shivangi, Hetal Gor & our office manager Vijaya Kodali. Congratulations to Sajani Shah & Kusum Punjabi, role models for young Physicians. Congratulations to Kusum & Mukerji for keeping strength in BOT.

I remember the days in 1993-94 when I became the BOT chair, AAPI used to be more like men’s club. It gives me immense pleasure to see so many accomplished & strong women in AAPI now. I am proud & humbled to receive this unique award from you for my leadership, dedication and service to AAPI.

I am happy that I could invite most of you on stage to share it with me & present you all with Women’s Health Calendars as token of love & appreciation & to remind you about AAPI Charitable Foundation.

Special thanks to Vipul Kabaria, Subhasis Misra & many others who kept us all together. My request is we must stand against bigotry and offer comfort & support to all who need it. When we treat each other badly, we loose out potential friends & good workers. My special thanks those of you , many I had never met before , who came to talk to me & wish me well, it was indeed great source of happiness.

IMANE team was very well presented as usual

Thank you

Dr. Chander Kapasi

Share A Blanket Program

Sun, 03 Jan 2021 23:02:42 GMT

IMANE & AAPI in partnership with local organizations IAGB, TAGB and UIANE donated blankets to local shelters and charitable organizations taking are of our community needs

Through Share-A- Blanket Program we donated blankets to House Of Mercy, Lawrence, MA, We Do Care, LLC & Turning Point Shelter, Framingham, MA.

Thank you

Shefali Desai Kalyani from House Of Mercy, Lawrence, MA

Julie Enos Brennan from We Do Care, LLC for everything you do

Thank you to

Sanjay Gowda from IAGB Boston,

Aditi Soni from United India Association of New England

Ramakrishna Penumarthy from TAGB Boston

Sudhakar Jonnalagadda from American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI)

for collaborating with

Indian Medical Association of New England - IMANE

“IMANE Celebrates 42nd Annual Gala Virtually with Chief Guest Raj Sharma and Honors Achievers for 2020”

Mon, 14 Dec 2020 00:15:11 GMT

President’s Message

"May You Live In Interesting Times" - I do not think any of us thought in our lifetime that we will experience what we have in 2020. IMANE members, friends and their families have shown us resilience and perseverance in these difficult times. I would like to show my sincere gratitude and thank you all for your dedication in helping our communities. We have amazing stories to be proud of, thanks to many IMANE members rising to the challenge as we started our fight against this global pandemic. From providing care on front lines, engaging & educating communities virtually, supporting social & humanitarian endeavors to becoming the voice inspiring many of us, this year we have seen the best out of the IMANE community.

We are honored and humbled to report that during the Virtual General Body meeting on December 12, 2020, IMANE General Body Members unanimously voted to declare 2020 to be a ‘non year’ & elected current year Executive Committee and 2020 election slate to continue to serve IMANE one more year in 2021. This truly reflects how accommodative IMANE is as an organization and trying to move everyone together with our goals and mission collectively.

Chief Guest & Key Note by Raj Sharma

Most important highlight of the evening was the KeyNote topic by Raj Sharma, CIMA

"Reboot & Refresh - Investing In Uncertain Times"

It was great to see an interactive session between IMANE President Dhrumil Shah & Raj Sharma, where Raj shared his perspectives on topics like Current state of economy and future outlook, Dynamic relationship between economy & markets, and Re-engineering allocation strategies and how to re-invest in spite of uncertainties. It was refreshing to learn and experience Raj’s optimistic outlook towards the next decade especially in times like this where pandemic has been devastating for the world economy in every dimension. Above all of these great insights from Raj, it was truly humbling to hear and learn about philanthropy & giving back as Raj shared his work as part of American India Foundation (AIF) disrupting poverty in India through programs in education, public health and entrepreneurship.

Raj is Managing Director – Wealth Management and Head of The Sharma Group, a high end boutique within Merrill Lynch’s Private Banking and Investment Group and has over three decades of experience in customized investment and wealth management for entrepreneurs, corporate executives, families and institutions.

Honoring Achievers for 2020

"Leadership in Women Empowerment Award”

IMANE showcased the work of three women in our community, two of them being IMANE leaders, Dr. Manju Sheth, Dr. Deepa Jhaveri, and Shaleen Sheth, who have done extraordinary work to empower women globally in these tough times. Women Who Win, #Dreamcatchers is a global media platform for women's empowerment, conceptualized this year to bring positivity and inspiration, sharing the dreams and passions of many. It has become a powerful platform full of inspirational stories, life lessons of women's journeys and tackling many humanitarian, social, entrepreneurial & health related topics. Women Who Win team was honored during Virtual 42nd Annual Gala with the President’s award for “Leadership in Women Empowerment”

"Leadership in Crisis Award”

IMANE showcased the work of Immediate Past President Dr. Saraswathi Muppana. Dr. Muppana with her clinical background in Critical Care and Pulmonary Medicine became a crucial leader for our community. She has represented IMANE at numerous national and regional forums in 2020 spreading education and awareness around Coronavirus pandemic and continues to do so tirelessly as a true public servant. Dr. Muppana was honored during Virtual 42nd Annual Gala with the President’s award for “Leadership in Crisis”.

"Leadership in Crisis Award”

IMANE also showcased the work of Dr. Sapna Agarwal & Dr. Mohini Malhotra both of whom have reignited IMANE Women's Forum in 2020. They organized multiple zoom events including Virtual Zumba, Cook-in Lesson and Health & Wellness Talk this year. They also launched the Facebook Women's Forum group to expand IMANE’s reach. These forums were organized to engage and educate members and their friends & families. Both Drs. Sapna Agarwal & Mohini Malhotra were honored during Virtual 42nd Annual Gala with the President’s award for “Leadership in Crisis”.

Commitment For 2021

Annual meeting concluded with an excellent presentation on COVID-19 updates & Closing Remarks given by Dr. Saraswathi Muppana. As much as I feel honored to be continuing my position as the IMANE President in 2021, I feel we have much more work still left to do before we can celebrate our ongoing recovery and collective success. Purpose of IMANE is not only to organize and support various professional and social activities within the region we serve, but also to create a dynamic environment for future generations to get inspired and promote our values of inclusivity, diversity and collaboration. My commitment to pursue this mission has only strengthened this year as many of you and your great work in the community continues to be an inspiration to myself and the rest of the IMANE leadership team. We hope to see you all engaged and involved as we all re-build the future together in 2021.

IMANE is proud to report "Raj Sharma, CIMA" as our Chief Guest and Keynote Speaker at December 12 Annual Virtual Meeting

Tue, 24 Nov 2020 02:54:07 GMT

IMANE is proud to present "Raj Sharma, CIMA" as our Chief Guest and Keynote Speaker during our December 12, 2020 Annual Virtual Meeting.

Keynote Topic:

"Reboot & Refresh - Investing In Uncertain Times"

CLICK HERE to register for the event

Raj was recently recognized by Forbes and Barron’s Magazine as the number one Financial Advisor in Massachusetts and in the top 100 in the country. In addition, Raj has also been recognized by Barron’s Magazine as one of America “All Stars” Hall of Fame list– one of a small group of advisors who have appeared in Barron’s ranking of America’s Top 100 Advisors for ten consecutive years.

Please click below for detailed bio

Raj Sharma 2020.docx

We look forward to seeing you all virtually

Inviting all IMANE members, friends and alliance partners

Thank you,

IMANE Leadership TEAM

AAPI Charitable Foundation Report from Dr Chander Kapasi

Sun, 11 Oct 2020 12:38:19 GMT

AAPI Charitable Foundation

The AAPI Charitable Foundation was conceived in 1989, by a group of far-thinking and well-meaning AAPI physicians in collaboration with the governing and general body membership. AAPI-CF is an independently registered 501(c) (3) charitable foundation.

AAPI was established in August of 1982 when Dr. Ujammal Kothari was appointed chair and Drs. Jagan Kakarala, Ratnakar Kini, Bhimsen Rao & Bhanu Shah as its members. Dr. Kakarala & Dr. Rao drafted the first constitution and bylaws.

The first AAPI meeting was held in Dearborn, Michigan where Dr. Kothari was

elected as the first president, Dr. Navin Shah, as vice president and Dr. Kakarala as secretary.

Subsequently, a second AAPI meeting was held in Boston. It was our privilege to host a lunch at our restaurant Raj Mahal in Newton Center.

In keeping with the goals and objectives of AAPI, AAPI Charitable Foundation was established in 1989, after the AAPI Orlando, Florida convention under the chairmanship of Dr. Vijaynagar. The convention brought in a net income of $35,000.00, which was in a big way a catalyst for establishing the charitable foundation.

Dr. Gautam Shah of Phoenix, Arizona, an ardent supporter and well-wisher of AAPI’s charitable projects served as the first chair of the foundation. The prime directive of all the subsequent foundation chairs was to raise funds to support the foundation’s charitable projects. By the time Dr. Vijayanagar became chair, the charitable foundation offered support to two clinics, one in Punjab and the other in Ammanpatti village outside Bangalore. Subsequently, AAPI Charitable Foundation opened a third charitable clinic in Bombay on December 02, 1991. Since these early days AAPI-CF is now supporting seventeen clinics across India.

In 1997, when Dr. Ranga Reddy was the AAPI president and Dr. Indra Pandit the chair of the charitable foundation, a patron trustee membership was proposed for AAPI-CF. A ten thousand dollar ($10,000.00) patron trustee membership fee brought in additional funds for the charitable trust.

In the early days of the trust assisted with transfer of technology and much needed medical equipment to India. From these small beginnings AAPI-CF expanded its charitable goals. At the present day AAPI-CF is supporting charitable causes and relief activities in the USA and in India. It is also providing much needed medical and preventive care to the indigent community in the USA through its regional associations and in India where it is supporting close to 17 clinics.

A few AAPI members have visited these AAPI-CF charitable clinics and also run health camps in clinics in India, as well as conducted educational programs on health, hygiene, nutrition and life support training. The experience of these visiting doctors has been most gratifying to both the care giver and the receiver of the medical education and care (please visit our website: www.aapi-cf.com. to explore all the AAPI-CF activities)

I have served AAPI-CF for many years since 1989 and raised funds for AAPI-CF. As an example on my husband Onaly Kapasi’s 50th birthday we donated $ 25,000.00 to AAPI-CF (Dr. Indra Pandit was the AAPI-CF chair). Also all proceeds from sale of books authored by Dr. Onaly Kapasi are earmarked to AAPI-CF. I am proud to inform you that ALL (5) members of our family are patron trustees of AAPI-CF. When my mom passed away we asked family and friends not to send flowers but instead write a donation to AAPI-CF.

During my term as AAPI CF Chair from July 2018 I have enjoyed the most distinct privilege and camaraderie with two very distinctive presidents, Drs. Naresh Parikh and Suresh Reddy. Both presidents have been very helpful in making me realize lofty goals I set for AAPI-CF –Thank you.

Chair, AAPI-CF July 2018 –July 2020

My mission for AAPI-CF during my term in office was as follows:

1. Keep all AAPI-CF financial dealings, transparent and above board.

2. Keep an open mind for new innovative ideas.

3. Consolidate all accounts.

4. Visit clinics and run health camps.

5. To keep open communication with all and initiate 5 years audit of AAPI-CF accounts

I am pleased to report success with achieving all our collective goals- thank you for your help.

Highlights:

 To commemorate and honor a magnanimous donation made by Dr. Hansa Topiwala, a perpetual calendar on ‘Women’s Health” was published and offered for sale to assist with raising funds for AAPI-CF.

 During my term AAPI-CF added more than a million dollars to charitable foundation, coffers. This was achieved by raising funds, making patron trustees and consolidating all accounts.

 Raised significant funds for AAPI COVID-19 Relief Fund. Funds were distributed in USA and also to India for the Prime Minister’s Fund.

In Gratitude:

 My deep gratitude to family and friends for donating graciously in time and money

 My deep gratitude to Drs. Naresh Parikh & Suresh Reddy for giving AAPI-CF a platform and for their

assistance with funding and distribution of funds for meaningful projects such as flood relief in India and

assisting combating COVID19.

 Special thanks to Girish Thakar, and Sonia Khanna for appropriately managing AAPI-CF funds and to

Vijaya Kodali for her able and timely assistance

 Honorable mention for Drs. Onaly Kapasi, Raj Bansal, Sudhir & Sudha Parikh, B. K Kishore, Sudhakar

Jonnalagadda, Anupama Gotimukula, Jayesh Shah, Raj Bhayani, Anjana & Gautam Samadder, Seema Arora, Sajani Shah, Sameer Kapasi, Ravi Kolli, Satheesh Kathula, Lokesh Edara, Suresh C. Gupta, Bhavani Srinivasan, Udaya Shivangi, Shobha Gupta and Kusum Punjabi and so many others for their support, assistance and much valued advice – Thank you

Progress Report:

1. Each and every clinic receiving AAPI-CF funds has been advised to obtain and submit FCRA number to remain in compliance with Indian foreign contributions laws.

2. AAPI-CF donated $25,000.00 to AAPI for COVID-19 funds

3. Raised additional $50,000.00 from AAPI well-wishers for COVID19 funds

4. Participated on COVID fund distribution committee

5. Assisted with arranging “Appreciation Lunches” for nurse/healthcare workers involved with COVID care

6. Raised a record amount of funds for the AAPI-CF since taking over command

7. Published an AAPI-CF Women’s Health Calendar* in the memory of a major donor, Dr Hansa Topiwalla.

* Calendar is available for purchase from AAPI-CF (chanderkapasi@hotmail.com). All proceeds go to

AAPI-CF

8. Launched a dedicated APPI-CF website: www.AAPI-CF.com

9. Inaugurated the calendar at AAPI Governing Body Meeting in Long Island, New York

10. Made distinctive, one of a kind lapel pins as a thank you for all AAPI-CF Patron Trustees, past AAPI-CF

chairs and AAPIU-CF supporters

Respectfully submitted

Dr Chander Kapasi

New England physicians from South Asia rally #WhiteCoats4BlackLives in Boston

Fri, 12 Jun 2020 18:45:53 GMT

New England physicians from South Asia rally #WhiteCoats4BlackLives in Boston

BOSTON: In solidarity with the movement for justice, peace and racial equality growing across the USA and internationally, the Association of Pakistani Physicians of New England (APPNE) and the Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) are holding a #WhiteCoats4BlackLives rally in Boston joined by the Association of Physicians of Pakistani Descent of North America (APPNA), Massachusetts Peace Action, Alliance for Secular and Democratic South Asia, the Boston Coalition, Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER), the Party for Socialism and Liberation, Revolutionary United Front, Imamia Muslim Foundation, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (ASCME) 1526, and others.

The rally is planned for Sunday, 14 June, 4– 6pm in front of Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston Street, Boston.

(Facebookevent link: https://bit.ly/wc4bl14)

“As a physician viewing the situation from the trenches, I have seen the racial disparity brought out by this pandemic,” says infectious disease specialist Dr Asimah Qayyum of Framingham who initiated the event.

“We have to think beyond ‘charity’ and ‘handouts’ to make systemic change,” says co-organizer Dr Salman Malik, an oral surgeon in New Hampshire.

Both physicians have lived in the USA for nearly three decades each and are American citizens. “We’re American first, Pakistani second,” says Dr Malik.

Physicians and health workers around the country have been converging under the White Coats for Black Lives banner at their hospitals and institutions. This may be the first such demonstration in a public place, with allies from human rights and racial justice groups.

Average of 1000 people annually die in the USA by Police actions, mostly with firearms but sometimes using no weapons, as in the case of George Floyd and Eric Garner. This year, police have already shot and killed over 450 people even amidst the global coronavirus pandemic. The victims are disproportionately African American or Black. Floyd’s death was “one event in a continuous system of oppression,” to quote the Rev. GraylanHagler.

The perpetrators are rarely, if ever, punished. The legal doctrine of qualified immunity in United States federal law freezes the constitution, shielding police officers and other government officials from being sued.

Sunday’s #WhiteCoats4BlackLives rally expresses solidarity with allies around the country and around the world to end systemic racism at this pivotal moment.

WHITE COATS FOR BLACK LIVES #WhiteCoats4BlackLives

WhiteCoats4BlackLives is a medical student-run organization born out of the National White Coat Die-In demonstrations that took place on 10 December 2014

- www.whitecoats4blacklives.org

Vision: To safeguard the lives and well-being of our patients through the elimination of racism.

Mission Statement: To dismantle racism in medicine and promote the health, well-being, and self-determination of people of color.

Goals:

1. Foster dialogue on racism as a public health concern.

• Encourage physicians, physician organizations, and medical institutions to publicly recognize racism as a public health issue.

• Promote medical students’ involvement in local and national movements to end racism and police brutality.

• Advocate for the funding and promotion of research on the health effects of racism.

2. End racial discrimination in medical care.

• Demand that academic medical centers serve the healthcare needs of their local communities, particularly the needs of patients of color.

• Promote the allocation of funding for interventions that dismantle racism in the delivery of medical care.

• Ensure equal access to medical care by advocating for the establishment of a single-payer national health insurance program.

3. Prepare future physicians to be advocates for racial justice.

• Improve the recruitment and support of Black, Latinx, and Native American medical students.

• Promote the recruitment, retention, and hiring of Black, Latinx, and Native American physicians in medical school teaching, research, and leadership positions.

• Develop national medical school curricular standards that educate current and future medical professionals on the history and current manifestations of racism in medicine, principles of anti-racism, and strategies for dismantling structural racism.

#WC4BL 14 June media contacts: Dr Salman Malik

In Memory of Dr. Dhansukhlal C. Mandalaywala 'Dr. Lal' - by Dr. Chander Kapasi

Thu, 04 Jun 2020 10:49:05 GMT

In memory of a very faithful IMANE member who attended most of the meetings & was such a humble soul. RIP. OM SHANTI

Dr. Dhansukhlal C. Mandalaywala, commonly known as “Dr. Lal,” is an internist from Dudley, Massachusetts.

He passed away on May 18, 2020 and was cremated on May 21, 2020 at Phaneuf Crematorium in Manchester, New Hampshire. He is survived by his son, Amol Mandalaywala, his daughter-in-law, Thea Ghandy Mandalaywala, and their son Kaian Mandalaywala, as well as his daughter, Anjali Kaul, her husband, Eric Kaul, and their children Arianna and Andrew Kaul. During the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Mandalaywala, aged 81, continued to practice medicine and treat patients. In spite of following all precautions, he contracted Covid-19 from seeing patients. He is a true hero of our community and will always be remembered as the physician who continued to serve the needy in spite of the risks. Due to the restrictions and social distancing practices resulting from COVID-19, his funeral was attended only by his immediate family and was live streamed for family, friends and associates who could not attend.

Dr. Mandalaywala was born and raised in Mandalay, Burma and attended the Institute of Medicine 1 in Rangoon (Yangon), Burma (Myanmar) and thereafter became a Professor at his alma mater. After immigrating to the US in 1973, he completed his residency at Saint Vincent’s Hospital in Worcester, MA. He later served as an Assistant Professor at UMass Medical School and attending physician for the mentally challenged and physically handicapped for nearly two decades. Since 2005, he volunteered as an attending physician at India Society of Worcester and Indian Medical Association of New England’s Free Health Stop to help provide health care for the underserved and uninsured. At the Free Health Stop, he also served as a clinical instructor for UMass medical school students who volunteered at the free clinic. In addition, he provided diligent medical care for survivors of domestic violence who sought help from India Society of Worcester’s Crisis Group. Moreover, with the emergence of the opioid epidemic, Dr. Mandalaywala focused his attention to Addiction Medicine to help promote the recovery of persons with addiction.

Dr. Mandalaywala (Dr. Lal) will always be remembered for his volunteerism, and his dedication to his patients and the profession of medicine. He was a clinician who inspired other colleagues to also espouse the highest standards of care for every patient. He will be missed by his patients at the Free Health Stop for his compassionate care and interest in their well-being. His associates and colleagues will not only miss his professionalism and advocacy in promoting the welfare of others but also his smile and stories about his experiences in Burma and medical school. When asked about his ethics or principles and religion, he often replied: “I was born in a Hindu family, went to Catholic school and raised in a Buddhist country.” He exemplified the maxim of his medical school: “upaṭhānaṃ, anukammā, dayā” (in Pali) which translates into “service, sympathy, humanity.” It would have also led him to reject the notion that he is a hero as he believed that patients need to be seen regardless of the risk of coronavirus.

For his friends and family who knew him well, Dr. Mandalaywala will be missed for his humor, infectious smile and his love of good food ranging from ragda patties to the South Indian idli and sambhar or the Burmese favorites khao swè and mohinga. His family will always remember him for his generous spirit and willingness to help whenever anyone needed it.

AAPI/IMANE Contributions Report for New England Supporting Fight Against COVID-19

Sat, 23 May 2020 23:19:14 GMT

Message/Report from Dr. Sameer Kapasi - AAPI New England Representative - 2017 IMANE President

Thank you to all for your generous donations to COVID-19 Fund.

Thank you, members of the AAPI Funds distribution committee, Drs. Suresh Reddy, Seema Arora, Sudhakar Jonnalagadda, Anupama Gotimukula, Surendra Purohit, and Chair of the Committee Jayesh Shah for your efforts in appropriate and timely distribution of the funds. An especial thank you to Dr. Chander Kapasi, Chairperson of Charitable Foundation for her persistent efforts in raising substantial donations for the COVID funds through the Charitable Foundation.

I do not want to miss the opportunity to thank Drs. Anil Tibrewal, Raghu Lolabhattu, Raj Bhayani and our AAPI president Dr. Suresh Reddy for providing appreciatory lunches to our hard-working nurses in all 50 States. Healthcare workers have risen up to the highest professional expectation during these trying times.

I must also recognize Dr. Madhvi Gorusu, President of the Connecticut Association of Physicians from India, for her and her CAPI’s contributions. CAPI is buying food for local health care providers and providing support to food kitchens. CAPI used AAPI COVID funds to buy PPE for distribution to all eight counties of Connecticut.

Dr. Dhrumil Shah, President of the Indian Medical Association of New England, has been working with his team since day one. Kudos to them during these trying times.

IMANE distributed PPE to local nursing homes and homeless shelters. They have also ordered 500 N 95 masks which will be distributed by IMANE membership. They have 3D printed face shields parts and surgical mask ear guards for healthcare workers

Respectfully,
Sameer O. Kapasi, M.D., F.A.A.P.M.R.
Regional Director, American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin
2017 President, Indian Medical Association of New England
Assistant Professor, Tufts University School of Medicine

Coronavirus/COVID- 19 Update - IMANE

Sat, 28 Mar 2020 18:30:51 GMT

Coronavirus/COVID- 19 Update

We are all aware of the pandemic and its current status as it goes on an international rampage in over 59 countries, with USA now leading in the number of cases and getting worse as of right now.

During these challenging times, we at IMANE would like to support our New England community by providing resources and helping answer any health related questions pertaining to our community that you may have.
Here is some basic info and credible resource websites.

We are aware that many of you have other questions regarding Visa status, resources for our elders who had to extend their stay for meds etc. We are working closely with multiple other community organizations to bring you the information and we will keep posting updates.

INFORMATION-

CDC website has some basic information about the virus
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/index.html

https://www.who.int/emergen…/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019

TELE MEDICINE

Please take your medications regularly, as advised by your physician.
If needed, there are telemedicine providers who can help.

Stay in and Stay well

Please follow the guidelines to keep yourself, your loved ones and all health care professionals helping the community safe, despite all odds.
NO play dates, no corona party, no meeting friends because they also “have been home”.

How to boost your IMMUNITY during these times

Be Stress Free. Be cautious and prevention is key but fear is not.
Regular exercise and fresh air while managing the social distance.
Include lots of fresh fruit, nuts and vegetables in your diet.
Meditate! Here is an easy to follow technique.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khVAeWGfRv0
Listen to good things, think good thoughts, be positive and send positive messages to others while being pragmatic.
Will and Health care proxy update ICC

Sincerely,

IMANE Leadership TEAM

MMS website launches web page dedicated to the 2019 Novel Corona Virus (2019-nCoV)

Fri, 21 Feb 2020 02:50:54 GMT

Information on 2019-nCoV is rapidly evolving.

Please check MMS Website regularly for the latest updated guidance and information.

Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MA DPH) 2019- nCoV Resources

MA DPH 2019-nCoV Website: Provides up-to-date information on the status of 2019-nCoV for all clinicians and residents: https://www.mass.gov/2019coronavirus
MA DPH Clinical Advisory and Guidance https://www.mass.gov/clinical-advisory/update-and-interim-guidance-on-outbreak-of-2019-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-in

IMANE Representation at AAPI Governing Body Meeting February 7-9, 2020

Sun, 16 Feb 2020 02:09:55 GMT

Large group of IMANE Members and Leadership team representatives recently attended AAPI Governing Body Meeting during the February 7-9 weekend at Long Island, NewYork. We would like to thank AAPI-QLI Chapter for hosting us and organizing great event. We experienced some very informative talks & discussions. Participated in Governing Body updates and voted on some key initiatives and changes to further the growth and value of AAPI. Met many of the IMANE & AAPI friends & community members. Missed many who could not join us.

Dr. Saraswathi Muppanna addressed AAPI governing body as our IMANE 2019 President on our achievements and community engagement milestones from 2019, in addition to our monumental change implemented in our bylaws regarding inclusion of podiatry specialty. Representing AAPI Charitable Trust, Dr. Chandar Kapasi of IMANE updated the group on the launch of Women’s Health Calendar & distributed with the hope to raise funds for Charitable Foundation. Our heartiest congratulations to Dr. Sajani Shah of IMANE for getting elected as AAPI BOT Chair starting in July 2020 after Dr. Seema Arora of IMANE finishes her term.

Some of the pics attached here

Thank you

Dhrumil Shah

IMANE President 2020

IMANE Launches Facebook Mentorship Program

Wed, 22 Jan 2020 20:51:25 GMT

IMANE launches Facebook mentorship program for members and community stakeholders so that you can get or give support to another member of our community. We are excited to see all of us build stronger relationships with each other and hope you'll join us.

Here's how the program works:

You sign up, match yourself with a partner, and get helpful conversation starters each week so you get to know each other better. It's up to you how much time you want to spend together and what goals you want to work towards.

https://www.facebook.com/fbmentorship/signup/?application_id=277157976514370

IMANE Changes Bylaws to Include Podiatry; Podiatrist Deepa Jhaveri Makes History as She is Elected Treasurer of the Nation’s Oldest Medical Group of Indian-Origin Doctors

Fri, 17 Jan 2020 14:42:07 GMT

WALTHAM, MA—In a major move that may force other medical organizations to include podiatrists as their full members with voting rights, the Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) has changed its bylaws to accept podiatrists as the full and voting members of the organization. IMANE is one of the nation’s oldest medical organizations of the physicians of Indian origin.

After IMANE bylaws were changed late last year, Podiatrist Deepa Jhaveri has joined IMANE as a full member. In addition, she has been also elected as treasurer of IMANE.

Welcome to IMANE NASIR KHAN CME PROGRAM MAY11, 2019

Fri, 10 May 2019 05:26:15 GMT

https://www.imanemd.org/Events.html

39th Anniversary Celebration Of The Indian Medical Association Of New England

Mon, 15 Jan 2018 14:08:21 GMT

39th Anniversary Celebration Of The Indian Medical Association Of New England

Press Release
11/27/2017

Like the mythological Phoenix, IMANE has arisen with renewed vigor.

Heartiest congratulations to the 39th IMANE President, Dr. Sameer O. Kapasi & his team for a yeoman’s job.

Indian Medical Association of New England, IMANE celebrated a historic sell out event on November 18, 2017 at Boston Hilton, Woburn.

The celebrations began on Saturday morning with the arrival of AAPI President Dr. Gautam Samadder and his wife Dr. Anjana Samadder who both flew to Boston specifically to honor and congratulate Dr. Sameer Kapasi. Prior to his arrival Dr. Samadder had organized a celebratory brunch with the assistance of Dr. Seema Arora. He invited who’s who of the IMANE community and AAPI members and officers to the brunch. At the brunch Dr. Samadder praised Dr. Kapasi’s stellar performance and his absolute dedication and commitment, presenting him with a plaque for Outstanding Leadership.

Dr. Kapasi thanked Dr. Samadder for taking time off his busy schedule by coming to Boston and for organizing the brunch in his honor. He presented Dr. Samadder the first copy of the historic forty-page IMANE Brochure and a gold ceremonial IMANE lapel pin that was especially designed memento for the gala.

The evening Gala Celebration brought in greater than two hundred and fifty high-spirited members and friends from Boston and a large number of AAPI friends and well-wishers from all over USA.. During pre-dinner cocktail the guests mingled renewing acquaintances relishing an array of Indian hors d’oeuvres selected painstakingly
by Gourmet India. There was feeling of excitement in the air, similar to what one may feel before an opening night of a symphony

Once the banquet doors opened and everyone was seated Dr. Kapasi welcomed the audience thanking his executive committee and members of the Board of Trustees for supporting his efforts. His presidential address demonstrated humility and the skill of a well poised toastmaster. One came away with a feeling that Dr. Kapasi’s success had much to do with his gentle but firm demeanor, one that espoused team spirit; a quality seen frequently in a natural leader.

In his address Dr. Kapasi gave an overview of all the successful programs of his year; specifically mentioning the Spring CME program, IMANE’s generous contribution to the Hurricane Disaster Fund, community health services events such as the IAGB Hatch Shell event, UIA Norwood High School event, and INE Health Expo,.

The highlight of IMANE’s community service however he stated was an independent health and dental screening event conducted at Guru Nanak Gurudwara in Medford, Massachusetts where more than 150 Indian community members underwent preventive screening and also received medical and dental advice, yet another first for IMANE.

IMANE members and family spent a day at “Cradles & Crayons” a charitable organization where they donated much needed items and sorted out clothes for eighty needy families. This was indeed unique as it brought an awareness of IMANE’s charitable work outside the Indian community.

Ravindra Mahadev of Ameriprise coordinated with IMANE a very innovative program coined, “Nights out with IMANE” to promote new membership.

As an ongoing yearly support IMANE offered financial help and physician support services to charitable clinics in Framingham & Waltham.

During Summer, IMANE organized a fully funded unique outing, “IMANE at the Ball Game” at the world famous Fenway Ball Park where participants were seated in a private booth and provided dinner as they watched a ball game; very therapeutic for our hard working doctors. This too was a first for IMANE.

The climax was most definitely the annual gala as it was a celebration of a very successful 2017 under Kapasi’s presidency.

Following his address Dr. Kapasi invited Dr. Vivek Murthy, the 19th Surgeon General who was the Key Note Speaker for the evening. Dr. Murthy a Boston physician was most likely the reason for the resurgence and an awakened enthusiasm amongst young IMANE members and non-members alike, not discounting a fact that the young physicians themselves are very savvy in communicating skills.

Dr. Kapasi graciously acknowledged Dr. Murthy for his exceptional “Fireside Chat” that was conducted by Dr. Bhavna Lall. The chat covered topics such as physician burnout and the future of public health. When asked of the most pressing public health issue of our time, Dr. Murthy spoke of children who were victims of violence, mosquito-borne Zika virus transmission, and went on to discuss his lead on substance abuse and addiction, an issue he brought to the forefront as the number one threat to the wellbeing of our nation. When asked about causes of physician burn-out, Dr. Murthy said, “There is no single cause, the truth is that we did not learn how to care for ourselves in medical school”. Dr. Murthy encouraged medical students, residents, and physicians to take care of themselves and find de stressors, emphasizing daily aerobic exercise and building nurturing human relationships. Dr. Murthy left the banquet with an inspiring and uplifting advice “If you succeed, pull someone along”. To the physicians Dr Murthy was an inspiration they would like to emulate.

Following Dr Murthy’s inspiring chat Dr. Kapasi welcomed the incoming president, Dr. Vikas Merchia, handing over the baton and pinning the ceremonial president’s pin on his lapel, wishing him well. Dr. Merchia spoke of his vision to strengthen bonds with in the community and diversify.

The next on the program was presentation of awards.
Awards were given to the following recipients:

Distinguished Physician’s Award Anjan K. Chaudhury, M.D.
Community Service Award Seema Arora, M.D.
Presidential Ambassador Award Ravindra Mahadev, CEP, CLTC
Presidents Award Sucheta Doshi, M.D.., M.P.H.
Presidents Award Paul Mathew, M.D., DNBPAS, FAAN, FAHS
Presidents Award Arshiya Seth, M.D.
Presidents Award Ranjani Saigal
Presidents Award Neela Gandhi, D.D.S.

Prem & Raj Goyal Foundation Award Krishna Adit Agarwal, M.B.B.S.

For the first time in the history of IMANE a brilliant, and a very deserving person in the community, Ranjani Saigal, executive director of Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of America was awarded the Presidential Award for her tireless effort. Another first in the history of IMANE was presentation of Presidential Ambassador Award to Ravindra Mahadev for his exceptional support and services to IMANE.

Dr. Sameer Kapasi recognized all the key members and all the past presidents of IMANE with a plaque and a ceremonial lapel pin for their continued and unwavering support in the growth of IMANE.

Special ovation and recognition was accorded to Dr. Manorama Saini (1983) the oldest past president attending the annual gala.

Dr. Kapasi thanked all AAPI officers & members for gracing the occasion. He conveyed his gratitude to all individuals and companies for supporting IMANE with placement of an advertisement in the brochure and also those who placed a congratulatory page in the brochure. .

Dr. Kapasi made a special honorable mention for Shoba Shastry of Alankar for decorating the banquet hall.

Dr. Kapasi recognized IMANE office staff for their dedication and presented young volunteers who helped with chores during the evening activities with a citation.

Dr. Paul Mathew a rising star emceed the program keeping the meeting in order drawing attention to Movember Foundation, a leading global organization committed to changing the face of men’s health

At the end of the formal evening the night livened with a well orchestrated program put together by our own Dr. Seema Arora, past IMANE president. Disc Jockey Tej provided a great repertoire of Indian music and managed the sound system throughout the evening. The icing on the cake however was the melodious voice of Dr. Amit Chakravarty and his partner Sadhna who flew in to tantalize music lovers with favorite Bollywood songs that was interposed by Dr. Arora’s amazing Bollywood dance performance. It was evident that doctors are not only white coat adorned stethoscope totting individuals but they can party, dance and sing! Boston’s very own Nightingale, Anuradha Palakurthi planned to make a surprise visit to honor IMANE but she was unable to leave an earlier program because of a delay.

Dr. Kapasi and IMANE appreciate the congratulatory citations received from Senator Edward J. Marky, Governor Charles D. Baker, Lieutenant Governor Karyn E. Polito, Mayor of Boston Marty Walsh, Boston Police Commissioner William B. Evans and Dean of Faculty Harvard Chan School of Public Health Michelle A. Williams, ScD

Many left Hilton with a feeling of elation humming the songs they heard, amazed by the Savoir Faire and the total persona of the banquet. To the members nothing could be more compelling than the satisfaction of seeing IMANE rise to the occasion.

Indeed the Phoenix has arisen.

When Physicians come together to celebrate a successful year

Mon, 15 Jan 2018 13:53:35 GMT

Video link

A video montage from FoundationsTV for the November 18, 2017 39th Annual gala featuring Vivek H. Murthy, M.D., 19th Surgeon General.

Foundations TV talks to Vivek H. Murthy, M.D., M.B.A., the 19th Surgeon General

Mon, 15 Jan 2018 13:45:12 GMT

Video link

Lokvani talks to Sameer Kapasi, the 39th President of IMANE

Sat, 07 Jan 2017 13:08:35 GMT

taken from Lokvani

Ranjani Saigal
11/30/2016

Sameer O. Kapasi M.A., M.D. hails from the Boston area and attended the Johns Hopkins University where he earned his bachelor's degree in Philosophy with coursework in Image film studies. He then returned to Boston, where he earned an M.A. in Medical Sciences. Following graduate school, Dr. Kapasi worked with MDLinx, a small medical internet startup, as a content editor. Dr. Kapasi received his medical degree from the St. Georgeâ€™s University School of Medicine. Dr. Kapasi again returned to Boston to complete a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residency at the Tufts Medical Center. He completed his training with a fellowship in Spine and Rehabilitation Medicine at the New England Baptist Hospital.

Dr. Kapasi is published in peer reviewed journals and regularly lectures in local and national meetings. Dr. Kapasi is a faculty member for the North American Spine Society spinal injection workshops and is actively involved in training residents and spine rehabilitation fellows. He is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and was elected a fellow of the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Dr. Kapasi is a member of the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, the International Spine Intervention Society, and the North American Spine Society, and is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the Tufts University School of Medicine.

Sameer talked to Lokvani about his vision as President of IMANE.

Congratulations on being elected the President of IMANE. Why did you chose to give time to this organization?

Thank you. IMANE has done so much much for our community including providing free health care at regular clinics and health fairs, and lectures on a variety of topics to both the lay and health professional audience. I have always appreciated this work and worked with IMANE to facilitate the good work that IMANE does. Ultimately, I want to help IMANE with its outreach efforts and make it into an organization that can work hard to provide for the underserved and its own members.

What opportunities do you see for this organization?

IMANE is an organization that can promote healthcare change. Some of our members have gone on to become valued members of the healthcare community: Dinesh Patel as chief of arthroscopic surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital, Raj Goyal as a full professor at Harvard Medical School, and Jag Bhawan as a full professor at the Boston University Medical school to name a few. We also have some great younger members: Paul Mathew as a chief medical editor at practical neurology and Darshan Mehta as the Medical Director for the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine, and, of course, Vivek Murthy as surgeon general. It continues to be our job to help these physicians expand their network and help them ascend into greater roles.

This organization has primarily attracted first generation doctors. You are a second generation doctor. What seems to be the challenge to attract the next generation of doctors? How do you plan to address them?

That's one of the primary questions that I have for the organization: what can IMANE do to bring on this newer generation. We are no longer in the 1st generation world where having an Indian physician was a novelty. Now, we have the same walk and talk as our non Indian colleagues. Now, at least 1 out of 10 patients has seen an Indian physician. That statistic is probably higher in New England.

The challenge is to promote the relevance of IMANE by promoting mentorship and networking opportunities for career advancement and continue to provide service opportunities for our members. We can do this by further bolstering our existing clinics, as well as partnering with other organizations for health fairs. Further, we can put together networking fairs for our young physicians and residents, so that they can meet and interact with our more established physicians to expand our greater network.

We have an Indian Surgeon General and now an Indian woman doctor has been nominated to head the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Does it mean Indian Doctors have now been mainstreamed? If so is there still a reason to have an ethnic professional organization like IMANE and AAPI?

Yes, it does mean that we have started to mainstream. We are proud of our peers and colleagues being elected to these roles. However, it does not make our organization any less necessary. Our country is following the international movement toward political isolationism and nationalism. It is that much more important that our organizations exist as a network for our physicians. It is also that much more important that we continue to present ourselves with the highest integrity so that others can see the importance of having a diverse community.

How do you see the health care system morph under the new presidency?

Obama made great strides to provide an expanded version of the Massachusetts 'Romney care.' While it has made the lives of some physicians more difficult, it has also provided for healthcare for a previously under served country. I think Trump is the ultimate wild card and no one has any idea how things may change in the future.

How do you see technological innovations impacting health care in the future?

Health care depends directly on technology, whether through the pacemaker/defibrillators that keep your heart beating or through improving electronic record systems that allow better communication between physicians. While both of these have had their initial stumbling blocks, they are making our jobs as physicians easier and making our patients that much healthier.

For young people considering a career in medicine what advice do you have?

Healthcare is a labor of love. When I have been away from the healthcare field, working at an internet startup, I knew I had to leave because that love was a core feeling. This feeling was strong enough to last me through college, graduate school, medical school, residency, and my sub specialty fellowship. So, young people, if you are interested in medicine, explore that interest. Work in a doctor's office taking blood pressures. Get involved with Boston's Healthcare for the Homeless. Work in the IMANE free clinics or come out to one of our health fairs. See whether providing healthcare moves you the same way it moved me and continues to move me.

IMANE Hosts 38th Annual Meeting And Gala

Sat, 07 Jan 2017 13:02:49 GMT

Itaken from Lokvani

Sapna Aggarwal
01/01/2015

The 38th Annual Gala was held at Burlington Marriott in Burlington on November 19th. It was organized by its President, Dr. Sapna Aggarwal and her team. The gala was sold out many days in advance with a record number of physicians attending the event. The gala had all the elements of a fun gathering with great food, wonderful entertainment and awesome speakers.

Highlights of the gala include a cocktail reception, speeches by Chief Guest and Keynote Speaker Amar Sawhney, a serial medical technology entrepreneur, Distinguished Guest Dr. Prem Shekar, Chief of Division of Cardiac Surgery at Brigham and Womenâ€™s Hospital, and Dr. Ajay Lodha, President of AAPI.

The IMANE gala was capped by an Indian dinner catered by Gourmet India and a special entertainment program titled â€œMastani Shaamâ€ that featured Bollywood songs sung by prominent local singers. Cultural program by Mohan Subramaniam, Sowmya, Nidhi and Hemant was just fabulous. Dancing with DJ Preetesh was fantastic. Many guests brought in Kaala Chashma for the dance.

Dr. Aggarwal said â€œMany AAPI representatives including Dr. Ajay Lodha, Smita Lodha, Dr. Sampat Shivangi, Dr. Udaya Shivangi, Dr. Manju Sachdev: AAPI Treasurer, Dr. Anupama Gotimukula:.Regional Director, Dr. Satish Manha: past RD and Dr. Sudhakar Jonnalagadda: past RD all came for me at my personal invite, that has meant a lot to me.â€

Dr. Aggarwal expressed her thanks to all my sponsors for their support for enabling team 2016 to have such a Graand Gala!!!!!

At the Gala, the following members from the IMANE family were honored.

Community Service Award: Dr. Victor F. Saldanha

Distinguished Physician Award: Dr. Manju Sheth

Raj and Prem Goyal Young Physician Achievement Award for Distinguished Service: Tej Shah and Sangita Murali

Ambassador Award: Dr. Anand Kanjolia

Presidentâ€™s Award: Dr. Umakanth Khatwa, Paresh Motiwala, Dr. Naveen Pandaraboyina, Dr. Devila Shah, and Pramod Shah.

Dr. Sameer Kapasi is the incoming President. Dr Aggarwal wished Team 2017 all the best.

Dr. Sapna Aggarwal Elected President Of IMANE

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 16:27:47 GMT

Source - Lokvani

Press Release
11/24/2015

The Indian Medical Association of New England held its annual General Body Meeting and gala on November 21, 2015 at the Burlington Marriott hotel in Burlington, MA.

The event opened with a welcome by President Dr. Seema Arora who recounted the accomplishments of the year that included a wide variety of activities including participating in Mega health expo, childhood obesity program etc. She recognized the past presidents of IMANE.

Dr. Nahid Bhadelia, Director of Infection at Boston University, Woman of the year 2016 and a Frontline physician for providing care to Ebola patients in Sierra Leone with WHO gave a detailed talk on Ebola patients. Kay Khan, State Representative, Massachusetts house of States was the honorable guest.

A new team was elected for IMANE which consists of:

President: Dr. Sapna Aggarwal
President-Elect: Dr. Dr. Sameer Kapasi
Past President: Dr. Seema Arora
Secretory: Dr Umakanth Khatwa
Treasurer: Dr. Dr.Naveen Pandaraboyina
Members at Large: Dr., Dr. Smita Patel, Dr. Tapasya Srivastava, Dr. Meera Subramaniam, Dr Ashok Shah and Dr Anand Kanjolia

The members of the new board of trustees are:
Chairperson: Dr. Tejaswini Shah
Treasurer: Dr Salil Midha
Members: Dr Pramod Shah, Dr Ashok Joshi and Dr.Vikas Desai.

Nominating Committee Chairman: Dr. Devila Shah
AAPI Region 7 Representative: Dr. Seema Arora.

The following members were honored with different awards:

Distinguished Physician: Dr. Manorma Mathur
Community Service Award: Dr. Manju Sheth
IMANE Ambassador Award: Dr. Tapasya Shrivastav
IMANE Enhancement Award: Dr S Reddy
President's Awards: Dr Geeta Trivedi, Dr Sameer Kapasi and Dr. Paul Mathew.

As IMANE moves to the next year under the leadership of Dr. Sapna Aggarwal, Lokvani wishes the team great success.

IMANE Elects New Executive Committee and Board of Trustees

Mon, 14 Dec 2015 16:35:33 GMT

Click here

Imane gala 2015 Dr Sapna Aggarwal replaces Dr Seema Arora Boston Desi Connection

Tue, 01 Dec 2015 16:37:14 GMT

click here

UPDATES IN RISK/PAIN MANAGEMENT BROCHURE

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 13:55:16 GMT

IMANE Spring Meeting May 9 2015 Brochure.pdf

Sajani Shah, M.D.'s 2014 Presidential Address

Tue, 16 Dec 2014 04:46:23 GMT

Click here to view the video

Foundations TV interviews Sajani Shah, M.D.

Mon, 01 Dec 2014 04:43:48 GMT

The Indian Medical Association of New England Meets

Sat, 29 Nov 2014 04:42:20 GMT

The 36th annual meeting of the Indian Medical Association of New England was held on November 22nd at the Cambridge Marriott Hotel in Boston. IMANE, which is one of the oldest physician organizations of Indian-Americans, is currently headed by Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi, a surgeon specializing in Bariatric surgery.

Dr. Kapasi opened the meeting with a speech and the diya lighting ceremony. She invited each of the past 20 presidents of IMANE as well as other dignitaries individually to the stage to honor them in the lamp-lighting ceremony.

Several leading physicians spoke at the event, among them Dr. Ravi Jahagirdar, president of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, who spoke of the vision and goals of AAPI and its current and future projects including the upcoming Jan. 2-4 Global Health Summit in India; Harvard Medical School professor Dr. Shalender Bhasin addressed the gathering on men’s health issues; Dr. Sanjay Shetty of the Stewart ACO’s physician group also addressed the gathering.

Dr. Sudhir Parikh, publisher of News India Times and recipient of India’s Padma Shri award, was a guest speaker but could not attend due to a family emergency. He told News India Times IMANE was a great organization that had achieved much over the years. He also encouraged organizations like IMANE to join new initiatives being opened up by the Modi government. “I’m particularly heartened by “Swasth India” program which IMANE could support more vigorously.”

Swasth India makes it possible for Indian-American doctors to select the areas they wish to serve in India and get formal approval from Medical Council of India within 15 days. “This is also a great way to rally the philanthropic impulses of young Indian-American doctors,” Dr. Parikh added.

Gastroenterologist Dr. Raj K.Goyal, the Mallinckrodt Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and staff physician at Veterans Administration Boston Healthcare System, and his wife Prem Goyal, donated an initial $25,000 from the Raj & Prem Goyal Foundation for a perpetual “Distinguished Medical Achievement Award,” following Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi’s appeal to members.

Dr. Kapasi is expected to set up a committee to award the grant annually. This award is separate from the existing Distinguished Physician Award which was awarded this year to Dr. Baltej Maini, a vascular surgeon, president of Maini Consulting Group.

The Community Service Award was given to Dr. Kunwar Singh for his “missionary zeal and dedication” to IMANE’s service projects for more than a decade, a release from IMANE said. Dr. Manorama Mathur, chair, IMANE Board of Trustees, Dr. Suresh Reddy, Dr. Kanu Patel and the emcees for the evening Dr. Paul Mathew and Dr. Sapna Aggarwal received the President’s Award.

Dr. Onaly Kapasi donated the money from the sale of his poetry book “MIND’s Eye” to IMANE Health Fair and the AAPI Charitable Foundation.

Dr. Seema Arora takes over at IMANE’s president starting Jan. 1. Members of the new Executive Committee include Dr. Sapna Aggarwal as president-elect, Dr. Sameer Kapasi as secretary, Dr. Subha Thiagrajan as treasurer, Drs. Paul Mathew and Devila Shah as members-at-large, Drs. Salil Midha, Geeta Trivedi, Teju Shah, Promod Shah and Vikas Desai as trustees .

IMANE Elects New Executive Committee and Board of Trustees

Fri, 28 Nov 2014 04:34:18 GMT

The Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) elected a new executive committee, a new board of trustees and a new president, Dr. Seema Arora. The new committee and the board assume office on Jan. 1, 2015. Dr. Arora replaces Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi as its president.

Here are the members of the new executive committee of IMANE:

President: Dr. Seema Arora

President-Elect: Dr. Sapna Aggrawal

Past President: Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi

Secretory: Dr. Samir Kapasi

Treasurer: Dr. Subha Thiagarajan

Members at Large: Dr. Devila Shah, Dr. Smita Patel, Dr. Tapasya Srivastava, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Rajiv Nanda

Here are members of the new board of trustees:

Chairperson: Dr. Geeta Trivedi

Treasurer: Dr Tejaswini Shah

Members: Dr. Salil Midha, Dr Pramod Shah, and Dr.Vikas Desai.

Chairman of Nominating Committee: Dr. Mohani Malhotra

AAPI Region 7 Representative: Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi.

"It is an honor for me to serve as chair of board of trustees of IMANE in 2015," said Dr. Trivedi. "I am looking forward to working with the new executive committee to fulfill the mission of community service and community outreach. I am also deeply committed to working towards financial stability of IMANE so that we can continue to generate funds for educational and community events now and in future."

Dr. Arora said the team work is the key to success and that she is looking forward to having a great year for IMANE in 2015.

"Every President contributes to the organization through their unique strengths. I hope to utilize my strengths of community outreach, networking, teamwork and coordinating cultural shows to increase membership, raise funds and to continue our mission of community service, medical education and mentorship for young physicians," said Dr. Arora.

During its 36th annual meeting, which was held at Cambridge Marriott hotel in Cambridge, MA, on Saturday, Nov. 23, IMANE also honored some of its members and distinguished physicians:

Distinguished Physician: Dr. Baltej Maini

Community Service Award: Dr. Kunwar Singh

IMANE Ambassador Award: Dr. Sapna Aggarwal

President's Awards: Dr. Manorma Mathur, Dr. Suresh Reddy, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Kanu Patel.

IMANE Elects New Executive Committee and Board of Trustees

CAMBRIDGE, MAundefinedThe Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) elected a new executive committee, a new board of trustees and a new president, Dr. Seema Arora. The new committee and the board assume office on Jan. 1, 2015. Dr. Arora replaces Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi as its president.

Here are the members of the new executive committee of IMANE:
President: Dr. Seema Arora
President-Elect: Dr. Sapna Aggrawal
Past President: Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi
Secretory: Dr. Samir Kapasi
Treasurer: Dr. Subha Thiagarajan
Members at Large: Dr. Devila Shah, Dr. Smita Patel, Dr. Tapasya Srivastava, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Rajiv Nanda

Here are members of the new board of trustees:
Chairperson: Dr. Geeta Trivedi
Treasurer: Dr Tejaswini Shah
Members: Dr. Salil Midha, Dr Pramod Shah, and Dr.Vikas Desai.

Chairman of Nominating Committee: Dr. Mohani Malhotra
AAPI Region 7 Representative: Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi.

"It is an honor for me to serve as chair of board of trustees of IMANE in 2015," said Dr. Trivedi. "I am looking forward to working with the new executive committee to fulfill the mission of community service and community outreach. I am also deeply committed to working towards financial stability of IMANE so that we can continue to generate funds for educational and community events now and in future."

Dr. Arora said the team work is the key to success and that she is looking forward to having a great year for IMANE in 2015.

"Every President contributes to the organization through their unique strengths. I hope to utilize my strengths of community outreach, networking, teamwork and coordinating cultural shows to increase membership, raise funds and to continue our mission of community service, medical education and mentorship for young physicians," said Dr. Arora.
During its 36th annual meeting, which was held at Cambridge Marriott hotel in Cambridge, MA, on Saturday, Nov. 23, IMANE also honored some of its members and distinguished physicians:

Distinguished Physician: Dr. Baltej Maini
Community Service Award: Dr. Kunwar Singh
IMANE Ambassador Award: Dr. Sapna Aggarwal

President's Awards: Dr. Manorma Mathur, Dr. Suresh Reddy, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Kanu Patel.

IMANE Elects New Executive Committee and Board of Trustees

President's Awards: Dr. Manorma Mathur, Dr. Suresh Reddy, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Kanu Patel.

IMANE Elects New Executive Committee and Board of Trustees

President's Awards: Dr. Manorma Mathur, Dr. Suresh Reddy, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Kanu Patel.

IMANE Elects New Executive Committee and Board of Trustees

President's Awards: Dr. Manorma Mathur, Dr. Suresh Reddy, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Kanu Patel.

Dr. Seema Arora elected president of IMANE

Thu, 27 Nov 2014 04:32:57 GMT

The Indian Medical Association of New England held its annual gala on Saturday Nov 23, at the Cambridge Marriott hotel in Cambridge, MA. In the IMANE tradition, several members of the community were honored at the event.

The event opened with a welcome by President Dr. Sajani Shah -Kapasi who recounted the accomplishments of the year that included a wide variety of activities including a health fair to serve the underprivileged.

She recognized the past presidents of IMANE and acknowledged the services of the committee members.

Dr. Shailender Bhasin, director of the research program in men's health at Brigham and Women's hospital gave a detailed talk on his research on testosterone biology while Dr. Sanjay Shetty, CEO of Steward Health Care enlightened the audience on the subtleties of accountable care organizations. Dr. Ravi Jagirdhar, President of AAPI spoke about the organization and highlighted its accomplishments.

A new team was elected for IMANE which consists of:

President: Dr. Seema Arora
President-Elect: Dr. Sapna Aggrawal
Past President: Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi
Secretory: Dr. Samir Kapasi
Treasurer: Dr. Subha Thiagarajan
Members at Large: Dr. Devila Shah, Dr. Smita Patel, Dr. Tapasya Srivastava, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Rajiv Nanda

The members of the new board of trustees are:
Chairperson: Dr. Geeta Trivedi
Treasurer: Dr Tejaswini Shah
Members: Dr. Salil Midha, Dr Pramod Shah, and Dr.Vikas Desai.

Nominating Committee Chairman: Dr. Mohani Malhotra
AAPI Region 7 Representative: Dr. Sajani Shah Kapasi.

The following members were honored with different awards:
Distinguished Physician: Dr. Baltej Maini
Community Service Award: Dr. Kunwar Singh
IMANE Ambassador Award: Dr. Sapna Aggarwal

President's Awards: Dr. Manorma Mathur, Dr. Suresh Reddy, Dr. Paul Mathew, and Dr. Kanu Patel.

The MC Dr. Paul Matthew was delightful and kept the audience entertained with his humor. As IMANE moves to the next year under the leadership of Dr. Seema Arora, Lokvani wishes the team great success.

IMANE COMMUNITY HEALTH FAIR 2014

Wed, 05 Nov 2014 03:27:28 GMT

The Indian Medical Association of New England, held a very successful and rewarding 2014 Community Health fair on September 20, 2014 at the Shree Swaminarayan Temple (ISSO) in Lowell, Massachusetts.

To quote Gandhijee, "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony".

That is the harmony, I espouse and enjoy of our IMANE community - thank you all, for this high privilege of serving IMANE as its 2014 president.

The free event offered a great and much needed opportunity to a very large cross-section of our greater Boston Indian community to receive a general health checkup and specialty consultations at a single stop.

IMANE is proud to share information of the much needed healthcare evaluations and advice provided to greater than one hundred and twenty (120) participants and so many others who attended the event.

The screenings were provided by volunteers covering a large spectrum of medical specialties.

Each attendee was cordially invited and given a number by our volunteers prior to proceeding to the array of check up stations. Each station was well marked and appropriately flagged to maintain an order with the evaluation process. Each participant was given an evaluation form that was filled with relevant medical information at each station,

thereby providing the information to each participant.

Dental, cholesterol, diabetes, and vision screenings were all much appreciated by the attendees who lined the tables shuttling in an orderly manner between various stations at the spacious function hall that was provided for the fair.

The attendees benefited greatly from the general medical as well as specialty medical information and evaluations. The highlights for the attendees were the cholesterol, HbA1c, and bone density stations that remained populated most of the evening.

The evaluations for the fair were selected in response to a demographic survey of the needs of our Indian population that included audiology testing, blood pressure evaluation, and body composition analysis.

Specialty tables where available for attendees who desired to speak individually, in privacy and confidence with our consultants on various cogent issues that included preventive health, heart disease, nutrition, and women's health/cancer issues.

Bone marrow drive volunteers were able to sign up potential bone marrow donors and also informed the participants of a great need for South Asians donors as they were underrepresented in the bone marrow database.

WE FULFILLED

IMANE's MOST PARAMOUNT MISSION

"SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY"

SPONSORS THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY AND SUPPORT

THANK YOU

· This event was possible because of the community spirit of volunteerism.

· Shree Swaminarayan Temple for offering a venue

· Subha Thiagarajan, M.D.-special credit for the coordination and co-chairing of the health fair.

We received tremendous thank you and established a feeling of belonging in our community

Shalesh Patel a health fair attendee commented, "Health screenings are important; you know that you should do them but you don't always do them."

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IMANE Annual Meeting Photos 2013

Sun, 14 Sep 2014 15:56:54 GMT

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IMANE in the Mandi AAPI free clinic a narrative by Chander M. Kapasi, M.D., M.P.H.

Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:54:15 GMT

The travel from USA to New Delhi is about eighteen hours; however, it is much easier in comparison to the journey from New Delhi to Mandi, that is in the Indian side of the Himalayan ranges. The flight was booked from the USA to New Delhi and onwards to Kullu via a small propeller airplane only to find out that Air India had cancelled all flights to Kullu until April 15, 2014.

We had two options remaining, one to go via the road to Mandi which is an arduous, fatiguing and long journey or to fly to Dharamshala and have cars receive us at the airport to drive us to Mandi. Dharamshala is the Indian residence of his eminence the Dalai Lama. We were fortunate to procure bookings on the flight to Dharamshala. We proceeded to Mandi via road transport which took us through treacherous mountain terrain, hair pin bends and a dizzy ride that gave motion sickness to most of us. Even though the weather was not very cooperative as it was rainy, wet and bone chilling cold, our determination to stay on course with our steadfast determination to provide medical service at the Health Camp of the AAPI Charitable Foundation prevailed.

The celebration for the twenty years of continued service that was arranged and orchestrated, was well attended. In the four days, a team of physicians from the U. S. A. counseled, treated and carried out second opinions for about three hundred patients and also provided medications, and percutaneous procedures at no cost to the patients.

Drs. Onaly and Chander Kapasi who are veterans of many such past health camps, this was a pleasing routine experience, but for Dr. Sajani Shah and Dr. Sameer Kapasi, it was indeed a profound, exciting and an immensely gratifying experience.

The local committee & the Health Minister of Himachal Pradesh were very appreciative of AAPI-Charitable Foundation's contibutions. They thanked Dr. Jayesh Shah & the executive committee of AAPI, Dr. Nick Shroff & executive committee of Charitable Foundation, and presented them with momentoes in absentia, which we carried with us to give them.

Please double click on the link to view a short video clip of the Health Camp. The narration is by Dr. Sajani Shah, co-chair, AAPI Academic Committee and President of Indian Medical Association of New England. This may give you a glimpse of the work done by the AAPI Charitable Foundation's Mandi Clinic.

http://youtu.be/0iOfOSWoDQ0

Manju Sheth 35 IMANE President

Mon, 23 Dec 2013 10:24:54 GMT

IMANE 2013 TV Asia Coverage

Fri, 06 Dec 2013 21:24:04 GMT

Link to TV Asia Coverage in YouTube

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IMANE 35th Annual Meeting 2013

Fri, 06 Dec 2013 21:16:16 GMT

IMANE 35th Annual Meeting 2013 Brochure

Nineteen past presidents, four special guests join jam-packed IMANE's 35th annual meeting

Wed, 27 Nov 2013 12:30:00 GMT

Nineteen past presidents, four special guests join jam-packed IMANE's 35th annual meeting

Dr. Salil Midha and Dr. Dinesh Patel, two well-respected physicians in the New England area, were honored for their work and contributions at the Indian Medical Association of New England's 35th Annual Meeting at the Burlington Marriott Hotel in Burlington, Mass. Midha, who recently completed his 25th charitable mission to Africa, was presented with the 2013 Community Service Award at the November 23 event while Patel, who serves as the chief of arthroscopic surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital, was honored with the 2013 Distinguished Physician Award. Apart from Midha and Patel, other prominent individuals present at IMANE's November 23 event included distinguished guests Devyani Khobragade, Consul General of India in New York, Vikas Sukhatme, Victor J. Aresty Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Jayesh Shah, president of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, and Ravi Jagirdaar, AAPI's president-elect.

Dr. Vikas Sukhatme's keynote address at IMANE: "Tomorrow's Cures, Yesterday's Medicines"

Wed, 27 Nov 2013 12:30:00 GMT

Dr. Vikas Sukhatme's keynote address at IMANE: "Tomorrow's Cures, Yesterday's Medicines"

By Dr. Vikas Sukhatme

I am honored and delighted to be here tonight and to share with you some thoughts about a problem that my wife Vidula, who is in the audience, and I are passionate about. Let's think about a woman who discovers a lump in her breast or is told of a suspicious lesion on a routine mammogram. A biopsy shows cancer. This event occurs about 200,000 times annually in the US, or over 500 times a day. 95% of these women show no evidence that the cancer has spread to other organs. For these women, the goal of therapy is to cure. They typically undergo removal of the tumor or a more extensive operation, a mastectomy, depending on a number of factors. Sometimes they get radiation therapy to prevent local/regional recurrence and even chemotherapy to attempt to wipe out micrometastases that might later give rise to systemic disease. Yet relapses do occur - systemically - and of the 40,000 deaths from breast cancer annually in the US, ¾ of the women had first presented with localized disease.

IMANE Annual Meeting

Wed, 20 Nov 2013 12:40:15 GMT

IMANE Annual Meeting to feature Dr. Sukhatme's keynote on "Tomorrow's Cures, Yesterday's Medicines"

Sukhatme

Dr. Vikas P. Sukhatme, Victor J. Aresty Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, will make the keynote address during the 35th Annual Meeting of the Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) and discuss "Tomorrow's Cures, Yesterday's Medicines."

"The idea is rather simple. There exist promising ideas for treating deadly diseases such as cancer that are not being developed because they lack profitability. In other words, they are not reaching mainstream medicine because they have no sponsor," said Dr. Sukhatme, who is also the co-founder of GlobalCures. "And here is what makes this truly tragic. Many of these ideas are affordable, immediately implementable, novel and could have a very significant impact on outcomes. I will discuss this problem and possible solutions. That is the problem GlobalCures is addressing with a focus on cancer."

Dr. Sukhatme said he is looking forward to addressing IMANE members and meeting old friends and making new ones at the event, which is scheduled for Nov. 23 at the Burlington Marriott Hotel in Burlington, Mass. Before the cocktail reception and the gala, IMANE will also hold its annual general body meeting and elect new office bearers, executive committee and a board of trustees.

"It is going to be a great event. We are very excited that Dr. Sukhatme has agreed to be the keynote speaker in the evening," said IMANE President Dr. Manju Sheth, adding that the honorable guest at the event will be Ambassador Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay, the new Consul General of India in New York. Dr. Jayesh Shah, President of the Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI), will also attend the event.

Dr. Sheth said IMANE will also bestow the Distinguished Physician Award to Dr. Dinesh Patel and the Community Service Award to Dr, Salil Midha. The annual gala will also feature a cultural and entertainment program by the talented IMANE family.

Sheth

Dr. Sheth, whose term will end on Dec. 31, said 2013 has been a great year for IMANE.

"I feel very fortunate that I was able to fulfill all the promises that I made when I took over as the 35th president of IMANE. This was only possible due to enormous support of my executive committee and board of trustees," said Dr. Sheth. "One of our main goals this year was to focus on community service and we were able to fulfill that."

"IMANE also received several awards this year, but it was the unconditional support from our community that has really been our most important and priceless reward," added Dr. Sheth.

Dr. Nasir Khan, a member of the Board of Trustee of IMANE and its former president, said that IMANE has had an extraordinarily successful year in 2013.

"I know that a leader sets the tone and sets the direction for an organization and more importantly the leader has the burden of doing most of the work," said Dr. Khan. "Dr. Sheth spelled out her priorities early in her Presidency and worked diligently and very successfully to accomplish her goals. These included building and strengthening community alliances, raising funds for charitable organizations, including charitable funds for IMANE's own charitable donations, increasing membership in IMANE and giving IMANE a greater presence in the local community. She was aided by her warm and friendly personality and her excellent communication skills, verbally and in her writings."

Dr. Khan said IMANE accomplished many things this year. "Our annual CME (continuing medical education) program in the spring at the Massachusetts Medical Society headquarters was very well attended on a Saturday morning with excellent speakers on topical subjects. The first mega Health Expo co-sponsored with India New England held at the Newton Marriott was again very well attended and very successful. This event was a first between the two organizations and is an example of Dr. Sheth using opportunity and hard work to benefit both organizations," said Dr. Khan. "The President, officers and Executive Committee supported by the Trustees have much to be grateful for leading IMANE to a wider audience."

Dr. Apurv Gupta, chairman of the board of trustees, said Dr. Manju Sheth and the IMANE team had a banner year in 2013.

"She and the EC team through their focus on partnering with community organizations not only helped to strengthen the collaborative model, but also helped to make IMANE a much more widely recognized entity throughout the region," said Gupta, adding that accomplishments this year included a first-of-its-kind Health Expo, which received rave reviews. Another signature event was the Nirbhaya fundraiser in partnership with Saheli to support women and children affected by violence."

Dr. Manorama Mathur, a past president of IMANE who's slated to take over as the chair of the board of trustees in 2014, said Dr. Sheth and her committee did a great job of engaging, educating, and serving New England's Indian community.

"This past year went extremely well," said Dr. Mathur, who currently serves on the organization's board of trustees.

Moving forward, Dr. Mathur said IMANE must continue to work together to help improve cost-effectiveness, educate the community, and organize fundraisers and charity events, all areas she said would be critical in 2014.

Dr. Sajani N. Shah, a surgeon and assistant professor at Tufts University School of Medicine and currently president-elect of IMANE, will replace Dr. Sheth and lead IMANE in 2014.

Shah

"My vision is very much in keeping with the charter of the organization that which I will honor and use as my compass. IMANE is a premier ethnic medical organization. With that said I am interested in bringing about a balance of its academic responsibilities without discounting or overlooking its social responsibilities," Shah said.

"The founding members espoused a dream of its perpetuity through an involvement of the second generation of Indian physicians. I believe it is of paramount importance to structure the organization to make it inviting for our young physicians in academia to join it," she added. "Financial independence of IMANE is extremely important. With the help of the trustees and members of my executive committee we will explore alternative venues to raise needed funds to make IMANE financially independent."

Shah also said she is looking forward to working with her outstanding team to strengthen IMANE's membership, community awareness and financial outlook.

Link to this Article.

In Conversation With Manju Sheth

Wed, 23 Oct 2013 14:03:23 GMT

In Conversation With Manju Sheth

10/23/2013

(This article is sponsored by Emerson Hospital)

Dr. Manju Sheth is a Board Certified Internist with keen interest in women’s health. She is president of the Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) and works at Lahey Health.

Dr. Sheth, who has tremendous passion for women’s causes and community service, was voted Woman of the Year in 2011 as well top 50 most influential Indians in 2011 and 2012. Previously, she served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Asian Task Force for Domestic Violence and as a Co-chair for the first and successful fundraiser in 2010 for Saheli, an organization dedicated to supporting South Asian women and families in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. In addition, Dr. Sheth also serves on the Executive Committee of the Indian American forum for Political education, which helps increase political awareness among South Asians.

Dr. Sheth has worked tirelessly on educating women in the community by organizing and leading health symposiums, free health screenings and workshops on financial empowerment of women. She also helped organize the first mega health expo with INEN in 2013 .She closely works with local charities to raise awareness about domestic violence and settlement of victims.She has also helped put together numerous successful fund raisers for great causes locally including Nirbhaya for Saheli in Sep2013

Dr. Sheth has been recognized for providing exceptional care to her patients and has received numerous awards for her work.She counts writing as one of her biggest passions and her series 'Chai with Manju' is the most well known series at India New England News.

Dr. Sheth is married to a physician Dr. Dipak Sheth and has a 15 yr old daughter Shaleen.

Please share with us some of the highlights under your leadership at IMANE?

When I took over as IMANE President, I said in my speech that every president brings his or her own vision and strength to an organization. My mission was community service and community outreach under my leadership. I have to say that I have been able to achieve these goals with the help of an excellent executive committee and board of trustees of IMANE.

We collaborated with INDIA New England News for a free mega South Asian Health Expo in April which was extremely successful and attended by nearly 800 people. We brought some of the best speakers from medical world of New England to educate our community and were supported by the area’s almost every South Asian organization in this venture. We also collaborated with Saheli for Nirbhaya fundraiser in September which was also successful in raising over $56,000 for victims of domestic violence in our own community .

On a personal level, I was also part of many great musical programs like the Burman show to name a few, which donated funds to IMANE charitable funds that we used to support free health clinics locally. We also organized some great medical, networking and social events for our medical community. In addition, we have planned a fabulous annual meeting of our organization coming up on Nov. 23, featuring great speakers like Dr. Vikas Sukhatme who will speak about “Yesterday's Medicine and Tomorrow’s Cures” and also our new Consul General of India Ambassador Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay will be our honorable speaker. I must say that it has been a very busy and at the same time a very productive year for IMANE.

What was your personal philosophy that you brought in when you took over?

My philosophy is that it is vital to give back to our community. Gift of time is always the most precious. I truly believe in the quote by Mahatma Gandhi that the “Best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.

What are some of the challenges that you faced and how did you overcome that?

My challenges were of a very personal nature. This has been the toughest year of my life as I lost my beloved dad who was my rock on May 18th this year and I also lost my wonderful mom a month later on June 18. Losing both of them suddenly within 30 days of each other shattered my world completely. Mt trip to India to visit my family under such circumstances was the worst in my life and it still haunts me every day. It was very tough for me to go on and fulfill my professional and community obligations and responsibilities. My parents always taught me that work and commitment come first in life so it took all my strength, a lot of prayers and love and support of my friends and family for me to pull myself together and take care of all my responsibilities this year. I feel that I have truly done the best that I could. I also feel blessed that my IMANE family supported me during my tough times and together we could achieve the goals that we had set out for the organization this year.

You brought in a few partnerships with local organizations with IMANE? How was that experience?

It was best of both worlds. I have been working with many organizations and charities at grass root levels for many years and in leadership roles for the last five years. Women's causes are closest to my heart and I have had great experience working with both ATASK and Saheli. I was the Cochair of very successful first fund raiser for Saheli and this year I was instrumental in bringing my two favorite organizationsundefinedIMANE and Saheliundefinedtogether for Nirbhaya fund raiser.

What are the future plans of IMANE moving forward?

As I said every president brings their own vision. It will depend on the next team. I am sure that the future leaders will bring their own strength to the organization.

What are some of the critical health issues that South Asians face and must pay attention?

Diabetes remains a huge concern. Preventive medicine is also something that we lag behind in.I feel it is so important to get physicals , pap smears for women, mammogram, colonoscopy and age appropriate health screenings done. Prevention is always better than cure.

Finally any message to the younger generation gearing to enter the field of medicine?

My message is slightly different because I also think like a mom. I have a 15 year old daughter. My husband is also a physician but I have to say that medicine so far does not excite my daughter. It may have disappointed some people in our family but I truly believe that it is very important to follow our passions in life, especially in the current times.

When I was growing up in India then women did not have many career choices. I love medicine but while growing up, journalism was also a passion of mine. However, I did not get a chance to pursue that. Interestingly, I was able to make some of my dreams come true later in life as I got opportunities to write too but that is another story. So my message is that medicine is a great field to enter especially with all the advances in the area, but one should choose that as a career only if it excites you because it is challenging and requires tremendous dedication. I have to say that it is a very fulfilling career choice. I also feel that In Indian families we still tend to push our kids towards medicine, engineering and other math and science related fields but we should encourage our children to follow their passions, guide them and also help them to make their dreams a reality.

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Join Us At Nirbhaya And Support Saheli’s Mission Of Empowering Women

Wed, 11 Sep 2013 14:08:09 GMT

Join Us At Nirbhaya And Support Saheli’s Mission Of Empowering Women

Anu Chitrapu
09/11/2013

Join us at Nirbhaya and support Saheli’s mission of empowering women

Saheli, a local organization that works on empowering women, is getting ready for its annual fund raising gala. This year’s event is named “Nirbhaya”, which means without fear. The name was chosen to symbolize a life without fear for all women. The event will be held at the Westin, Waltham on Friday, September 20^th and will start at 6.30pm.

Funds raised from Nirbhaya will be used to send several women to vocational training courses that will put them on the path to independence. Needed mentoring will also be provided to ensure the women are successful in completing these courses and finding employment upon completion. While a few programs, like paralegal training and medical assistant training have been identified, Saheli wil put together a portfolio of course options that women can pick from based on their skills and interest. Our goal is to raise somewhere north of $40K.

This year Saheli is collaborating with IMANE (Indian Medical Association of New England). Dr.Manju Sheth, President of IMANE, co-chair of the 2010 Saheli gala and a great believer in Saheli’s cause says, “As physicians, we treat the physical and emotional injuries and scars of domestic violence, but I have always felt that our job was somehow incomplete till the victims became not just survivors but were also empowered to take care of themselves and their families. Saheli helps complete that by providing them support, friendship, guidance and education.”

Volunteers from all walks of life have come together to support a cause they believe in. The gala committee consisting of Dr. Sapna Aggarwal, Sumana Bhat, Dr. Deepa Jhaveri, Dr. Sumi Manwani, Dr. Meera Subramaniam, Rekha Singh, Eshani Shah and Neelam Wali, are working tirelessly to make sure the event is close to perfection.

In keeping with the theme of the event we have picked short entertainment pieces that elegantly bring out the message of the evening. One of the highlights of the event is having Meghna Chakraborti from WBUR serve as our anchor for the evening. The items include a candlelight dance by Maya Delity, Harshini Joshi, Madhu Nene, Anu Saxena, Rhea Manwani, Sumi Manwani; a soul-stirring dance piece by Mouli Pal; songs by Shraddha Agrawal, Sankar Gangaikondan, Sudha Rao, Uma Sankar, Mohan Subramaniam and Meena Sundaram accompanied by Tarun Bangalore, Pranav Ghatraju & Sahana Srinivasan. A special treat for all is the fact that renowned musician Tara Anand has provided guidance and expertise with the music arrangement!

Another exciting part of the program is the launch of the Saheli Men’s Initiative, led by Ramesh Advani. Details will be shared at the event.

We are very lucky to live in a city like Boston, where the vibrant Indian diaspora supports various causes. So many businesses have stepped forward offering their services complimentary for the event. Shobha Shastry is adding her magic touch with her decorations; Vinod Kapoor of Masala Art is sponsoring the food; DJ Yogz is offering his services to liven up the evening; Neelam Wali is printing flyers, invitations, brochures; Bollywood Delights is bringing delicious Kulfi and a large audience is coming to support this important cause.

As Chair of Nirbhaya, nothing gives me greater pleasure than to announce that we have sold over 300 seats already with a week to go for the event!

We all dream of the day when Saheli’s services will no longer be needed. That would be the day when there are no more cases of domestic violence and women are living their lives to the fullest with no fear. While we wait for that day, we all need to join hands and help Saheli as it helps women build their futures, one step at a time.

Please join us and help us achieve this dream.

Buy your tickets now at www.lokvani.com/l/nirbhaya

Find us on

https://www.facebook.com/events/525733577465170/

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Saheli and IMANE gear up to put a super show for next week’s fundraising

Mon, 09 Sep 2013 14:05:08 GMT

With 300 tickets already sold, Saheli and IMANE gear up to put a super show for next week’s fundraising

With 300 tickets already sold, Saheli and IMANE are gearing up to put together a super show for the next week’s fundraising for empowering South Asian women and their families in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. The event, called Nirbhaya which means fearless, is scheduled on Friday, Sept. 20, at the Westin Hotel in Waltham, Mass.This is the first time that Saheli, an organization dedicated to empowering South Asian women and their families, and Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) are coming together for the fund raiser, which starts at 6:30 pm on Sept. 20. This event has been also supported by many local organizations.

Anu Chitrapu, president of Vision Aid who is involved in many local charities, is the chair of the event. Dr. Manju Sheth, president of IMANE, has been instrumental in this Saheli-IMANE collaboration.

“I have been closely involved with Saheli for many years and was the co-chair of their first fund raiser in 2010,” said Dr. Sheth. “As president of IMANE, it was an honor for me to bring these two wonderful organizations together for benefit of our community. As physicians we always feel our job is incomplete if we only treat the physical and emotional injuries related to domestic violence. Saheli helps us complete this picture by empowering these women so they can get trained, get jobs and take care of their families. I cannot think of a better collaboration. It is truly a privilege to be part of this great event.”

Funds raised from Nirbhaya will be used to send several women to vocational training courses that will put them on the path to independence. Needed mentoring will also be provided to ensure the women are successful in completing these courses and finding employment upon completion. While a few programs, like paralegal training and medical assistant training have been identified, Saheli will put together a portfolio of course options that women can pick from based on their skills and interest. The goal is to raise somewhere north of $40,000 during the Sept. 20^th event.

This fundraising has been put together by dedicated team of volunteers. The gala committee, which consists of Dr. Sapna Aggarwal, Sumana Bhat, Dr. Deepa Jhaveri, Dr. Sumi Manwani, Dr. Meera Subramaniam, Rekha Singh, Eshani Shah and Neelam Wali and Dr Subha Thiagrajan, has been working for many months to make sure the event is a super success.

A short, classy and uplifting program has been planned to bring out the message of the evening. Meghna Chakraborti from WBUR, local affiliate of National Public Radio, will serve as anchor for the evening. The program includes a candlelight dance by Maya Delity, Harshini Joshi, Madhu Nene, Anu Saxena, Rhea Manwani, Sumi Manwani; a soul-stirring dance piece by Mouli Pal; songs by Shraddha Agrawal, Sankar Gangaikondan, Sudha Rao, Uma Sankar, Mohan Subramaniam and Meena Sundaram accompanied by Tarun Bangalore, Pranav Ghatraju and Sahana Srinivasan. A special honor for all is the fact that renowned musician Tara Anand has provided guidance and expertise with the music arrangement. Well known community activist Preetesh Srivastva will conduct the pledge drive.

There will also be a launch of the Saheli Men’s Initiative by Ramesh Advani and Manish Patel. Details will be shared at the event.

So many local businesses have stepped forward offering their services complimentary for the event. Shobha Shastry is once again adding her magic touch with her splendid decorations. Vinod Kapoor of Masala Art is sponsoring the delicious food. DJ Yogz will for the third time have great dance music and add fun to the evening. Neelam Wali is working extremely hard in printing flyers, invitations, brochures. Bollywood Delights is bringing delicious Kulfi. Sudeshna Das has designed the artistic flyers and brochure.

The Nirbhaya team touched at the overwhelming support from community, their faith and belief in the cause. The team has already sold over 300 tickets for the event. The Saheli team and volunteers, who are looking forward to welcoming everyone at the event, all dream of the day when Saheli’s services would no longer be needed. That would be the day when there are no more cases of domestic violence and women are living their lives to the fullest with no fear.

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Sheth off to fast start as 2013 IMANE president

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 17:24:23 GMT

Sheth off to fast start as 2013 IMANE president

By Martin Desmarais

Dr. Manju Sheth took over as president of IMANE in January 2013. Photo by Rasik Mehta

2013 IMANE
Executive Committee

and Board of Trustees

Executive Committee

Manju Sheth, M.D.

President

Sajani Shah, M.D.

President-Elect

Seema Arora, M.D.

Secretary

Sapna Agarwal, M.D.

Treasurer

Members at Large

Sameer Kapsi, M.D.
Suresh Reddy, M.D.
Subha Thiagarajan, M.D.
Srilatha Kodali, M.D.
Anita Vanka, M.D.

Board of Trustees

Apurv Gupta M.D., M.P.H.
Chairman
Purnima Sangal, M.D.
Manorama Mathur, M.D.
Geeta Trivedi, M.D.
Nasir Khan, M.D.

Young Physicians Section

Representative
Jatin Roper, M.D.

Nominating Committee Chair

Ammani Dasarai, M.D.

AAPI Regional Director

Lalit Savla, M.D.

IMANE
Past Presidents

1979 Bhagwan Shahani, M.D.
1980 Dinesh Patel, M.D.
1981 Yogeshwar Dayal, M.D.
1982 Narendra Shah, M.D.
1983 Manorama Saini, M.D.
1984 K. Ramaswamy, M.D.
1985 Shankar Garg, M.D.
1986 Pramod Shoparkar, M.D.
1987 Sharmishta Patel, M.D.
1988 Madhukar Pathak, M.D.
1989 Mohani Malhotra, M.D.
1990 Chander M. Kapasi, M.D., M.P.H.
1991 Janine Saldanha, M.D.
1992 Pankaj Shah, M.D.
1993 Teju Shah, M.D.
1994 Mohan Korgaonkar, M.D.
1995 Ammani Dasari, M.D.
1996 Neelam Sihag, M.D.
1997 Babu RaM.D.ev, M.D.
1998 Santosh Shetty, M.D.
1999 Shreekant Chopra, M.D.
2000 Venkata Ravi, M.D.
2001 Brinda S. Kamat, M.D., M.P.H.
2002 Anup Singh, M.D.
2003 Sahdev Passey, M.D.
2004 Onaly Abdulkarim Kapasi, M.D.
2005 Lalit Savla, M.D.
2006 Purnima Sangal, M.D.
2007 Apurv Gupta, M.D., M.P.H.
2008 Manorama Mathur, M.D.
2009 Nasir Khan M.D.
2010 Geeta Trivedi M.D.
2011 Arun Chaudhary, M.D.
2012 Sucheta J. Doshi, M.D., M.P.H.

Any new president or head of an organization typically takes over with an ambitious agenda in mind, and current Indian Medical Association of New England President Manju Sheth is no different. However, while practicality may win out over ambition in many cases, this does not appear to be the case for Sheth as she gotten off to a very strong start for her term as president of the medical organization, already tackling many of the agenda items she said she would.

At the start of her tenure as president, Sheth, who is a primary care physician at Beverly Hospital, publicly expressed her opinion that IMANE, despite the great job of prior leadership and the efforts of members, was at a crossroads.

In a message to IMANE members, she said: "Today, we face twin challenges of dwindling membership and diminishing funds. I believe that one of my biggest strengths is community outreach and I hope to utilize that to help us find a suitable solution to both challenges. We plan to host a collaborative health expo in April, which will bring together various hospitals and health care providers to the community, thereby increasing the visibility as well as the membership of IMANE. We also plan to actively engage our leaders working in various hospitals to develop effective strategies for increasing the number of our members. We will also host/collaborate in some fund raisers. Our Indian-American community is very vibrant and growing rapidly and we do want to work to have a stronger voice in the political arena, especially in the context of health care reforms."

Sheth also pledged to strengthen and build the organization's ties with the research and academic medical community, as well as with medical organizations such as the Massachusetts Medical Society, the American Medical Association and the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin.

As most leaders of IMANE have done, Sheth also made a special point to emphasize the necessity to continue the organization's charitable projects, such as its free clinics.

Sheth also pledged to encourage the participation of new residents and doctors in IMANE with the strengthening and expansion of "observership" and "mentorship" programs. She also announced plans to add an additional Continuing Medical Education meeting in September, on top of the group's annual effort in May.

"I started my term as IMANE President on January 1 with the promise that I will use my strength of community outreach to bring IMANE and our community together, educate the community about vital health issues and also help with their medical needs. Helping IMANE grow its membership and raising funds for IMANE Charity were also some of my commitments," Sheth said. "I have kept all my promises in the first three months. We are hosting the first free Health Expo for the community in partnership with INDIA New England on April 27. We have a very distinguished panel of speakers and have received tremendous support from various local organizations and hospitals. With over 500 registrations already to attend the expo, we are on our way to fulfilling our mission.

"I was also an organizer of Shaam-e-Burman, one of the first musical shows that was also supported by IMANE doctors. A donation from the show was given as seed money for starting a new free medical clinic that is coming up soon in Woburn, and to another clinic in Billerica that is already providing great service to community. We also continue to support our two more free clinics from our charitable foundation of IMANE," she added. "Our membership has grown rapidly in last three months and we have been very blessed to be recognized and honored by our community. We have a great education event planned for physicians on May 4 at Mass Medical Society. I am looking forward to a great year with continued service to our vibrant and growing community."

Since becoming president of IMANE, Sheth has already accomplished some of the goals she set at the start of her tenure.

The Lynnfield, Mass., resident, who was named INDIA New England Women of the Year in 2011, has widespread involvement with many organizations and has used these ties to broaden IMANE's reach. Sheth is involved with groups such as the Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence, the Massachusetts chapter of the Indian American Forum for Political Education and Saheli. IMANE has already partnered with Saheli for the cause of fighting against domestic violence and has scheduled an event with them in September. IMANE's Charity Fund raised money through its involvement in the Shaam-e-Burman and IMANE was also honored at a concert by Adnan Sami with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Sheth said that the efforts to organize IMANE's first public Health Expo are close to her heart and her passion for community service and educating people about overall health care. She said she believes IMANE can make successful efforts to educate the community about the health challenges faced by Indians and South Asians. According to her this is specifically why the Health Expo has such a broad range of topics such as Indian diet practices, unleashing the power of mind, osteoporosis, woman's health and wellbeing, diabetes in Indians, anti-aging therapy, yoga therapy and Ayurveda.

Sheth is also very excited about the launch of an IMANE mentorship program, which is being spearheaded by Dr. Sanjiv Chopra, an author and professor of medicine and faculty dean for continuing medical education at Harvard Medical School. Chopra's book, "Leadership by Example: The Ten Key Principles of all Great Leaders" was published in May 2012 and has received widespread praise by many leaders in the United States and abroad.

"The mentorship program is a great service for young physicians and new comers to the area," Sheth said.

A native of New Delhi, Sheth earned a medical degree from Kolkata National Medical College and did her training in internal medicine at England's Royal Infirmary in Hull and a hospital affiliated with St. George's in London. In 1997, Sheth finished more training in internal medicine at Salem Hospital in Massachusetts, but eventually chose to practice in general medicine and start a family.

She has spoken openly about her excitement for having the honor of leading IMANE in 2013 and called it a privilege that she takes very seriously.

Sheth has also praised the organization's executive committee and asserted her belief that the strength of IMANE leadership is the team as a whole. "I truly believe in what Henry Ford once aptly said: •Coming together is the beginning, staying together is progress, working together is success.' We are a very enthusiastic and committed team with belief in the idea that together everyone achieves more. With the blessings and guidance of our senior members, and supported by innovative ideas from our younger members, we hope to take IMANE to new heights of success," she said in her initial message to members.

IMANE presidents share memories of group's rise

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:18:41 GMT

IMANE presidents share memories of group's rise

By Martin Desmarais

The Indian Medical Association of New England has grown from a handful of doctors gathering together in unity over their profession to one of the most influential organizations in New England with about 400 members. The list of presidents who have led the group is impressive and contains leaders in their respective medical fields. The accomplishments and footprint the group has left can be seen on the medical community and on the Indian American community as a whole. Reflecting back on the start and growth of the group most share a pride in how the group has matured and for the important role it plays in the lives of its members.

Dr. Bhagwani Shahani was the first president of IMANE in 1979. Photo courtesy of IMANE

Early leaders speak about IMANE's start

In 2003, the Indian Medical Association of New England celebrated the 25th anniversary of the organization. Under the guidance of then president Dr. Sadhev Passey, the group held a 25th anniversary celebration at the Worcester Centrum Centre on Nov. 15, 2003. In addition, the organization put together a 25th anniversary guide that looked back at all the history of IMANE and include reflections from many of the past presidents and founding members. In addition, the anniversary guide collected quotes from some of the organization's founding members. Below are some of the responses.

"By and large, I think our objectives have been met, even though we have not done as much or gone as far as we would have hoped! For example the health fairs that were started 25 years ago, still persist today in other venues such as the IAGB India Day at the Hatch Shell. Our dialogue with AMA began in 1978 and resulted in a joint membership package. The AAPI-PAC also started in 1978 as a result of these discussions. As far as our lack of growth in recent years, the impact of managed care and the presence of other competing organizations may not be as severe in other regions of the country. Also, as the older members hand over the reins to the younger members, they tend to focus on issues of family and retirement." undefined Dr. Dinesh Patel, IMANE president in 1980.

"IMANE was the first Indian doctors association in the United States followed by MAPI and AAPI. The first AAPI convention in Washington D.C. had a large Boston and Gujarati doctor contingent and steadily grew in membership after the second convention hald in Boston, while Dr. K. Ramaswamy was IMANE president." undefined Dr. Narendra Shah, IMANE president in 1982.

"I think that the early years of IMANE had a lot of continuity in leadership, which served to guide and stabilize the organization. We had a system of rotating positions, so that there was connection between consecutive committees." undefined Dr. Maya Shahani, IMANE founding member.

"I think IMANE has served many useful purposes. We had lots of great social and educational functions over the years. We created an organization where we could participate on an equal education and intellectual basis. We did not know each other before and now we are all great friends and that is very important in a new country. Manorama Saini was our first woman president and since then we have had so many capable women presidents of IMANE. Trustees were started in her year since we had a little more money and felt we need continuity with more input and participation." undefined Dr. Teju Shah, IMANE founding member.

"Dinesh Patel was a vision. He felt we needed to speak up or else we would be overlooked. In Narendra Shah and Teju Shah, IMANE received two for the price of one! They did all of the work for the early organization. Some other early members I remember are Drs. K. Ramaswamy, Madhu Pathak, Sharad Chitre, Shankar Garg, Sanjiv Chopra and Niranjan Dudhani." undefined Dr. Yogeshwar Dayal, IMANE president in 1981.

"My best friends were made in IMANE. I can still close my eyes and drive to Howard Johnson in Burlington for our monthly meetings. The second meeting was in my house since the others were fed up of cooking and that was when the name Eemaan, i.e. imandari (an Urdu world meaning honesty and faith) was suggested. In fact, Virendra and I joined because we were social friends of the Shahani's and they asked us to join. We felt we would be well placed to help each other and introduce our children to their common cultural heritage." undefined Manorama Saini, IMANE president in 1983.

The first president of IMANE was Dr. Bhagwan Shahani, who led the group in 1979.

By most accounts, IMANE was started to address the social, cultural, educational and professional needs of physicians of Indian origin settled in New England with the early groundwork for the organization done by a handful of Indian physicians living in Massachusetts.

The general consensus of most reflecting back on the birth of IMANE, point to a group of five founders of the group undefined Dr. Shahni and Dr. Maya Shahani, Dr. Dinesh Patel, Dr. Narendra Shah and Dr. Teju Shah.

The genesis of IMANE can be traced back to meetings of the Middlesex South Medical Society in the mid-1970s, during which some of the founding members interacted with physicians of Greek origin and discussed problems that foreign-born physicians in the United States had, namely not having anyone to advance their common goals, a lack of an avenue for networking or others of a common background to socialize with. The Greek doctors had formed their own group, the Hellenic Medical Society, to address some of these problems and it the Indian American doctors thinking about starting a similar group.

As the story has it, the founders of IMANE spent several years meeting on weekends and reaching out to other doctors of Indian origin to get an organization off the ground. The early mindset was that the group should encompass New England, which is what led to that region's inclusion in the name. It has also been explained that the acronym for the Indian Medical Association of New England, IMANE, was pronounced similar to "Eemaan" such as in "imandari," which is an Urdu word meaning honesty and faith. The founders felt this was a perfect name association behind the organization.

Bylaws from the Hellenic Medical Society were used to guide the bylaws for IMANE and the group was formally announced in 1977 and 1978 was the first year of the organization's existing with Dr. Shahani as its head. The early years consisted of a lot of outreach to Indian doctors to grow membership and establish the model of the organization going forward. Early meetings had a lot of educational talks, and IMANE also invited political figures to meetings.

A young IMANE reached out to well-established groups such as the Massachusetts Medical Society and the American Medical Association to open doors to those groups to its members.

In 1980s, IMANE held talks with the Michigan Association of Physicians of Indian Origin and this led to the formation of a national organization, the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin. Over the years, IMANE has a strong connection to the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin and hosted the national group's annual convention in 1982 and in 1996. Over the years, IMANE members have held leadership roles in AAPI, including Dr. S. Jayasanker as president and Dr. Chander Kapasi as chair of the board of trustees.

Today, IMANE describes itself as a "dynamic organization for medical professionals of Indian origin in the New England area" that "organizes and supports numerous professional and social activities for the benefit of our members and the communities they serve."

The organizations stated objectives are:

Advance the professions of medicine and dentistry
Support medical education
Sponsor charitable healthcare projects
Recognize the contributions and achievements of physicians of Indian origin
Provide opportunities for career building and professional development
Provide forums for networking and socializing

IMANE follows a leadership model that includes a president, executive committee, members at large, a board of trustees, a young physicians section representative, a nominating committee chair and American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin regional director. The organization provides professional resources, such as clinical rotations in internal medicine, pediatrics and anesthesia/surgery, as well as a career center.

It has alliances with numerous groups, from its main medical industry relation the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin to other medical groups such as the Association of Pakistani Physicians of New England to the Connecticut Association of Physicians of Indian Origin. It has worked with community groups such as the India Association of Greater Boston, the India Association of New Hampshire and the India Association of Rhode Island. IMANE has ties with professional groups such as the Boston chapter of the Indus Entrepreneurs and the Network of South Asian Professionals, as well as industry specific groups such as the South Asian Bar Association of Greater Boston. It now even has connected nonprofits such as Ekal Vidyalaya and the Indian Circle of Caring.

In addition to the professional and social benefits IMANE offers its members, the organization also offers specific benefits such as long term disability insurance, long term care insurance, auto insurance, home insurance and business insurance, all at discounted rates.

Also part of IMANE are the Young Physicians Society and the Women's Forum.

The organization launched a free health clinic in Waltham, Mass. in 2004, which provides free basic medical care to poor, undeserved, or uninsured patients from the surrounding communities. IMANE launched another free health clinic in 2005 in Shrewsbury, Mass. The organization currently has plans for several other clinics, with at least one in Woburn, Mass., set to open shortly.

The IMANE Charitable Foundation reflects the organization's commitment to service and provides an outlet for the group to promote the mental and physical health of underserved individuals in the United States and India.

Dr. Dinesh Patel, a founding member of IMANE and president in 1980, said that the early days of the organization provided a way to come together with doctors of Indian origin, which prior to its existence was difficult to do.

"Those times there were not too many doctors coming from India • and there was always this concern about licensing and the opportunity to get residency and a fellowship," said Patel, who is chief of arthroscopic knee surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. "We thought let's form an organization where we can talk about our common issues.

"The idea of forming this was to really look at your ability to heal the hurt and you cannot heal the hurt until you have a license to practice," he added.

According to him, IMANE in those early days was really focused on the simple things like helping doctors find jobs, get credentials and establish relationships with vendors. "In order to accomplish these goals we have to be part and parcel of a society," he said.

Patel believes that IMANE's early relationship with the Massachusetts Medical Society and the American Medical Association was key in its ability to support its members in their medical professions.

Reflecting on the maturity of IMANE since those first days, Patel said he is proud of what the group has become.

"Personally speaking it is sort of fun to see that [IMANE can now] really help people. We got people excited to get into the system so they can become good citizens," he said. "It is quite an impressive thing being done. To promote health care into a larger society it is quite impressive. • We feel pretty good about it.

"It is a nice idea that we started something 30 to 40 years ago and things are moving in very positive directions. • That kind of thing makes you really happy," he added. "It is like a little baby of yours and you see it grow up and go to college • You feel good about it to see people growing and working together."

Dr. Pankaj Shah, who joined IMANE in the 1980s and served as president in 1992, admitted to really feeling the community aspect of the organization when he first became involved.

"For me it was important because it was meeting people from the country that I came from. They had similar issues and similar hardships and I could freely among them. There was definitely a sense of security in it," said Shah, who is a doctor of obstetrics and gynecology at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates in Wellesley and Quincy, Mass.

After serving as president in 1992, Shah continued to be involved at the leadership level in the group, chairing the committee that helped organize the hosting of the AAPI convention in 1996. "For a small organization I thought we did quite well," he said.

Shah said he has also always been struck about how IMANE members work together from the older members to the younger members and how the organization provides a lot of opportunity for involvement on the leadership level to all those interested. "I always thought it was a very, very fair organization. If you worked you could come up," he said.

Looking at IMANE today, Shah said he is very impressed with the younger generation of doctors and the work they are doing to breathe new life to the group by engaging peers. "They are getting these people involved," he said.

Shah also believes that IMANE's recent involvement with more Indian American groups is a good thing. "You feel better of being in New England when you get involved with other organizations."

As a senior member of IMANE, Shah said he has reached out informally to younger members of the organization and believes that the group's overall efforts to encourage older doctors, through formal mentorship programs and informally, are very important.

Dr. Ammani Dasari, who served as IMANE president in 1995, echoes Shah's sentiments that involving the younger generation of doctors is crucial for the organization's future. In fact, it was a message she preached from her early tenure with the group.

Dasari, who is a retired anesthesiologist and last worked at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Brockton, Mass., said she attended IMANE's annual meetings every year from the group's start, but was not actively involved until 1990, when she became a member at large. She threw her initial focus with the group into increasing the membership, in particular life members. "I felt in 1990s we should do something to improve the organization, increase the membership," she said. "My main interest at that time was also to involve the second generation.

"I felt it is my duty to help the foreign medical graduates who come from India to help them. • And we involved the medical students and the residents," she added. "That is how we wanted to build it and then we tried to maintain that level."

Dasari is thrilled to see the emergence of the Young Physicians Society and to see younger doctors step up as leaders of IMANE. "I feel now it is the time for the youngsters to take it over," she said.

And also like Shah, she believes that the senior doctors should be very actively involved with engaging the younger generation. "We should help them and we should guide them," she said.

According to Dasari, her favorite IMANE memory is the summer meeting in 1995 that was held at the Mount Washington Hotel in New Hampshire. She said this was a great experience that really emphasized the family nature and close-knit atmosphere of the organization. "It is like a family it is not just like a group of doctors together," she said.

Dr. Sahdev Passey, who has a pediatrics practice in Worcester, Mass., and was IMANE president in 2003, joined the group in the mid-1990s. He said his early involvement with the group was focused on overcoming any residual discrimination against foreign medical graduates, which had been a big problem when the group was first formed. Now, though, he admits that problem has been eradicated. "In 2013, I don't see that barrier much any more. I think people have overcome that part of it," he said.

Passey has also been a long time member of IMANE's bylaws committee, something he said he has enjoyed greatly. "Somehow my clique is the bylaws. I like to conduct the meetings and keep people in line," he said. "That has been my passion." He also works with AAPI on the bylaws aspect.

When Passey was president in 2003, IMANE was celebrating its 25th anniversary and held an anniversary celebration at the Worcester Centrum Centre on Nov. 15, 2003. In addition, the organization put together a 25th anniversary guide that looked back at all the history of IMANE and include reflections from many of the past presidents and founding members.

He is also a key organizer at the group's free medical clinic in Shrewsbury.

While IMANE was partially born out of a need to connect with other Indian doctors, including socializing, Passey said that is changing now as more and more of its members are born here. For them, he believes the group's efforts to provide continuing medical education may be more valuable.

"Our platform for medical education has really become a base now for the future generations," he said. "They are not looking for social interaction and support they are more looking for medical education and networking opportunities."

With many older members still actively involved in IMANE, Passey said that connecting the different generations is crucial and that the older members must help, support and encourage the new generations. "We are working to bring this organization together so there is some voice," he said.

Link to this Article.

Young Physicians Society engages new doctors

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:17:15 GMT

Young Physicians Society engages new doctors

By Martin Desmarais

The Young Physicians Society has been part of the Indian Medical Association of New England, but as more and more second generation Indian Americans graduate from U.S. medical schools and start out into the medical industry and their own practices, the role of these doctors in the growth of the organization is critical and the young physician’s section provides an early indoctrination.

The young physicians section is target for young doctors, residents, fellows and medical students. Its efforts are currently being headed up by Dr. Jatin Roper and Dr. Anita Vanka. Both Roper and Vanka are part of IMANE’s executive committee. Roper is the Young Physicians Section Representative and Vanka is a member at large.

Both in their early 30s, Roper is a gastroenterologist at Tufts Medical Center and a graduate of Boston University Medical School, and Vanka is hospitalist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School.

While IMANE represents all of its doctor members, Roper said he likes the young physicians section because connects directly to the younger generation of Indian American doctors, especially doctors like him who grew up in the United States and went to college, as well as medical school, here.

“The young physicians section has been more specific in trying to identify the needs of the young physicians,” said Roper, who has been involved with IMANE for three years and the Young Physicians Section Representative for two years.

According to him, there is small group of volunteers that are helping run the young physicians section.

Part of this is just making sure the young physicians have a good presence at IMANE events and with IMANE activities, but the section also does some things specifically for young doctors. One example is annual session that has been done for many years that is set up to help young doctors learn about financial planning, insurance.

A newer activity are happy hours every couple of months. “It is a meet and greet to get to know it other. Since we all work in different hospitals it is an opportunity for us to all meet each other,” Roper said.

While not all of the doctors that turn out for the happy hours events are IMANE members, the hope is that such events might get them to join. “It is easy for people to say, ‘Yeah, I will go to a happy hour versus commitment to a more formal event,” Roper said.

According to Roper, the young doctors are also excited that IMANE has launched a mentorship program, which is being spearheaded by Dr. Sanjiv Chopra, an author and professor of medicine and faculty dean for continuing medical education at Harvard Medical School. Chopra’s book, “Leadership by Example: The Ten Key Principles of all Great Leaders” was published in May 2012 and has received widespread praise by many leaders in the United States and abroad.

“He is a very dynamic and personable fellow and he has been gracious enough to work with us,” Roper said.

Roper believes that most young doctors understand the benefits of getting exposure to more experience doctors, especially ones in their specialties, who could help with research and collaboration and even jobs. “Even if we don’t get direct incredible specific advice just meeting then and seeing what they have done and seeing that they are successful and happy with what they are doing it is really nice to see,” he said.

With IMANE’s youngest ever president just finishing leading the group last year, Roper said it points to a sign of things to come with more of the younger generation taking leadership roles in the organization.

“We are in the transition point already and that is another reason why you need a young physicians section,” he said. “You need to pass the torch to someone, otherwise it will get extinguished.”

Link to this Article.

Women's Forum thrives with rebirth

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:22:00 GMT

Women's Forum thrives with rebirth

By Martin Desmarais

Dr. Deepa Jhaveri, left, and Dr. Manju Sheth of the Women’s Forum. Photo by BINITA PATEL PHOTOGRAPHY

Women doctors have played a big role in the Indian Medical Association of New England, from the early founding members to many presidents over the years, including the last several presidents and currently a majority of the executive committee is comprised of women. The organization has had some sort of women’s group or forum often in its history, but a re-launch of the specific Women’s Forum in late 2008 has triggered a particularly successful period.

The Women’s Forum was re-launched with the goals of helping with social causes related to women, linking with organizations working with women in this area, fundraising, networking with other women physicians, promoting Indian culture, developing a support system and empowering women to be achievers.

Current IMANE President Dr. Manju Sheth and Dr. Deepa Jhaveri are co-chairs of the forum. Dr. Mohani Malhotra is the moderator of the forum. Other doctors, including Manorama Mathur and Prema Ramdey, are credited with help reignite interest in the Women’s Forum.

According to Jhaveri, who is a podiatrist at Beverly Hospital in Danvers, Mass., as well as in her own practice in Winthrop, informal gatherings of women doctors several years ago led to the decision to reestablish a more formal Women’s Forum.

“We decided that it kind of made sense to reform and restructure it and have a more focused plan for meetings,” Jhaveri said.

This has led to the Women’s Forum having several large meetings a year with guest speakers covering health and professional topics. The next big meeting is targeted for June and will feature a talk from a noted nutritionist.

However, the Women’s Forum also has smaller, more frequent meetings that bring together women doctors to network and socialize.

“It has been great over the last three or four years, people have become friends, had great networking and people have found jobs,” said Jhaveri.

While Jhaveri acknowledged IMANE’s openness to women, including as president, she said there is something nice and different about having a venue only for women doctors. She described the gatherings of the Women’s Forum as welcoming, warm and cozy.

“IMANE Women’s Forum is only for women and it kind of gives us a chance to talk or discuss things that are not really possible to talk about at IMANE meetings,” she said.

Women’s Forum meetings are also not restricted to IMANE members only, which she believes is a good entry point to the group for younger doctors getting their feet wet in the idea of being part of a large professional organization. “We cater more to the younger physicians who can’t be a president of a big organization,” she said. “I think the women’s forum is to their benefit.”

Even though Jhaveri is an IMANE member she admits that she has found more of a home with the Women’s Forum than she has with the group as a whole.

“If I had to pick and choose, I would rather go to a smaller group where I can get to know people she said.

Link to this Article.

Dedicated IMANE physicians take pride in serving locally, to offer free services at Health Expo

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:11:32 GMT

Dedicated IMANE physicians take pride in serving locally, to offer free services at Health Expo

Experts in various fields of medicine will be conducting free Health Screenings along with Dentists and Podiatrists at the upcoming Indian & South Asian Health Expo on April 27 at the Marriott Hotel in Newton, Mass.


Thiagarajan	Sheth

“We will also have specialists at the ‘Ask the Doctor’ segment at the Expo,” said Dr. Subha Thiagarajan, chair of community service at the Indian Medical Association of New England. “A healthy lifestyle, preventative care, routine screenings and physical exams can improve health and prevent major health related cost for individuals and families.”

Organized by IMANE and INDIA New England news, the day-long free Health Expo will bring the area’s major hospitals and health care providers together with the Asian Indian and South Asian communities in New England.

“IMANE team has worked very hard to put together a day dedicated to health screenings at the Expo. We will have blood sugar checks, blood pressure measurements led by doctors from IMANE executive committee,” said IMANE President Dr. Manju Sheth. “Patients will be given general advice related to their health and will need to follow up with their own physicians.”

Dental screenings will be led by Dr. Anita Gohel from Boston University Medical School from noon to 2:00 pm. Dr. Deepa Jhaveri, podiatrist, will be available for advice related to foot problems from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. A number of pediatricians led by Dr. Meera Subramaniam and Dr. Manorama Mathur will also be available during the day. Dr Sucheta Doshi will provide information related to TB screenings. An eye exam will be provided by Dr. Rahul Modi and there will also be a bone marrow as well.

“While preventative care was targeted for the underserved, we are aware of the cost of neglecting routine screening in our ‘healthy adult’ population who are limited by time, work and social obligations,” said Thiagarajan. “We at IMANE have been inspired by our physicians who run Free Clinics and would like to offer routine screenings to all of our population in events like these.”

Dr. Thiagarajan said that while traditional Indian practices have been the foundation of Indian diet and habits, Western medicine has offered cures to serious illnesses.

“We are, however, at a juncture where our children and some of us are changing our habits and are losing the benefits or Eastern medicine and depending solely on Western medicine. Hence we are offering the best of both worlds by incorporating health screening, advice, and lectures in both traditional and western medicine at the Expo,” said Dr. Thiagarajan. “We are also incorporating the concept of Mind Body Medicine, which has been neglected with rise in depression and stress affecting physical health and loss of function in young adults and working class in our community. We are looking forward to serving you all.”

The Health Expo is sponsored by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and supported by the following organizations: American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence, Association of Pakistani Physicians of New England, Ekal Vidyalay, Gujrati Association of New England, the India Association of Greater Boston, the India Association of New Hampshire, the India Society of Worcester, the Indian American Forum for Political Education, Indian Americans of Lexington, Learnquest Academy, New England Hindi Manch, NetSap Boston, Saheli Boston, the United India Association and Vision Aid.

Health Tips of the Week

Here are some health tips from readers of the Health Expo event page on Facebook. Neither IMANE nor INE are responsible for these tips. Please consult your doctor.

Submitted by Dolly Takhtiani:
Sindhi Spinach Sabzi: One bunch of spinach, 1 cup water, 1 diced onion, 2 tomatoes, half cup chana dal, half tsp. ginger, 3-4 cloves garlic,1 tsp. cumin seeds, 1 cup water, Red/green chilies, salt to taste. Wash and chop the spinach. Heat 2 tbs. of oil and fry the onion till golden brown. Add spinach and all the ingredients. Pressure cook for 4-5 whistles. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Final touch: mess the spinach roughly and serve with hot rice.

Link to this Article.

IMANE, INE to hold free Health Expo for South Asian community

Thu, 10 Jan 2013 15:24:52 GMT

IMANE, INE to hold free Health Expo for South Asian community


Gupta, left and Sheth, right

The Indian Medical Association of New England and INDIA New England News will hold a Health Expo in April that will bring the area's major hospitals and health-care providers together with the Indian and South Asian community in New England to educate them about common diseases and their prevention.

The Health Expo, which will also include workshops and seminars on health-related issues led by foremost physicians, will be held on April 27 at Newton Marriot Hotel in Newton, Mass. Both IMANE and INDIA New England News will also outreach and collaborate with major local community organizations to create awareness about the Health Expo, which will be one of the first major collaborations with community groups on such a large scale.

"IMANE team is very excited to partner with INDIA New England News for this Health Expo," said Dr. Manju Sheth, president of IMANE. "Community service is a very important mission of IMANE as well as my primary focus as president of IMANE in 2013. We have already received commitments from some of New England's renowned doctors such as Dr. Sanjiv Chopra and Dr. Om Ganda to lead workshops and seminars at the Health Expo. Our experts will address some of the most important health issues that affect Indians and South Asian community like heart disease, diabetes and joint disorders. We will have something for everyone, and will also bring well-known speakers who will talk about Indian diet and even topics related to anti-aging and mind body medicine."

Founded in 1978, the Indian Medical Association of New England is a dynamic organization for medical professionals of Indian origin in the New England area. Based in Waltham, Mass., IMANE organizes and supports numerous professional and social activities for the benefit of its members and the communities they serve.

Dr. Sheth, who works at Beverly Hospital and specializes in internal medicine, is also involved with numerous professional organizations, charities and advocacy groups.

"I am very delighted about the upcoming Health Expo, which is a joint collaboration between IMANE and India New England News," said Dr. Apurv Gupta, chairman of the board of trustees of IMANE. "The Health Expo will provide informative seminars and workshops on health, free health screening and helpful health-related educational information. It's a first-of-a-kind event in this area, representing a bold undertaking by the two organizations. I hope that the community and our physicians will appreciate and support the event."

"This will be a free event for all attendees. Both IMANE and INDIA New England News are looking forward to outreaching and involving numerous community organizations and leaders, local hospitals and health care providers to make this expo a great success," said Martin Desmarais, editor-in-chief of INDIA New England News.

Source: IMANE, INE to hold free Health Expo for South Asian community

Harvard's Chopra to headline IMANE annual meeting: Nov 2012

Mon, 01 Oct 2012 21:00:51 GMT

Harvard's Chopra to headline IMANE annual meeting

By Martin Desmarais

Chopra
(Photo by Rose Lincoln/
Harvard University)

Harvard Medical School Faculty Dean for Continuing Education and Professor of Medicine Dr. Sanjiv Chopra will be the feature guest speaker at the Indian Medical Association of New England’s 34th annual meeting on Nov. 17 at the Taj Boston. The annual meeting, “Leadership in Medicine,” will have a focus on leadership. Chopra, as well as being a specialist in continuing education, is also an author and a noted speaker on the topic of leadership. He will give a talk titled, “Leadership by Example: The Ten Key Principles of All Great Leaders.”

In addition to hearing from Chopra, IMANE’s annual meeting will feature the passing of the guard from current president Dr. Sucheta Doshi to president-elect Dr. Manju Sheth, as well as the election of a new executive committee for 2013.

Doshi

Doshi is the medical director of occupational health and a women's health staff physician at the VA Boston Healthcare System. She is double board certified in family medicine and general preventive medicine/public health. A graduate of Trinity College Dublin School of Medicine she has an extensive background in global health, vaccination policy and infectious disease prevention. She is a long-standing member of the American Association of Physicians of India Origin and has been a member of the Indian Medical Association of New England since 2004. She served IMANE as president since the start of 2012. She was born, raised and currently resides in Brookline, Mass.

Sheth

Sheth works as a primary care physician at Beverly Hospital and is dedicatedly involved in many professional and community organizations. She is on the board of directors of the Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence. She is co-chair of the Indian Women Physicians Forum. She is on the executive committee of the Massachusetts chapter of the Indian American Forum for Political

Education. She is closely involved with women’s support group Saheli. She is also on the diversity committee at Beverly Hospital and involved with the Massachusetts Medical Society.

Founded in 1978, Indian Medical Association of New England is an organization for medical professionals of Indian origin in the New England area. IMANE organizes and supports numerous professional and social activities for the benefit of its members and the communities they serve.

Chopra wrote a book on the topic of leadership with the same title as the lecture he will give at the IMANE event: “Leadership by Example: The Ten Key Principles of All Great Leaders.” He has received wide spread praise for his book. Chopra told India New England that, in addition to his medical education efforts, his newest passion is teaching leadership to young people.

This new passion began two years ago when he started giving a talk at continuing medical education conferences on what he called “the 10 key principle of leadership.” The talk became very favorable and word got out about it and he was asked to do it more and more. Since the talk is not specific to the medical profession, he even started to get speaking engagements outside the CME arena. And everywhere he did the speech everyone always asked him, “Where is the book?” It happened so much that he finally decided to write the book, “Leadership by Example: The Ten Key Principles of all Great Leaders,” which was released in May.

Chopra said he believes that everyone can lead and he hopes that the principles he examines in his book can help others do so. A lifelong educator, Chopra is naturally working with other academics on a way to bring the principles in his leadership book into a class curriculum that can be offered to college students. He also wants to examine leadership through academic research. He says his dream is to create a leadership institute at Harvard.

A Harvard Medical School graduate, Chopra has remained at his alma mater for almost 30 years and. In addition to his work as dean and professor, he is also a senior consultant in hepatology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. He is editor-in-chief of the Hepatology Section of “UpToDate,” an electronic textbook that is subscribed to by an estimated 450,000 physicians worldwide. He serves as the course director of several CME course including seven annual “Current Clinical Issues in Primary Care” conferences, which each draw as many as 8,000 doctors. He has produced approximately 120 publications and published five books.

Prior to his book “Leadership by Example: The Ten Key Principles of all Great Leaders” he published “Dr. Chopra Says: Medical Facts and Myths Everyone Should Know,” co-authored with Dr. Alan Lotvin, in January 2011 and also released an updated paperback version, “Live Better, Live Longer. The New Studies That Reveal What’s Really Good and Bad for Your Health,” in March of this year.

He has received numerous awards, including an Excellence in Teaching Award from Harvard Medical School, the American Gastroenterological Association’s Distinguished Educator Award and a Master of the American College of Physicians distinction. He was also awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor earlier this year.

Source: Harvard's Chopra to headline IMANE annual meeting

Affordable Care Act panel examines contentious issue

Sun, 01 Jul 2012 21:05:28 GMT

Affordable Care Act panel examines contentious issue

By Martin Desmarais

The Indian Medical Association of New England and the Greater Boston chapter of the South Asian Bar Association joined together to put on a successful panel discussion on July 18 at Tufts University about recent health care legislation and its impact. The panel, "Affordable Care Act and the Supreme Court: The Future of Healthcare Reform," featured area experts and included a lively Q&A session. Over 100 people attended the event.

The discussion examined how the Supreme Court ruling to uphold the Affordable Care Act will dramatically impact health care, law and politics for years to come. Panelists, which included representative from both health care and law, discussed the far-reaching consequences of the decision both locally and nationally.

Dr. Sucheta Doshi, president of IMANE, said the goal of the event was to provide an opportunity for people to learn how the Indian legal and medical community is working together to promote awareness on a topic that impacts everyone.

This was the first time that IMANE and SABA worked together to provide an educational panel for members and the community at large. "We had this idea that both of our organizations should do some collaborative work together. • We realized there are so many ways in which our organizations can collaborate," said Manisha Bhatt, president of the Greater Boston chapter of SABA.

While the crowd at the panel was heavy on health-care professionals, Doshi and Bhatt agreed that both health-care professionals and legal professionals gained from the discussion.

"The one nice thing about this panel is we had two excellent attorneys • to explain the legal ramifications of this act," said Doshi. "This law impacts how we practices • as a physicians that was one of the big things that I took away from it undefined how this act works from a legal standpoint.

"I also took away from it what this act means for the future and how does it impact how we practice in the future," she added.

"For me it was really interesting to learn about the issues that medical practitioners deal with on a daily basis," said Bhatt. "And it was really interesting how a lot of the focus was on the access to health care and how the act was going impact that."

In covering some of the basic tenets of the Affordable Care Act, Doshi said it was very helpful to hear about aspects such as the elimination of annual and lifetime health-care coverage limits, the extension of children on parent's health care until the age of 26 and primary care physician boosts for Medicare payments. She felt it was very useful to move beyond the main headline that is dominant in the media about the whether the act is constitutional. "There hasn't been an explanation of everything else in the act," said Doshi.

Bhatt said she was surprise to hear about the cost saving aspects of the act and equally surprised that this does not get as much attention. "It appears that there is an effort to reduce the costs," she added. "I don't think there is a lot of focus in the media on what this will cost individuals."

Doshi said that the success of the panel clearly suggests that IMANE and SABA have more to gain from future collaboration. "We actually ran out of time. There were more questions than we had time to answer," she said. "It was a very interesting political dynamic between the two panelists on the health-care side and then the two attorneys."

"This was a way for us as lawyers to really be able to bridge the gap explaining what the act means and also have a discussion about how it impacts real people," said Bhatt. "In order for lawyers to truly be effective advocates, regardless of who you advocate for, you really need to take a step in their shoes. • I do my best work when I truly understand what my clients needs are."

"It really did bring together people from the medical side and the legal side, as well as the legal policy side," added Doshi. "This was a really good way to bring all the sides together."

Panelists include:

Jay Bhatt, DO, MPH, MPA: a senior fellow at NEHI, a Commonwealth Fund Minority Health Policy Fellow (Harvard Medical School/Harvard Kennedy School), as well as chair-elect of the American College of Physicians Council of Associates. Bhatt is a former president of American Medical Student Association and Zuckerman Fellow at the Kennedy School. He is interested in innovation in community health delivery and will provide the clinician's perspective on federal policy changes on the panel.

Renee Landers, Esq.: a professor of Health Law and Administrative Law at Suffolk University Law School. Most recently, Landers co-authored an article on the Affordable Care Act in the New England Journal of Medicine entitled: "Perspective, Supreme Court Review of the Health Care Reform Law." Landers has spoken in various media outlets with respect to the Affordable Care Act, most notably CNN and NECN. Landers is the first woman attorney of color to serve as president of the Boston Bar Association.

Amy Lischko, PhD: an associate professor of public health at Tufts University School of Medicine and fellow at the Pioneer Institute. Lischko is a former commissioner of the Massachusetts Division of Health Care Finance and Policy and former director of Health Policy under Governor Mitt Romney. He has published numerous journal articles on Massachusetts health-care reform and health policy more broadly.

Regina Rockefeller, Esq.: a partner at Nixon Peabody's Health Services Group. Rockefeller has been selected as a "Hero of the Field," a health care attorney whose clients consistently sing her praises, by the Massachusetts Medical Law Report's 4th Annual Rx for Excellence Awards. She has published numerous health law articles on topics of importance to health-care providers. She served as the only lawyer on the Massachusetts Medical Society Task Force on Hospital Conversions and Mergers. Rockefeller represents and advises hospitals, physicians, group medical practices, accountable care organizations, captive insurers, faculty medical practice plans, continuing care retirement communities and other health care providers. She also advises health-care providers on cost-effective compliance with HIPAA, HITECH and state data breach laws and defends health-care professionals before state licensing boards.

Source from Affordable Care Act panel examines contentious issue

South Asian P.U.P Comedy

Sat, 02 Jun 2012 21:09:51 GMT

South Asian P.U.P Comedy

June 2, 2012: Nick’s Comedy Stop

Headlined by Paul Varghese and Paul Singh
Written and Produced by Usha Govindarajulu

South Asian P.U.P Comedy, a charity fundraiser, was held at Nick’s Comedy stop in the heart of downtown Boston’s theatre district on June 2, 2012 with approximately 65 people in attendance. The show was hosted by two top-notch Indian standup comedians who have opened for Russell Peters: Paul Varghese and Paul Singh, along with Usha Govindarajulu, the skit writer. The two-hour long program consisted of stand-up pieces by Paul V and Paul S separately as well as comedic skits and interludes written by Usha. Each Paul has extensive experience in standup comedy.

The show first opened with introductions by Usha and Indian Medical Association of New England President, Dr. Sucheta Doshi, for the IMANE charitable fundriaser. a skit where Usha made fun of a medical school program based in India, immediately followed by a comic stand-up piece by Paul Singh. After this, there were two dynamic short skits about a college tuition woes and a skit about credit cards. Finally, the program concluded with a hilarious standup piece by Paul Varghese. The audience gave accolades for the production.

Naina Pathak said, “We enjoyed the skits and Paul Varghese’s standup piece. The venue was also nice and show was well set up.” Sucheta noted, “This was a wonderful opportunity for IMANE to support rising South Asian talent while raising money for our free health clinics and charity health and education fairs in the community which ensure free basic health care to all who need it."

The strength of the show was carried by the headliner, Paul Varghese and the opening act by Paul Singh as well as the interwoven skits to break up the tempo between the two standup pieces. Paul V has had extensive experience. He has performed at the HBO Comedy Festival, the Montreal and Toronto's Just For Laughs Festivals and the TBS Comedy Festival. His TV credits include Telemundo 2's Loco Comedy Jam, NBC's Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central's Live At Gotham and he has been seen on Showtime's Russell Peters Presents. Paul S does comedy as a side gig. He had won the “Desi Comedy Idol” in NY in 2009, and he is starring in a newly released Bollywood film, ‘9-Eleven’.

This was the sixth production by Usha. She got her start as a writer, but has been involved with theater work and dance productions on/off since college. She became more involved with theater after producing the play, Bend It Like Auntie, which she had written, in October 2005. In 2006, she directed and wrote skits for a theatrical event, NetSAP Comedy Mela, held at the Comedy Connection. She was an assistant producer for the highly successful play, Indian Ink in collaboration with Small World Big Sky Productions. She was producer for Rape, Regret, and Retribution in conjuction with SETU in 2008. Her last production was just last October of 2011, Two Guys and Some Girl: South Asian Comedy with Paul Varghese and Rajiv Satyal.

Source from South Asian P.U.P Comedy

Health and Wellness fair at the Westin Waltham Hotel

Sat, 02 Jun 2012 00:24:25 GMT

United India Association of New England (UIANE) jointly sponsored with Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) their first collaborative Health and Wellness fair at the Westin Waltham Hotel on Sunday 6/3/12 from 10-4pm. It was a full house attended by over 100 people. The event was very successful & well complimented event! The event drew members from different organizations including UIANE, IMANE, Golden Club and Aavkar organizations.

The event was organized by the UIANE and IMANE team and cochaired by Dr. Sapna Agarwal and Dr. Gayatri Vohra. The room was filled with people sitting around oval linen covered tables and all the Audio Visual equipment was provided by Mr. Girish Mehta from Indian Circle for Caring USA, Inc. (ICC). The mouth watering appetizers comprised of samosas were served with some warm masala tea which was great start to a rainy day outside.

The program began with an overview by the services provided by Indian Circle of Caring followed by brief presentations throughout the day from various speakers including Dr.Sadru Kabani, Dr.Ram Chuttani, Joan Hill, Gita Patel, Dr.Lata Mundkar, Jay Gupta, Dr. Pratibha Shah, Dr. Anubha Sacheti, and Dr. Salil Midha. The speakers were introduced by the cochairs Dr. Sapna Agarwal, Dr. Gayatri Vohra and the Vice President of UIANE, Dr. Seema Arora.

Dr. Sucheta Joshi, President of IMANE stated that IMANE is the oldest organization for medical professionals of Indian origin in the New England area and thanked all those who attended the event.

Dr. Neela Gandhi, President of UIANE welcomed everyone and thanked all the attendees and speakers for taking the time to support the event.She said this was the first time UIANE had organized a health fair and also the first event that they had collaborated with IMANE. She thanked the committee of IMANE and UIANE for the great team work to make the event such a success. She mentioned that the event was possible with the support of financial sponsorship from NOVO Nordisk, Aptalis Pharma, Velscope, Astra Zeneca, and Vitamin Shoppe.The other sponsors included Whole Foods who supplied samples of smoothies and salads, Indian Circle of Caring, Jay Yogacaps, Bhavna’s Wellness Group, Free Massages by Debra Baker, Sondarya Spa and Colgate.

There was a delicious Indian Vegetarian lunch catered by Bollywood Grill served during the lunch break.There were several raffle drawings with prizes that included a Sonicare Electric Toothbrush and Britesmile Tooth Whitening donated by Dr. Neela Gandhi, Chemical Peel and Microdermabrasion sponsored by Dr. Anil Kumar of Center of Lasers and Cosmetics, Gift Baskets by Vitamin Shoppe, Bhavna’s Wellness Group, and Whole Foods, Happy Healthy Teeth book donated by Dr. Anubha Sacheti, Vegetarian cookbook Blending Science with Spices donated by Gita Patel, and DVD on Yoga Rejuvenation by Jay Yogacaps. Goodie bags comprising of free toothbrush,toothpaste ,floss and patient education material were distributed at the event and was donated by Colgate.

The committee had raised some money at the end of the event and had pledged to donate to the research in the various medical specialties and will split the amount and donate to Boston Cardiac Foundation, Massachusetts Dental Society Foundation, American Association of Diabetes Educators(AADE) Education and Research Foundation and Jay Yogacaps,a non-profit dedicated to sharing free yoga with underserved populations like cancer survivors, seniors and people with mental illnesses.

UIANE is a non-profit organization that helps promote cultural events in the New England area, please visit their web-site for more information www.unitedindia.net.

Indus Business Journal:(Interview with IMANE President, May 2012):

Thu, 10 May 2012 20:52:51 GMT

Medical association head talks presidential election, health-care reform

The IndUS Business Journal spoke to Dr. Sucheta Doshi, who is currently the medical director of occupational health and a women's health staff physician at the VA Boston Healthcare System. She is double board certified in family medicine and general preventive medicine/public health. A graduate of Trinity College Dublin School of Medicine she has an extensive background in global health, vaccination policy and infectious disease prevention. She is a long-standing member of the American Association of Physicians of India Origin and has been a member of the Indian Medical Association of New England since 2004. She became president of IMANE in January 2012. She was born, raised and currently resides in Brookline, Mass.

Tell IndUS Business Journal readers about your role as president of the Indian Medical Association of New England and any plans for your tenure. What have you identified as one of the main challenges facing IMANE and how do you intend to address this as the association’s leader?

I am currently the youngest president of IMANE, as well as the first second-generation president, born and brought up in the United States. It is a tremendous honor and I hope to lead the organization forward this year by strengthening our alliances with other medical organizations, including the Massachusetts Medical Society and reinforcing IMANE’s presence in academia, research and collaborative ventures that form the future of medicine in the United States. We have already held our first big successful event of the year, our 2012 Spring Education meeting on “Health Care Quality Improvement,” which featured speakers such as Dr. Stancel Riley, executive director of the Board of Registration in Medicine, and Dr. Ronald Dunlap, vice president of MMS. The audience was very engaged throughout the program and there has been demand for more continuing medical education programs along a similar theme of health care quality and practice improvement in this era of health care reform. IMANE has always embraced community service to the underserved as part of its mission, as exemplified by the ongoing charity clinics in Waltham and Shrewsbury. I hope to build on this mission through the development of key taskforces to address important public health needs in the Indian Community; we have already formed one such taskforce with the Indian Circle of Caring and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to address awareness, prevention and treatment of tuberculosis within the immigrant Indian community. We will continue to also have many health and wellness fairs in the community, including our annual India Day health fair with the Indian Association of Greater Boston.

The challenge facing IMANE is that as an organization, it is at a crossroads. Founded in 1978, it is the oldest Indian medical organization in the United States, pre-dating the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin. We have many senior physician members and founders who faced different issues than those being faced by the younger generation of physicians today. While the senior physicians were new immigrants from India who faced visa hurdles and struggled to find residency positions in the United States but are now quite well established and choose to socialize more within the Indian community, many of the younger physicians today were raised in the United States, face a different challenge of building a practice in today’s health care reform environment, and are well integrated in the community with a diverse ethnic viewpoint. While building ties with the Indian community was very important for the immigrant generation, building ties with the greater medical community is important for the younger generation. I owe a great deal to the past presidents of IMANE, many of whom have been my mentors throughout my medical education. I think this mentoring relationship is key to bridging the generational divide and encouraging the younger generation to become more active within the organization. Currently all medical organizations face a challenge with dwindling membership and revenue. If IMANE is to survive into the future, academic and professional accomplishments need to be at the forefront to minimize disenchantment by the younger generation of physicians. The IMANE membership is composed of many talented physicians in academia, research, and health-care administration and policy arenas. This talent needs to be harnessed and networking between the generations should be encouraged. I hope to accomplish this through mentorship programs for young physicians and increasing programming this year that promotes IMANE's mission to contribute to the education of medical professionals to advance the profession through physician advocacy and representation within all medical arenas.

How important are professional groups such as IMANE and what impact can your group have in the medical sector, on its own or in conjunction with the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin?

Professional groups such as IMANE are incredibly important to help represent the profession in the greater community and advocate on their member's behalf. Physicians today have to deal with a growing number of changes to the way they practice medicine. However, those in practice do not always receive appropriate education or training on basic principles of quality improvement and risk management. With the advent of Accountable Care Organizations, changes in licensing requirements and ever increasing quality improvement measures to monitor patient safety, IMANE cannot refrain from participating in these changes and acting as a lead advocate on behalf of our members within the medical community. We can do this by providing essential education to our members as well as by strengthening our own alliance with Massachusetts Medical Society. With AAPI, we can also build alliances with organizations such as the American Medical Association. As an organization representing one of the largest groups of physicians in Massachusetts and the United States, IMANE can have a great impact educating Indian physicians on these changes and representing their voice through physician advocacy as health care policy is debated at the State House as well as on Capitol Hill, in conjunction with AAPI.

In the middle of a presidential election, health care and health-related issues always rise to prominence. In your view, what is the most important health-related issue that the presidential candidates should address? Do you feel that any of the candidates have been more effective, so far, at addressing this particular issue or health-related issues in general?

I definitely believe in universal health care and the right for everyone to have their basic health needs covered. I think population health and prevention is one of the most important health-related issues that needs to be addressed during this election. When you look at the leading health indicators in all industrialized countries, the United States falls well below other countries on almost all of them. We need to create a culture of wellness where basic prevention education and screening occurs for all people in this country, specifically diet and exercise for healthy weight maintenance and prevention of chronic disease, immunizations against prevalent vaccine preventable diseases, preventive cancer screenings and education regarding healthy living habits. We have many national taskforces that are established to look at these issues but not many are composed of providers who actually practice direct patient care on a daily basis – this is the one place where I feel the candidates have failed. While President Obama's initiatives, especially the Affordable Care Act, do take population health into consideration and his policies have included public health programs more than others in the past, the benefits of public health and prevention in its entirety should be considered, not just the services that are “proven” by health policy expert opinion versus that of those on the front-lines delivering the care. This is why the recent guideline changes in cervical cancer and breast cancer screening which would limit the screening depending on age are so controversial, for example. We need to look at what can create an overall “healthier population” first. If everyone is able to access a doctor but all preventive needs are not going to be covered or paid for depending on someone's insurance, gender, ethnicity or age, then we're missing the boat on equitable health care delivery. We treat the individual rather than the population at present in the United States. A population health approach is literally the secret for transforming health care in the United States today.

What would you say if one of the presidential candidates asked you specifically what could be done to improve health-care in the United States?

There has been constant discussion during this election about the cost of health care. While we need to decrease costs and increase efficiency, unfortunately, the amount of documentation that a physician needs to complete for each individual patient is extraordinary. With universal health care both in Massachusetts and nationally, there will be an increase in the number of patients that is seen by any individual physician. With increasing paperwork, there is less time spent on each patient which drastically impacts quality of care. One major improvement would be to help reduce paperwork by streamlining documentation requirements for the everyday physician in practice to increase the amount of time that can be spent on direct patient care, thereby delivering quality health care to the most important person in this equation, the patient.

What fuels your passion for medicine and dedication to the field, both through professional efforts and with IMANE?

My passion has always been public health, specifically in developing countries; I went into medicine to be able to provide the best health care and humanitarian assistance to the underserved populations across the world. I am fortunate that I was able to accomplish this through my work with the Centers for Disease Control where as one of their disease detectives, I was able to work on the global polio eradication initiative in Uttar Pradesh in Northern India which was then the hotbed for all polio activity in India, a country that incidentally just celebrated one year of being polio free this January. Global health has always been my passion, specifically in the arena of infectious disease prevention and to have been able to participate in the movement to eradicate the next human disease after smallpox, especially one that impacted India so greatly, is what fuels my dedication for constant improvement in the field of medicine through research, teaching, patient care and administrative medicine. I saw that opportunity for organizational improvement with IMANE and the challenges it faces today. I feel that IMANE has a huge scope to provide quality improvement initiatives, through community outreach on important health topics affecting the Indian community such as tuberculosis and diabetes, through physician advocacy, mentorship for young physicians, and educational activities.

How would you respond if a child or teenager asked you why they should become a doctor when they grow up?

Being a doctor is one of the most rewarding professions that one can belong to; you have the flexibility to address the needs of the community through various sectors. You can find a cure through research for a deadly disease affecting millions, you can inspire a young medical student through teaching to become an accomplished healer, you can touch an individual’s heart through direct patient care, or you can impact populations by developing national or international health policy. The possibilities are endless but the personal satisfaction

Click here to the Medical association head talks presidential election, health-care reform

IMANE meets with Mass Medical Society

Tue, 08 May 2012 00:20:12 GMT

The Indian Medical Association of New England held a first-ever joint meeting with the Massachusetts Medical Society on May 7 in Waltham, Mass.

According to IMANE, the meeting and collaboration, which was the idea of association President Dr. Arun Chaudhary, was well attended.

The meeting started with a morning welcome speech by Chaudhary. This was followed by a mock cross examination with attorneys John Faggiano, Christy Hepburn and Anne Kerney.

After a breakfast, there was a talk on the changing times in the world of medicine by Lynda Young, president-elect of the Mass Medical Society.

Lunch, provided by Tamarind Bay, was accompanied by a talk by attorney James Bello of Morrison Mahoney Group, who emphasized the importance of accurate documentation.

The final speech was Dr. Stancel M. Riley, executive director of the Mass Medical Board, who talked about all the changes and new requirements for license renewal in Massachusetts. Especially noteworthy was his discussion of the appropriate use of opiods and end of life care requirement for licenses renewal.

Dr. Sapna Aggarwal, a member of the IMANE executive committee, said the meeting provided a great platform for learning about upcoming changes in the health care which physicians need to be aware of.

Dr. Manju Sheth, IMANE secretary, said that it was very satisfying to get so many compliments from some very happy physicians who attended the meeting. She said that the association will now seriously consider doing similar risk management lectures as a regular feature of the group’s education events.

YPS 2010 fundraiser: YPS 2010 fundraiser

Tue, 06 Jul 2010 21:06:50 GMT

Young Physician's Society - Pratham Gettogether

The Young Physician's Society of the Indian Medical Association of New England is making great strides in following in the footsteps of their mentor senior physicians. As the oldest Indian Medical Association in the country, founded in 1978, IMANE has a strong history of charitable work including free clinics, fundraisers and support for charitable organizations. The younger generation is to be commended for their recent very successful fundraiser event held to support Pratham, one of the largest non profit organizations in India, dedicated to the education of underprivileged children between three and fourteen years old.

On Thursday May 20th, YPS-IMANE, Pratham members and their guests enjoyed an evening of cocktails, mingling, a fine dinner and entertainment at the Zagat best rated restaurant Tamarind Bay in Brookline. The event was organized by Sameer Kapasi, the YPS chair and Sucheta Doshi, secretary of IMANE. They worked closely with Pratham board members Aditi Sahani and Vikas Sekhri to ensure the event went smoothly. All enjoyed the great entertainment act featuring Brownstar Revolution.

The restaurant was packed full with a young, well dressed, vibrating crowd as well as members of IMANE. The current president of IMANE Dr. Geeta Trivedi was joined by past presidents Drs. Nasir Khan, Manorama Mathur and Chander Kapasi and members of the executive committee to support the event. They all congratulated the young physicians for holding this fundraiser for a noble cause in spite of their busy schedules and family responsibilities. Dr. Geeta Trivedi also announced a special deal on IMANE membership.

Sameer Kapasi, YPS chair, is also on the IT Committee of AAPI and patron member of AAPI Charitable Foundation. Sucheta Doshi is on the Preventive Health Committee of AAPI. They combined their social and professional network for this great cause of raising money for the needy. They also successfully campaigned for making new members for IMANE and AAPI. Kudos to all of them!

Source from YPS 2010 fundraiser: YPS 2010 fundraiser

ISW, IMANE join forces to offer free health services

Fri, 12 Oct 2007 16:34:59 GMT

Weekly facility reaches out to underserved in community

SHREWSBURY, Mass. undefined Inside the India Center in Shrewsbury, Mass., on Oct. 12, two Sunday school classrooms looked like doctor’s offices. The glass windows on the doors were covered, an examination table was unfolded, and wooden tongue depressors were on top of a desk normally used by teachers.

The Indian Medical Association of New England and the India Society of Worcester have teamed up to open the Free Stop Health Facility at the society’s India Center. The facility opened for the first time on Oct. 12, and it will be open every Wednesday night from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. The facility will provide medical help to the uninsured and the underserved of the community, and it is open to everyone, Indians and non-Indians alike. Patients will not be charged for a doctor’s services. According to Dr. Sahdev Passey, the past president of IMANE and the medical director of the health facility, Free Stop Health Facility is meant to help people who cannot pay for the “skyrocketing” costs of health care. He said they will help those who need non-emergency medical attention. “It is something to give back to the community,” he said. Passey, who was also the president of the India Society of Worcester from 1990 to 1994, said IMANE began planning this community service project in 2003. This year, the society offered their India Center for the health facility. “These doctors are part of our community,” said Meera Gupta, the ISW president said. “They are giving their valuable time for the community.” Along with physicians like Passey, who is a pediatrician from a private practice in Worcester, doctors who specialize in other medical areas like hypertension, diabetes, and obstetrics and gynecology will also be available. Passey, who will be there every Wednesday, said his group will advertise which specialist will be at the facility beforehand. Passey said that he plans to have about three doctors at the health facility every week.

According to IMANE, the health facility will also provide information on health issues and a person’s diet. However, Dr. Purnima Sangal, who is the president of the association and a gynecologist at the Lowell General Hospital and the Saints Memorial Medical Center in Lowell, Mass., said that no narcotics will be given out at the health facility. She said that she does not want people coming to their facility who have no ailments and simply want a refill of their prescription. Gupta said volunteers will work at the health facility to assist doctors. She said that all volunteers will sign forms to keep a patient's medical records private. One of those volunteers on opening night was Ragini Seth, the vice president of ISW, who said she plans on being there to help every Wednesday night. Seth said that she thought the health facility was a noble operation. “Whenever you can volunteer, you do,” she said. Although this health facility is open to everyone, Passey said that he felt a facility for Indians to go to for their health needs was not available in the community, and was needed. “This piece was missing,” he said. “Hopefully, we will fulfill some pieces of it.” However, Passey said that in the two weeks since the health facility has been open, no one has come in yet. He said that he will give it two to three more months to see if anyone comes in, but he is optimistic that people will start coming in soon.

The Indian Medical Association of New England was founded in 1978 and has about 350 members. It is headquartered in Waltham, Mass. ISW was founded in 1963, and has about 380 members. The society’s India Center was built a year ago. Free Stop Health Facility will be open every Wednesday from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at India Center, 152 West Main St., Shrewsbury, Mass.

IMANE plans charity gala

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 16:43:25 GMT

IMANE Fund-Raiser to help local groups AASRA, ISW, improve Hope clinic in MASS.

Savla WALTHAM, Mass.- The Indian Medical Association of New England is stepping up its charitable activities with a charity gala on July 16 at the Carling-Sorenson Center for the Arts in Babson College.

The event, which will include a dinner and variety entertainment, is raising funds to support an IMANE-run clinic, the New Hope Clinic in Waltham, Mass. In addition, it will support partnering associations such as the Asian American Support and Resource Agency and the India Society of Worcester. Individual tickets are available for $75, a gold sponsorship for $250, and platinum and diamond sponsorships for $500 and $1,000 respectively.

"IMANE has been giving to society in a number of ways, but this is the first time we are trying a charitable event on such a large scale," said Dr. Lalit Savla, president of IMANE. The beneficiaries of the event were decided upon by a selection process, and AASRA president Anu Bandopadhyay presented her organization's mission before IMANE members. "Domestic violence and physical abuse happens here, and not only with married women coming here. It seemed like an important issue to support," said Savla, of IMANE's decision. Though there is no specific attendance target, Savla said they would like to get as many people in as possible. The venue can seat around 400 people. AASRA is helping IMANE out in organizing the event. "We are glad to provide any kind of assistance to IMANE, as we have experience in event management," said Bandopadhyay.

Local artists will provide the cultural entertainment at the event. Singer Tapas Ghosh will perform at the event, along with classical dances by youth and rap performances by high school boys. IMANE is trying to raise funds for three of its goals - to improve the physical structure of the Hope Clinic that it operates out of a church in Waltham, to establish a clinic in the AASRA premises and to establish a permanent health clinic under the auspices of ISW. "We're trying to get our members to donate their time and services to these charitable institutions," said Dr. Purnima Sangal, president-elect of IMANE. Some of the more specific goals are to better the New Hope Clinic in Waltham, by setting up new equipment and furniture.

"We basically want to provide to the community whatever we can, and have been helping out in medical camps and the like," Sangal said. "Now we want to take it to the next level." "We're more than happy, and it's a bigger win for our clients," said Bandopadhyay, who is helping IMANE with organizing and publicizing the event. AASRA will use the funds generated, for client services and for education and awareness about issues faced by South Asian women. The preliminary estimate for improvements to the Hope Clinic is around $50,000 and Savla said the gala is just the beginning. "We have to sustain the fund-raising, and we will plan something every year," he said. Ultimately, IMANE plans to expand its services to India as well. IMANE has around 250 members and was established in 1978.

IMANE 2006 Charity Gala

Tue, 05 Sep 2006 16:30:52 GMT

IMANE 2006 Charity Gala held on Mother’s Day was the first of its kind to be held in the New England region. Organized by Dr.Purnima Sangal, MD, FACOG, and President of IMANE, this fundraiser was created to support the different service initiatives. IMANE has entered into several alliances and has launched new social service projects. They have expanded their efforts through pro-bono work to meet the medical needs of the under-served, and uninsured patients at their free Health Stops in Waltham, Shrewsbury and Lowell (to be launched this summer).

On the morning of the event, Dr. Sangal invited and met with all the babies (some of them now children and adults) that she has delivered over her years of practice as an Obstetrician/ Gynecologist. It was delightful to watch the joy on her face as she met with all the ones she helped bring to the world.

The day was billed as a fun-mela and lived upto that expectation with delightful cultural events that featured Bhangara and Bharatanatyam performances. There were more than 30 booths by Law offices of Miller, Patel and Donabed, LLP.; Bombay Club; American Home Builders; India Center; Western Union; New York Life; medPolnte Pharmaceuticals; Leader Bank; Quest Diagnostics; Pfizer; Citizens Bank; First Financial Resources, and many others. Even though it was raining, there were hundreds of visitors getting their health and dental checkups at the free onsite health stop.

Three seminars on Retirement and Estate Planning, Global HIV and Asset Protection were very informative. Vikram Udeshi of New York Life focused on 412(i) plans which he said can be used to defer income up to $175K per year. Dr. David Sidebottom talked about the Global HIV epidemic. There are 4.58 million people infected. He stressed on the long term demographic impact, macro economic impact, and the Westoxification – Sexual Liberalization in emerging countries. Rao Garuda of First Financial Resources and Member of The Million Dollar ‘Top of The Table’ group, discussed the benefits of Separate Entity of Ownership, Umbrella Liability, Asset Protecting Trusts, Debt Shield for Homes, Variable Annuities with Living Benefit Guarantees, Multi-Generational IRAs and a host of other very important topics.

The grand finale was the much awaited ‘Rockstars’ concert featuring Salman Khan, John Abraham. Shahid Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor, Esha Doel and Mallika Sherawat. They delighted the audience by dancing to many popular numbers.

All in all a great event that supported a good cause.

IMANE President Makes News Waves in Massachusetts

Sun, 14 May 2006 16:32:23 GMT

MMS Member Throws Mother's Day Reunion for 230

MMS member Purnima Sangal, M.D., an obstetrician and gynecologist and owner of A Woman's Place in Chelmsford, has delivered more than 8,000 babies all over the world. On Mother's Day, she celebrated with dozens of them.More than 230 parents and children affiliated with Dr. Sangal attended the physician's â€œMeet the Childrenâ€ event at the Tsongas Arena on May 14. The reunion featured talks from Dr. Sangal and Kenneth R. Peelle, M.D., newly elected president of the MMS. Activities included a children's health products exhibit, a reading program, entertainment, and finger-printing of the kids.At the event, Dr. Sangal read her favorite quote to her guests.
"Children are the focus of our lives," she said. "They are the apple of our eyes and the future of our universe. Let's love them, nurture them and guide them."

Read the complete Lowell Sun article.

IMANE Brings Bollywood ROCKSTARS To BOSTON

Sun, 14 May 2006 16:24:36 GMT

When the famed Bollywood ‘ROCKSTARS’ ascend the stage at Paul Tsongas Arena on May 14th 2006, to the delight of New England residents, IMANE’s President, Purnima Sangal will be moving closer to her goal of charity work, the second item in her agenda of IMANE’s various activities. As she herself put it very clearly “ When I took over as President of IMANE, I defined my agenda in three distinct areas – Education, Charity, Alliances and advocacy". In her address to the Board of IMANE, she reiterated that charitable projects are the soul of IMANE. "Free Health Stops in Waltham & Shrewsbury will continue to operate and serve the uninsured patients in need. At least one more new Free Health Stop will start operating soon in Lowell .

Our participation at health fairs in Providence , Worcester , Boston and Lowell will remain strong. We will clinch any new opportunity for a Health Stop or a Health Fair. If needed, we will also display our charitable zeal by take a leading role in helping disasters such as Tsunami, Hurricane & Earthquake” The ROCKSTARS concert idea came into being when IMANE was on the look out for a charity event that would, in Dr Sangal words literally ‘rock’ the entire New England community and involve them in every possible way.” We wanted to generate some‘excitement” while making it a charity gala” she said. Dr Neelam Sehag, Chair of the Board of Trustees of IMANE agrees, “It is the first time we are bringing an event of this kind and we hope that it will give IMANE an opportunity to raise enough money through this to be able to do some solid charitable work here as well as in India . As of now the response has been tremendous we ask the community to support this event by coming out on large numbers for the event”

So what is the excitement all about?

In a glittering night of song and dance see your favorite stars in action at ROCK STARS - LIVE IN CONCERT brought to you by IMANE (INDIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION OF NEW ENGLAND)in association with AapKaManoranjan.com. The event will be held on Sunday May 14th.(Mother's Day) at 6PM at Paul Tsongas Arena, Lowell MA. The performers include Salman Khan, John Abraham, Shahid Kapoor, Zayed Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Esha Deol, Mallika Sherawat and lots of Bollywood, Musicians, Singers and dancers, a total group of over 70 people

ALL PROFITS GENERATED THROUGH THIS AND OTHER EVENTS ON THIS DAY, 100% OF IT WILL BE USED TO PROVIDE FREE SERVICES TO MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY

Highlights include:

Free Mela will feature over 30 vendors and Cultural Glimpse of India. Reserve a booth now $500 for the full day! They are going fast!

Free Health screenings onsite by doctors-- BP, BMI, Cholestrol, Vision, etc.

2 Lucky Drawings at Mela @

12 NOON & 3 PM for Grand Prizes. WIN a free ticket to "ROCKSTARS" show. Free Drawing entry cards available at ticket outlets. Must bring to Mela for lucky drawings!

Opportunity for Sponsors, Ads, Booths. Contact: Dr. Sangal @978-970-1000 or Anu @978-590-1780

-- Event information on www.imanemd.org and www.aapkamanoranjan.com

-- Show tickets and bus service details at www.aapkamanoranjan.com

In 2004, IMANE gained new members, helped needy

Sat, 20 Nov 2004 15:50:26 GMT

Group releases first-ever directory of South Asian doctors in New England

Kapasi DEDHAM, Mass. - Under Dr. Onaly Kapasi's hand, the Indian Medical Association of New England had one of its most productive years in recent times. The group celebrated this success at its 26th annual meeting, held on Nov. 20 in Dedham. At the event, Kapasi capped off his year at the association's helm and welcomed the group's new president, Dr. Lalit Savla. Before Kapasi faded from the spotlight though, he took the time to kick off the evening and detail the group's accomplishments.

The association, which was founded in 1978 to support medical professionals of Indian origin in the region, added close to 100 new members in the last year. It also gained 10 new life members, upping its total to about 109 life members. Kapasi was excited to report that the association had followed through with his stated focus on medical education by holding several additional meetings last year that featured continuing medical education programs for credit. These meetings - held in the spring and summer - had good attendance and were able to pay for themselves, according to Kapasi. In the last year, the association launched its medical journal club, the first such endeavor for the group. The association also published a medical report in the form of an osteoporosis study on Indian-Americans. The association carried on the success of its charitable projects in 2004.

The group held two health fairs - one in Boston and one in Rhode Island. The group continued its work with the Waltham Area Free Health Center, which aids people who have inadequate or no insurance. Association members have volunteered time, services and money to keep the center running. In the past year, the group has established a medical student rotation at the Waltham clinic. Through this program, a first for the association, medical students from Tufts University spend time working at the clinic as part of their education. Having medical students working at the clinic is a tremendous help and supports the future of the center, Kapasi said. Wrapping up a year of firsts, the group has also published its first-ever directory of South Asian doctors in New England.

The directory has more than 500 names and contact information. Kapasi said the publication of the directory ends a long journey that began in the late 1970s when the group first got off the ground. He said there has always been talk of a publishing a directory, and he is satisfied to have finally been part of the group that brought it to fruition.

Kapasi, an orthopedic surgeon at the Merrimac Valley Medical Center in Haverhill, credited much of the association's recent success to the executive committee. "I had a great team spirit all around me," he said. "The executive committee was exemplary in all its facets. "I cannot and will not say that all I have done was me. It was not. It was a team," he added. The group's 2004 executive committee consisted of: Kapasi, president; Sahdev Passey, past president; Lalit Savla, president elect; Apurv Gupta, secretary; Manorama Mathur, treasurer; Manorma Sharma, Purnima Sangal, Birendra Sinha, Nandita Kapoor, members at large; and Deepa Jhaveri, young physicians representative. Kapasi told the physicians gathered at the annual meeting that he hopes the group can put aside some of its inconsistency from the past and continue forward on a cemented course for the future. New president Lalit Savla accepted Kapasi's challenge and acknowledged he had a big act to follow. "I cannot fit into the shoes Dr. Kapasi has," Savla said. "He will always be part of IMANE to help us and guide us when we need him." Savla set as his top priority the "happiness and well being" of the association's members. In this regard, his goals are to ensure members' grievances are heard, add more members and bring more enthusiasm. For Savla, one sure way to bring enthusiasm is to recruit younger members. "We have a bit of the empty-nest syndrome. The young doctors have left; we want them back," he said. He also emphasized the need for a cohesive group. "We need to leave our regional differences behind and work together," he said. "I would like to bring more unity and keep everyone happy and more productive." Savla will establish a new committee to specifically focus on the ideas of members and address what they think the association should do. As another priority for his tenure as president, Savla aims to improve the financial unity of the group.

"We may have lofty ideas, but we can't deliver them," he said. The group needs to organize more fund-raising to support projects and initiatives, he added. Savla is hoping to start a fund-raising effort through which all members of the group donate $100. He pledged that his $100 would be the first. Savla suggested the group learn from the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin's recent success in the political arena and strive to become a more politically active group. "AAPI has been tremendous in political organization and I would like IMANE to do the same," he said. "I would like to see IMANE's name spoken in the statehouse." Lastly, Savla praised the close proximity in which the association's board of trustees worked with the executive committee in recent years and promised to continue the trend. "We want them to work with us more and more," he said. "If you work together, I believe we can bring IMANE to a higher height." The annual meeting also featured guest speakers David Cohen, mayor of Newton, and Dr. Jagan Ailinani, president of AAPI.

Quake relief pace a trickle

Sat, 16 Oct 2004 16:47:35 GMT

By Meera Rajagopalan

Donor fatigue worries local organizations looking to help disaster survivors in Pakistan

Even as the toll in the deadly earthquake in Pakistan and India climbed steadily following a second wave of deaths, local organizations got their relief efforts off the ground. Organizations held several fund-raisers, but are finding it difficult to keep up the momentum, and relief seems to have slowed down to a trickle. “We’re already seeing donor fatigue,” said Justin Stone, president of the Association for the Development of Pakistan. “This (earthquake) will soon fade from the media’s eye, and we want to keep getting the word out there.” ADP has raised $175,800 for relief efforts so far, and was one of the first Pakistan-oriented organizations to start fund-raising efforts, 36 hours after the disaster.

ADP is now planning long-term redevelopment in the area, and is actively seeking organizations to support. “There is still a long way to go to redevelop the areas,” Stone said. Dr. Naheed Usmani, president of the Association of Pakistani Physicians of New England said, “The news about the earthquake seems to have disappeared already. There are still thousands of people dying there everyday.” Doctors from the national Association of Physicians of Pakistani descent of North America are already in Pakistan, and some members of APPNE will leave for Pakistan to help in relief efforts.

APPNE recently worked with the Indian Medical Association of New England for the first time, to hold a fund-raiser on Oct. 16 at the Massachusetts Medical Society. Dr. Purnima Sangal, president of IMANE, who initiated the effort, said, “There is no question of politics here. Human beings are suffering, and we should take care of them as physicians.” Around 200 people attended the event, which raised around $65,000. IMANE also worked with the India Association of Greater Boston and Saheli, to organize a fund-raiser at the Bombay Club restaurant in Cambridge, Mass. About 50 people attended the event, and the organizations are yet to decide on a beneficiary. The Pakistani American Association of New England, based in Providence, R.I. organized a fund-raising drive in association with the Islamic Center of Providence on Oct. 15, which raised around $4,000. Around 150 people attended the drive. PAANE is planning a charity concert after the Eid festival.

Realizing that many of the problems in relief efforts are due to lack of helicopters and means to reach the affected, ADP and the Organization of Pakistani Entrepreneurs of North America (OPEN) are independently mobilizing campaigns to urge local representatives to lobby for supply of additional helicopters to the region for relief efforts. To donate through APPNE, please visit http://www.appne.org/. To donate to the IAGB- Saheli initiative, visit http://www.iagb.org/. To donate through ADP, please visit http://www.developpakistan.org/. For donating to the president’s fund, visit the Pakistan’s embassy Web site at http://www.embassyofpakistan.org/.

Indian Medical Association Establishes Tsunami Relief Fund

Sun, 05 Sep 2004 00:22:37 GMT

Devastated by the news of the tsunami that hit Asia on December 26, 2004, the Indian Medical Association of New England (IMANE) launched an effort to support all those affected by this terrible disaster.

Recognizing that financial support would be crucial in the recovery process, the members of the IMANE Executive Committee established an IMANE Tsunami Relief Fund. IMANE teamed with its national counterpart, the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPIO), to determine that the proceeds from this fund will be donated to a nongovernmental organization assisting the affected areas.

Founded in 1978, IMANE is an active organization for medical professionals of Indian origin in the New England area. In addition to supporting and promoting the activities of its members and community, the organization seeks to advance the profession of medicine, support medical education, and provide a forum for social and professional interaction for physicians of Indian origin.