Medical qualifications Sri Lanka In 2016 the
Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) and the
Government Medical Officers' Association (GMOA) have both publicly stated that they were opposed the provisional registration of medical graduates from SAITM to practice as doctors in Sri Lanka. But it was later over ruled by the court of appeal and it was informed that the graduates of SAITM can register with Sri Lanka Medical Council. Recently parents and students of the SAITM requested to postpone the final examinations as they have had no or minimal formal clinical training. In 2017 Russian Ambassador Alexander Karchava also spoke up for SAITM and revealed that Nizhni Novgorod State Medical Academy has continuously expressed satisfaction with the training of Sri Lankan students and honors the ties with SAITM. According to him over 54 Russian doctors and professors worked in SAITM on a shift basis ensuring that SAITM students gain quality medical education. However Nizny Novgorod medical academy denies having any connections or affiliations with SAITM. According to Irina Tatarinova, Director National Accreditation Agency Russia, SAITM is not accredited in Russia: "The National Accreditation Agency maintains the Database of accredited Higher Education Institutions in the Russian Federation. This Database does not contain any information about Sri Lankan Campus of Nizhny Novgorod State Medical Academy. This means that this joint program is not accredited in Russia."
United Kingdom In the
United Kingdom, the
General Medical Council has listed SAITM as an institution whose graduates from the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine are ineligible for licensure. Issuing a statement titled "Overseas medical qualifications not accepted by the GMC", it said that the body would not accept applications to sit the PLAB test or for registration from graduates of the medical schools mentioned in it including the SAITM.
Wasim Tajudeen murder case On 3 October 2016, the Criminal Investigation Department of Sri Lanka confiscated 26 human body parts from the institute's laboratory during a search operation carried out to locate the missing body parts of suspected murder victim
Wasim Tajudeen.
Staff Controversies Sameera Senaratne In early February 2017, two men travelling on a motor bike wearing full-face helmets opened fire at the car of SAITM's Director of Medical Education Sameera Senaratne who was at the wheel at the time of the incident, at
Malabe. He did not suffer any injuries despite the attackers allegedly shooting at him at close range. Subsequent inquiries raised suspicion that the shooting was staged by Senaratne and a politician known to him, to depict the anti-SAITM protests brewing in the country at the time in an unfavourable light. A later Police investigation pointed to the shooting could have been staged by Senaratne himself
Nandalal Gunaratne Nandalal Gunaratne is listed as a 'Consultant
Urologist' and 'Senior Lecturer in Surgery', and as the 'Head of Clinical Sciences at SAITM'.
Ananda Samarasekara Ananda Samarasekara is SAITM's Professor and Head of the Department of
Forensic Medicine. Samarasekara had an arrest warrant issued by the
CID in October 2017 on charges of concealing evidence and misplacement of body parts in the alleged murder of
Wasim Thajudeen. He surrendered to the Colombo Magistrates Court in October 2017 and has been granted bail ==References==