Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH), established in 1968, is a government-run medical college cum hospital located in

Silchar Silchar is a city and the headquarters of the Cachar district of the state of Assam, India. It is located south east of Guwahati. It was founded by Captain Thomas Fisher in 1832 when he shifted the headquarters of Cachar to Janiganj in Silchar. ...

in southern

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur t ...

, one of the oldest medical college of North East India. It is the only referral hospital in the southern part of Assam, also referred to as the

Barak Valley The Barak Valley is located in the southern region of the Indian state of Assam. The region is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam - namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. Th ...

, and serves neighbouring states including Mizoram, North Tripura, West Manipur and South Meghalaya.

Inception and earlier years

Before Indian independence, people from Assam and other North Eastern states had to go to other states for medical education and advanced medical treatment. John Berry White, MRCS, a British surgeon of the East India Company, started health education and healthcare in Assam. He established the Berry White Medical School at Dibrugarh, Assam in 1898–99 with a donation of Rs. 50,000 — a large sum at the time. In course of time this medical school was upgraded and on 3 November 1947 the Assam Medical College, Dibrugarh was established and it stands as the first medical college in Assam. While the other states had several medical colleges, Assam remained with only one. The state government in 1959, headed by the Chief Minister of Assam, B. P. Chaliha, Finance Minister Fakaruddin Ali Ahmed, and Health Minister Rupram Brahma decided to have a second medical college in Assam. On 7 November 1959, the state government set up an expert committee to look into the matter and submit their report. The committee members visited parts of the state, held consultations with the public, and ultimately recommended Gauhati (now Guwahati) which is the gateway of Assam, as the most suitable location. The committee also recommended a third medical college in the Barak valley at Silchar, and a fourth at Tezpur on the north bank of Brahmaputra river. The Gauhati Medical College at Guwahati and the Silchar Medical College at Ghungoor, Silchar were set up. The Silchar Medical College was inaugurated at its permanent campus on 15 August 1968. The admission to the

MBBS Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

course was 50 students annually. Prof. Rudra Goswami took charge as the first principal of the Silchar Medical College on 1 August 1968. The professional courses started in the Boys’ Hostel No-II in a makeshift manner and the Civil Hospital, Silchar was taken over as its hospital in 1971. In 1977-78 the main hospital building complex was commissioned. In 1985 postgraduate courses were introduced in five clinical subjects: #General Medicine #General Surgery #Obstetrics & Gynaecology #Ophthalmology #Otorhinolaryngology The annual admission capacity in MBBS course was raised from 50 to 65 students in the same year. The Medical Council of India (MCI) recognized the MBBS degree in 1976. 2008 saw introduction of PG courses in four more subjects: Radiology, Pathology, Anaesthesiology and Orthopaedics. At the same time government of Assam decided to increase the undergraduate seats from 65 to 100.

SMC at a glance

Courses

Graduate education * Degree awarded: M.B.B.S. * Duration of the course: Five and a half years including one-year internship. Postgraduate education * Courses: Degree (

M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...

and M.S.) for three years; Diploma for two years. Other courses * Diploma Courses in Pharmacy * GNM Course in Nursing * Laboratory Technician Course * Radiography Training * B.Sc Nursing course

Departments

Anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...

Physiology Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemica ...

Biochemistry Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology and ...

Pharmacology Pharmacology is a branch of medicine, biology and pharmaceutical sciences concerned with drug or medication action, where a drug may be defined as any artificial, natural, or endogenous (from within the body) molecule which exerts a biochemica ...

Pathology Pathology is the study of the causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in t ...

Microbiology Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, p ...

Forensic Forensic science, also known as criminalistics, is the application of science to Criminal law, criminal and Civil law (legal system), civil laws, mainly—on the criminal side—during criminal investigation, as governed by the legal standard ...

and State Medicine *

Community Medicine Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

Medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practice ...

Surgery Surgery ''cheirourgikē'' (composed of χείρ, "hand", and ἔργον, "work"), via la, chirurgiae, meaning "hand work". is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a person to investigate or treat a pat ...

(which includes

Orthopedics Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...

) *

Pediatrics Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...

Obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

and

Gynaecology Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined area ...

Ophthalmology Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a medic ...

Otorhinolaryngology Otorhinolaryngology ( , abbreviated ORL and also known as otolaryngology, otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ORL–H&N or OHNS), or ear, nose, and throat (ENT)) is a surgical subspeciality within medicine that deals with the surgical a ...

University of Affiliation: *

Assam University Assam University is a collegiate central public university located at Silchar, Assam, India. It was founded in the year 1994 by the provisions of an act enacted by the Parliament of India. The Governor of Assam is the Chief Rector and the P ...

, Silchar
Srimanta Sankaradeva University of Health Sciences
from 2010

Postgraduate education

The method of selection is entrance tests conducted by All India and state level selection bodies. Duration of postgraduate course: Degree three years; Diploma two years. For postgraduate (Degree) studies a thesis is compulsory. Postgraduate Courses available are given below: *ENT *Medicine *Obstetrics & Gynaec. *Ophthalmology *Psychiatry *Surgery *Radio-diagnosis *Anaesthesiology *Pathology *Orthopaedics *Anatomy *Physiology *Bio-Chemistry *Microbiology *Pharmacology *Forensic & SM *Paediatrics *Dermatology

SMC Students' Union

The Silchar Medical College Students Union was formed, holding annual elections to an Executive Committee.

Photo gallery

File:View of SilcharMedicalCollegeOPD.jpg, View of SMCH OPD File: Administrative Building SilcharMedicalCollege.jpg, Administrative Building of SMCH File:LectureTheatreComplex SilcharMedicalCollege.jpg, Lecture Theatre Complex at Silchar Medical College

References

External links

Best hospital in Silchar
{{Authority control Affiliates of Srimanta Sankaradeva University of Health Sciences Teaching hospitals in India Medical colleges in Assam Hospitals established in 1968 Silchar 1968 establishments in Assam Colleges in Assam