It was 50 years ago that a head injuries unit was first set up at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.
On April 19, 1967, The Hindu had reported that to provide specialised treatment to victims of accidents, the head injuries unit came into being, and was stated to be the first of its kind in the country.
The unit had a qualified neurosurgeon round the clock, and a ward with 24 beds with an attached operation theatre and an X-ray department.
B. Ramamurthi, then head of the neurosurgery department, told mediapersons that an ideal head injury service is the best linked with other emergency and accident services in the hospital.
Union Minister of State for Health S. Chandraskehar, who inaugurated the head injuries unit in 1967, said that he hoped that many more such units would come up in the government general hospitals in the country.
Interestingly, the article in The Hindu quoted the doctors stressing on the use of crash helmets for motorcycle and scooter riders — an issue that continues to be extremely relevant even today.
A. Thiruvalluvan, present director of the Institute of Neurosurgery at the hospital, said the unit first started under the neurosurgery department.
Institute of Neurology
The Institute of Neurology was later formed which had both the departments of neurology and neurosurgery under it, and in 2015, the Institute of Neurosurgery was created.
"We see between 100 and 150 cases of trauma per day. Along with old cases, it comes to nearly 200 cases a day,” he said.
Prof. Thiruvalluvan said that nearly 165 post-graduates have been trained at the department over the last 50 years.
“On Monday, we will celebrate our Institution Day,” he added.
