Excerpts from a letter to the president of the Poladpur Medical Association, Poladpur, Raigad, Maharashtra:
I was impressed by the 80 per cent attendance for my talk on how to start and continue CPR or initial management of cardiac arrest in a rural area. Until now, I have attended more than 50 CMEs, but not a single one was arranged without sponsorship… It was really creditable on the part of doctors practising in remote rural areas, where they are the backbone of rural health care, because in today’s era, everything from tea to the toilet is sponsored. I noticed that everybody was taking a keen interest in the lecture…because their minds were not at all diverted as routinely happens in a sponsored conference due to stalls and other things.
Sir, I admire you and your members for the way they have adapted for learning and avoiding becoming slaves of sponsorship. I hope this message is conveyed to all presidents and officials who are putting their major energy into searching for sponsors for medical CMEs.
Yours sincerely,
HS Bawaskar, Mahad, Raigad, Maharashtra
Dr Bawaskar’s comment is welcome. Please read the Letter from Sewagram on page 130 for another example of an unsponsored meeting. — Editor.