Mr Kumaranayakan was a graduate of the first batch (1962) Faculty of Medicine Peradeniya and was a retired Consultant in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Princess Alexandra Hospital, Harlow, Essex UK sadly passed away peacefully at home in Hertfordshire. His cremation took place on 24 March 2020 at Parndon Crematorium, Harlow, Essex.

He had been an ardent supporter of PeMSAA-UK. We would like to offer our heartfelt Condolences to his wife Wiji, sons and their families

But all the pleasure that I find; Is to maintain a quiet mind.
My wealth is health and perfect ease; My conscience clear my choice defence;
I neither seek by bribes to please, Nor by deceit to breed offence.
Thus do I live, thus will I die; Would all did so as well as I!
By Sir Edward Dyer (1543-1607)

Dr Sivananthan graduated from the Peradeniya Medical Faculty in 1968 and worked as a Consultant Radiologist in Colchester, Essex, until his retirement. He passed away after a brief illness on 26 March 2020.

PeMSAA-UK would like to offer our sincere condolences to his wife Chandra, his daughter Anjana, son in law Hasita and his grandchildren Darshan and Haran.

An Internal Medicine Physician at Kaiser Permanente Pleasanton, California USA, sadly passed away on 16th April 2020 after ill health in California.

PeMSAA-UK would like to offer our deepest heartfelt condolences to her loving family and friends

He was one of the leaders in the history of Sri Lankan Urology in the formation of Sri Lanka Association of Urological Surgeons (SLAUS) in December 1999. Under his editorship, Sri Lanka Journal of Urology (SLJU) has opened a golden path to urological research and publication of Sri Lanka. His final rites were conducted on 14th March at Borella Cemetery.

PeMSAA-UK would like to offer our profound heartfelt condolences to his loving family and friends

"Bala" peacefully passed away on the 20th April 2020 in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire. He was an utterly devoted husband, father, grandfather & brother. Due to the current situation, a small private ceremony will be held on 5th May with a larger memorial and celebration when able.

Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Instead of flowers, please send donations via justgiving to "Ambaal Temple" a place close to his heart: https://ambaal.org/archanai-and-pooja/

PeMSAA-UK would like to offer our deepest sympathies to Bala's loving wife, family and friends

She was a retired Oral and Maxillary Surgeon - Associate Specialist at Northwick Park hospital and at Basildon Group of Hospitals.

Sadly passed away peacefully after a short illness on 29th March 2020.

PeMSAA-UK would like to offer our heartfelt condolences to her loving husband Dr Mandalanayagam Chellappah, her family and friends

Tilak De Silva MS, FRCOG passed away peacefully in the UK on the 15th of June 2020. He worked as a VOG in Kandy and Peradeniya Teaching Hospitals, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist in the UK, and finally as a Consultant in Accident & Emergency Medicine until his retirement.

He was a founding member of PeMSAA (Peradeniya) in 1992 and served as the Secretary of the inaugural PeMSAA Committee from 1992-1994.

He was a loving and devoted husband to Chandra and father to Punyanganie and Manya.

May he attain Nibbana

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Dr H S R Wijemanne on 12th October 2020. The
funeral services were held on 14th October 2020 in Kandy.

He was a Consultant Physician - General Medicine at General Hospital, Kandy, affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya.

PeMSAA-UK would like to offer our profound heartfelt condolences to his loving family and friends.

May he attain Nibbana

PeMSAA-UK is saddened to announce the passing away of the above who succumbed to Covid 19 on the 26th Jan 2021 at a hospital in London. He leaves behind his wife Sarojini retired Consultant Anaesthetist who herself was an alumnus of the faculty.

May he attain Moksha

Dr T Sivabalan graduated in 1971, and after working in many hospitals in Sri Lanka , he moved to London in 1983, where he specialised in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. He went back to Sri Lanka and after working there for a while, he moved to New Zealand and then to Australia. In Australia he undertook postgraduate training in General Practice.

He was working in general Practice in Melbourne, Auatralia, when he passed away after a period of illness on 05 November 2021.

May his soul rest in peace

Dr Sivaloganathan was a graduate of the first batch of Faculty of Medicine Peradeniya and was a retired psychiatrist of Sussex Partnership Trust, Sussex, UK. He sadly passed away peacefully at home on 7th Jan 2022 with his family around him.

He was an ardent supporter of PeMSAA-U.K. having served as Treasurer in the initial years.

Sincere condolences to his wife, Dr Saraswathy Sivaloganathan, an alumnus, and her family

Dr Kahandaliyanage joined the medical administrative service of the Ministry of Health, and steadily rose in the ranks to the highest post of Secretary Health. Thereafter he took up a post in the WHO in India, where his abilities were soon recognized, with several other assignments being offered to him. On his return back home, he was in great demand again in the private and public sector.

"He was courteous and charming, compassionate to the downtrodden, courageous during adversity, competent in administration, conciliatory during a crisis, careful in conversation - a charismatic persona".
May he attain the supreme bliss of Nibbana.

It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of our colleague, past president of the KSM, retired ENT surgeon Teaching Hospital Kandy, Dr. Bandusiri Edussuriya on the 29th of May 2023. Affectionately called Dr. Bandu he lived a life of service and compassion. He hailed from Kalutara and entered the Colombo Medical Faculty from Ananda College, Colombo. He passed out from the Colombo Medical College with the rare distinction of receiving the Garvin Gold Medal for Operative Surgery in 1959. He reported to Teaching Hospital Kandy after his foreign training in ENT in UK in 1972 and served till his retirement in 1989. This eminent healer is survived by stories of his legendary surgical skills and love for teaching. He pioneered cadaveric dura mater transplants to heal perforated ear drums in the early 1980’s. He was a mentor to many in the medical field. He campaigned actively for establishing a MS examination program in ENT in Sri Lanka which he was able to establish with the PGIM Sri Lanka in his tenure as President of the College of Otolaryngologists.

He worked tirelessly to establish the Hearing care center at the TH Kandy with the help of the rotary club of Kandy in which he became an active member. An avid history buff who authored several concise versions of major history chronicles such as the Mahawamsa and Culawamsa, he is best remembered for his sense humor, golden voice and love for tennis. In the 1970’s and 1980’s there was hardly a day he spent not teaching tennis or enjoying a game of tennis. A strict disciplinarian by nature he was keen to see everything done with precision. Many were the days he would invite colleagues for a sing song and the home still echoes with his constant whistling. He will be missed sorely by his son Kapila, daughter Nimalka, daughter in law Deepthi, Son in law Sivakumar and grandchildren Taveesh, Yohan and Aari

(04/04/1935 -18/01/2024)

I was shocked to hear of the passing of Prof. Raja Bandaranayake, an icon in the Medical spheres of Anatomy & Medical Education both in Sri Lanka and of International renown in Australia and New Zealand.

Following his term as Senior Lecturer in Anatomy and Medical Education at the Faculty of Medicine, Peradeniya, Ceylon, he emigrated to Australia, where he was appointed as a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of Surgeons and the President of the Australian and NZ Association of Medical Education and was awarded the Fred Katz Memorial Medal for his achievements in 1991. We were looking forward to seeing him in the UK this year, as his trips to Oberammergau had been cancelled due to COVID in 2020/2022. His email at Christmas mentioned that he was unable to type or write and would prefer to chat, which sadly was not to be. He was diagnosed with an aggressive form of Motor Neurone Disease a few months ago, to which he succumbed on the 18th of January.

I owe my interest in Anatomy and Clinical Medicine to his introduction and lectures - a teacher par excellence, and I am proud that I had the privilege to be taught be him, as a ‘Fresher’ in the first year of Medical School. He was then Senior Lecturer in Anatomy at the Peradeniya Medical Faculty alongside Prof. ‘Jacko’ Jayatilleke and Mrs Eugene (‘Timmy’) Wickramanayake, and more familiarly known as ‘Banda’! One could not have wished for a better teacher to initiate us into coping with the rigorous medical training in the ensuing 5 yrs. His anatomical dissections were meticulous and thorough, diagrams perfect, thus inspiring interest in a difficult field. The Mnemonics were many and learned with great humour! By integrating theory into clinical situations, Anatomy turned into an enjoyable subject, and helped to dismiss the anxieties at Examination Practicals & Vivas.

He was a gentle giant walking the corridors of the Medical School at Peradeniya, a superb educator and clinical anatomist, a compassionate counsellor, role model and friend. His many talents and interests included sports, travel, literature, and history, exemplified by the books he has written i.e. ‘The Integrated Medical Curriculum’ , ‘Betwixt Isles’ etc. He was a pioneer in mastering the Electron Microscope when it first arrived and was ever ready to take up anything innovative. It even extended to involving students in helping organise fundraisers along with his wife Chandrani & other Faculty members.

One of my first experiences of this was when he roped me in to design and paint the entrance decor to the Fundraising Stall at the “Esala Mela,” held during the Annual Perahera, a far cry from Anatomy, albeit for a worthy cause! He advocated that the ‘Art of Medicine’ should be integrated with the ‘Science of Medicine’ thereby applying theory to practice, thus improving diagnostics, clinical skills, communication, and patient care. (a much-needed outlook even for today!)

He was one of the pioneers in Medical Education in Sri Lanka, attached to the Medical Education Unit of the Medical Faculty. He was a member of the team which conducted teacher training programmes for medical teachers from the SE Asia region. After he emigrated to Australia, he was based at the School of Medical Education, University of New South Wales, Sydney. From this base, he acted as a Consultant in Medical Education to countries in the Asia Pacific region.

As a unique Medical Educator, he believed ‘Education is for Life’ and many are the students who have benefitted and are a lasting testimony to his efforts. He was a person who certainly influenced and encouraged me in continuing with my chosen career for which I shall be ever grateful. I am sure my sentiments will be shared by many in the words of the following poem:

“As We Look Back”
As we look back over time, we find ourselves wondering
Did we remember to thank you enough for all you have done for us?
For all the times you were by our sides to help and support us
To celebrate our successes, to understand our problems and accept our defeats?
Or, for teaching us by your example, the value of hard work, good judgement, courage, and integrity?
And for the simple things like laughter, smiles and times shared?
If we have forgotten to show our gratitude enough for all that you did, we are thanking you now
And we are hoping you knew all along how much it all meant to us

My heartfelt sympathies to his wife Chandrani, and children Rohan, Ruveni and Roshini and their families.
May his soul rest in peace.

Dr. Christine Wirasinha (UK)

Received a garbled message from a distressed caller. I hurried home and rang the caller.She informed me that ‘Wije was no more’. That was the morning of the 27th August 2024. I was shocked and saddened by the news of a friend I shared fun and laughter two days before at a friends 50th wedding anniversary.

Dr. Haththotuwa Chandrapala Wijewardene, affectionately called ‘Wije’ by his friends ,was born on 17th February 1945 in the township of Weligama in Southern Srilanka. His formative years were spent at Ananda College Colombo, the premier Buddhist school in the Island. He was successful in being admitted to the Faculty of Medicine at the then University of Ceylon in 1965, where I met him initially. 1965 marked a notable year in his life, as it was the beginning of his road to a successful career professionally and the foundation to a happy romance with Mallika that led to wedding bells ringing in 1972. He served in the Department of Health in Srilanka for a short time and took up a position in General Practice in Kurunegala where we became neighbours. His only daughter, Chiranthi, was born at Kurunegala in 1975.

His desire to proceed with postgraduate studies ,made him move to UK in 1976 when he underwent training for the membership in psychiatry and was appointed Consultant Psychiatrist at Manor Hospital, Epsom, Surrey where he served till retirement.

Wije was a devout Buddhist , a regular at events at London Buddhist Vihara where he made a significant contribution to the new building , which was unknown to others ,till Ven Seelawimala , mentioned at his funeral service. It was not only in London but he also helped temples in Srilanka specially donating a crystal on pinnacle of the stupa at Madanwela Temple in Hanguranketa. His helping hand extended to all activities of his old school Ananda , taking an active part in the past pupils association ,members of which became pall bearers at his funeral. As an alumnus of the Peradeniya Medical school , his contributions to the alma mater were invaluable.

An inaugural member of our travel group of 20 , we travelled together for 25 years and Wije was the visual recorder of all our journeys.He touched the hearts of all he came into contact with .His kindness and generosity was appreciated by all. I have never seen him lose his temper. We all miss him very dearly.

He is survived by his dear wife Mallika, daughter Chiranthi , son in law Lee Masterton and the loving grand children Ella and Harry. May his journey, in Samsara be a short one ,and attain that state of supreme bliss in Nibbana

Dr.Lionel Samarasinghe