The flooding in Kerala State, India in 2018 was a major disaster by any measure. Over one million people were displaced from their homes and there are 400 estimated fatalities. The economic loss to the state has been projected to exceed USD 3 Billion. Thousands of people have been left homeless or with significant loss of property. Many are still struggling even for bare necessities including clean drinking water, food and basic utensils. One shining beacon in this disaster is the momentous public response. Thousands of people all over the state are volunteering time, effort, resources and funds to help the affected. The government has also risen to the occasion. The effective and timely efforts in disaster response have evoked world-wide attention and praise. Despite these positive developments, there have also been concerns regarding the disaster preparedness of Kerala at multiple levels. CAGH is spearheading a collaborative effort to develop an informatics platform, named ReacHelp, to assist in the long-term disaster recovery efforts.
CAGH has conceptualized this platform and has brought in other collaborators. Key personnel include Dr Ajit N. Babu, Director, who is in charge of coordinating the overall project and Dr Chandana Unnithan, Fellow in Health Informatics. Through his existing relationship with CAGH, Prof. Dr. Engelbert Niehaus, from University of Koblenz-Landau, Germany is providing scientific inputs relating to mathematical modelling and machine learning. Our Industry/Technology Collaborator, Applied Cognition Systems Pvt. Ltd. (APCOGSYS), Bangalore, India has created the requisite technical architecture. Key personnel include Dr PS Ramkumar, CEO & Chief Technologist; and Dr. Sandeep Patil, Chief Engineer. Our academic/Knowledge Collaborators are Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies (AMCHSS), Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) Trivandrum, Kerala, India, through Principal Collaborator is Dr. Biju Soman, Professor and Associate Dean (Public Health Studies). Stark Communications Pvt Ltd, India is the media communications collaborator lead by principal collaborator – Mr Anil Musthafa, Director.
CAGH has conceptualized this platform and has brought in other collaborators. Key personnel include Dr Ajit N. Babu, Director, who is in charge of coordinating the overall project and Dr Chandana Unnithan, Fellow in Health Informatics. Through his existing relationship with CAGH, Prof. Dr. Engelbert Niehaus, from University of Koblenz-Landau, Germany is providing scientific inputs relating to mathematical modelling and machine learning. Our Industry/Technology Collaborator, Applied Cognition Systems Pvt. Ltd. (APCOGSYS), Bangalore, India has created the requisite technical architecture. Key personnel include Dr PS Ramkumar, CEO & Chief Technologist; and Dr. Sandeep Patil, Chief Engineer. Our academic/Knowledge Collaborators are Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies (AMCHSS), Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) Trivandrum, Kerala, India, through Principal Collaborator is Dr. Biju Soman, Professor and Associate Dean (Public Health Studies). Stark Communications Pvt Ltd, India is the media communications collaborator lead by principal collaborator – Mr Anil Musthafa, Director.
AT 6 Follow Up Initiative UN Expert Meeting in Bonn, Germany (July 30 - Aug 2, 2012)
Dr. Ajit Babu attended the expert meeting in Bonn as an invited delegate to present the key developments that have occurred in India in connection with the AT 6 initiative, and to help plan the way forward. Dr. Biju Soman who has been nominated to the steering committee representing India attended virtually via a network node in India. The meeting website contains links to youtube videos which will remain available to all. The address is:
http://www.uni-koblenz-landau.de/landau/fb7/un-campus-bonn
The meeting was extraordinarily lively and interesting. As eclectic group of researchers, scientists, administrators and users shared 3 productive days of brainstorming and discussion. Based on a joint request from WHO and UNOOSA, the group decided to pursue a collaborative approach to developing a database of health facilities around the world that are geo-tagged and categorized. An official report will be forthcoming. It is expected that the next meeting will be held in El Salvador.
http://www.uni-koblenz-landau.de/landau/fb7/un-campus-bonn
The meeting was extraordinarily lively and interesting. As eclectic group of researchers, scientists, administrators and users shared 3 productive days of brainstorming and discussion. Based on a joint request from WHO and UNOOSA, the group decided to pursue a collaborative approach to developing a database of health facilities around the world that are geo-tagged and categorized. An official report will be forthcoming. It is expected that the next meeting will be held in El Salvador.
Executive Committee meeting and brainstorming session - October 29, 2011
The end product of yet another whiteboard session!
A meeting of the the SAGH executive committee attended by Dr. Biju Soman, Mr. Peter Nolasco, Ms.Madhu Babu and Dr. Ajit N. Babu along with CAGH volunteers Kevin Padmadan (CEO Trailblazers HR) and Unni Krishan (CEO Pulse Entertainment - a premier event management group in Cochin) was held at the Wisdomania premises. Activities of CAGH were reviewed and plans for further development outlined. It was determined that there was an urgent need to increase community involvement in dealing with the problem of waste management. CAGH will be developing an initiative to build community awareness, develop partnerships, involve media and different strata of society in creating durable and sustainable efforts towards lasting solutions for improving the current situation, with initial activities targeting the greater Cochin area. An action research methodology will be followed, so as to support a greater chance of successfully identifying measures that can be usefully transferred to other settings and geographic locations.
PHAC/CSA/UN meeting in Montreal, Canada - June, 2011
The 2011 Canada Workshop on Space Technology for Public Health Actions in the Context of Climate Change Adaptation sponsored by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and the United Nations aims to foster cross-disciplinary initiatives in these areas and promote functional integration with all organizations with a mandate to promote population health around the world. This was the latest of a series of such activities co-organized by the UN Action Team 6 and held in various parts of the world over the past three years on the theme of space technology and health. This Montreal workshop was particularly important for the desire to engage the North-American public health community and articulate this important theme within key climate change initiatives at the provincial, national and international level.
As a member of United Nations Action Team 6 (AT 6), Dr. Babu participated in the invitation-only round table meet on July 21, in addition to the open scientific sessions. Important ideas for identifying the optimal way forward were discussed and debated. The final conclusions will be released in the near future as the official report from the meeting. In the picture taken at the post-workshop planning meeting, to the right of Dr. Babu are Dr. Pascal Michel from PHAC and Dr. Ralf Wagner along with Dr. Engelbert Niehaus, both from the University of Koblenz-Landau and German members of AT 6.
See the link for more details: http://www.medvet.umontreal.ca/grezosp/tele-epi2011.htm
As a member of United Nations Action Team 6 (AT 6), Dr. Babu participated in the invitation-only round table meet on July 21, in addition to the open scientific sessions. Important ideas for identifying the optimal way forward were discussed and debated. The final conclusions will be released in the near future as the official report from the meeting. In the picture taken at the post-workshop planning meeting, to the right of Dr. Babu are Dr. Pascal Michel from PHAC and Dr. Ralf Wagner along with Dr. Engelbert Niehaus, both from the University of Koblenz-Landau and German members of AT 6.
See the link for more details: http://www.medvet.umontreal.ca/grezosp/tele-epi2011.htm
Visit to the Virtual Reality Lab, University of Buffalo School of Engineering , New York - May, 2011
Dr. Ajit N. Babu visited the virtual reality lab at the University of Buffalo (UB), New York for a review meeting of their collaboration on community oriented health education. The Virtual reality (VR) lab is directed by Prof. T. Kesavadas and does cutting edge work in VR, with an emphasis on healthcare applications. Dr. Babu is also an adjunct Professor of Medicine at UB.
On the left of Dr. Babu are Anand and Pankaj, grad students on the project and on the right is Prof. Kesavadas.
Learn more about the UB VR lab here: http://www.vrlab.buffalo.edu/
On the left of Dr. Babu are Anand and Pankaj, grad students on the project and on the right is Prof. Kesavadas.
Learn more about the UB VR lab here: http://www.vrlab.buffalo.edu/
Teaching at AMCHSS, Sree Chitra Tirunal IMST, Trivandrum - January, 2011
Dr. Ajit N. Babu was at the Achutha Menon Center for Health Science Studies (AMCHSS), one of the premier public health institutes in the country, as visiting faculty for the Master's in Public Health (MPH) program, teaching a credit module on technology in public health. The MPH program attracts a range of students from all over India. Seen in the picture are also 3 visiting students from Germany.