HISTORY OF DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACOLOGY

The Department of Pharmacology was started in Andhra Medical College in 1924 headed by Dr. Varghese, as the first professor, in the first floor of Rajah Panagal building. Admissions started with 32 Undergraduate seats, which were later enhanced to 150 seats in 1993, to 200 seats in 2012, and finally to 250 seats in 2020.

Post graduate training commenced in 1946 with one seat, under the able guidance of Professor Dr. V. Iswariah, and has been consistently continued under successive Professors and Heads of the Department till today, with all seats recognised by the Medical Council of India/National Medical Council. Post graduate seats were increased to two in the year 2003, to 4 seats in the year 2011, which were further enhanced to 10 seats in the year 2023.

With a glorious history spanning a century, it becomes inevitable to speak of the distinguished Pharmacologists that have helped the Department achieve the greatest standards, establishing its status as a centre for excellence for education as well as research of the highest quality in the field of Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

Dr. V. Iswariah was a Pharmacologist par excellence and served as the Professor and Head of the Department from 1933 to 1949. He was very insistent that Pharmacologists be involved in Therapeutics (Clinics). He was instrumental in introducing M.D. in Pharmacology and Therapeutics in Andhra University with two examiners in Pharmacology and two in Medicine with practicals and clinical examination. He was one of the authors of Textbook of Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapeutics by David JC, Ishwaraiah V and Guruswami MN.

Dr. A.V. Ramalingam was an eminent Pharmacologist who served as the Head of the Department for two tenures, 1954 to 1965 and then again from 1966 to 1969. After his first tenure, he was succeeded by Dr. M.Y. Ansari, who served as the Head of the Department as well as the Principal from 1965 to 1966.

The Department owes a lot of its current prestige to Dr. G. Nirmala, who, through her academic as well as administrative prowess, raised the bar very high for teaching and research in the field of Pharmacology. She was the longest serving Head of the Department for over 22 years, from 1970 to 1992. Meanwhile, she also headed the institution in her capacity as the Principal from 1986 to 1998. She also served as the Principal of Guntur Medical College.

For a few months in 1992, the department was headed by Dr. Akhtar Aziz, who went on to become the Principal of Osmania Medical College.

Dr. R. Murali Krishna was a notable Pharmacologist of his time who made significant contributions to the field of experimental pharmacology. He headed the Department from 1992 to 1999 and also authored the Book for Experimental Pharmacology.

The Department has had the privilege of being administered by 15 remarkable Heads of Department, many of whom were doyens of this discipline. This legacy is now being carried forward by our current Head of the Department, Dr. D. Syamala, under whose impeccable leadership, the Department is on its way to scale even greater heights.

Teaching and training undergraduate students (300 hrs) is done as per NMC and YSR university norms. As a part of academic curriculum, we conduct Seminars and Clinical case discussions for undergraduate students. We conduct Sobhanadri Achari & Seshavataram Nandyal Memorial Gold medal examination in Pharmacology and award Gold medal for UG merit students.

Teaching and training Post graduate students (3 years course) is done as per NMC and YSR university norms. Conducting activities or post graduate students such as seminars, journal clubs, case discussions, group discussions, formative assessments, pharmacovigilance postings and discussions on protocol writing as well as on dissertation works, is diligently undertaken. District Residency Programme (DRP) and Peripheral Postings are also scheduled for Post graduate students. Teaching B.Sc nursing and B.Sc paramedical students is also done as per YSR university norms.

The Department boasts of well-equipped laboratories with modern instruments for Computer Assistant Learning, clinical pharmacology as well as post graduate research. The Department has a museum of its own with drug samples, crude drugs, charts and photographs of the scientists. The Department has been conducting integrated teaching programs actively. An educational tour of a pharmaceutical company for the students is organised each year. The central animal house is under the control of the Department of Pharmacology and is located near the twin lecture gallery. There are 4 chambers for small animals, a large chamber for sheep and a pond for frogs.

The Pharmacovigilance wing was established in the year 2012 and our institute is now an Adverse Drug Reaction Monitoring Centre (AMC).

The Department has regularly organised workshops on Good Clinical Practices in the years 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021.The GCP workshop of 2018 was organised in collaboration with Abbott Academy and (Prof) Dr. M.U.R. Naidu, one of the most noted Pharmacologists of today.

The Department of Pharmacology at Andhra Medical College stands strong as one of the foundational pillars of modern medicine, contributing through both training and research to all medical specialities alike by instilling in all of its students the vital principles of evidence-based pharmacology and therapeutics; striving tirelessly to uphold its status as a centre of excellence.

SALIENT FEATURES OF THE DEPARTMENT

LIST OF SUCCESSIVE HODs

NAME OF HOD FROM TO
Dr. Vargheese 1924 1928
Dr. P.B.Deekshit 1928 1933
Dr. V. Iswariah 1933 1949
Dr. K. P. Sarathy 1950 1951
Dr. A. R. Govinda Rao 1951 1954
Dr. A.V. Ramalingam 1954 1965
Dr. Dr. M.Y. Ansari 1965 1966
Dr. A.V. Ramalingam 1966 1969
Dr. L.B. Gopala Krishna Murty 1969 1970
Dr. G. Nirmala 1970 1992
Dr. Akthar Aziz 1992 (Feb) 1992 (Aug)
Dr. R. Murali Krishna 1992 1999
Dr. B. Surya Prakasa Rao 1999 2009
Dr. J. Sudha 2009 2013
Dr. Y. Subramanyam 2013 2014
Dr. J. Sudha 2014 2022
Dr. P. Sujatha 2023 (Jan) 2023 (Apr)
Dr. D. Syamala 2023 (May) Till date

OUR FACULTY POSITION

S.No

Sactioned

Present

1

Professors

2

2

2

Associate Professors

2

2

3 

Assistant Professors

7

4

4

Senior Resident

5

1

List of Teaching Faculty

Designation

Sl no.

Name (Registration No.)

Professor & HOD

1

Dr. D. Syamala (APMC43272)

Professor

2

Dr. K. Himabindu (APMC39647)

Associate Professor

1

Dr. S.Vinutha (APMC52817)

 

2

Dr. K. Kiran Prasad Reddy (APMC58094)

Assistant Professor

1

Dr. K. Chitra (APMC95282)

 

2

Dr. K. Srinivas (APMC36359)

 

3

Dr.R.Swathi Ratnam (APMC71384)

 

4

Dr.M.Bheemesh Naidu (APMC59454)

 

5

Dr.D.Venkateswarulu (APMC62696)

Senior Resident

1

Dr.M.Rachana (APMC74611)

 

2

Dr.Kotra Vijay Kumar (APMC/FMR/101365)

Demonstrator/Tutor

1

Dr. Swathi Garikapati(APMC67803)

 

2

Dr.Srinivas Mundru(APMC73386)

 

3

Dr.V.Prashanth Reddy(TSMC12544)

 

4

Dr.Gousia Banu(APMC102519)

 

5

Dr.B.G.Subha Mrudula Devi(APMC110414)

 

6

Dr.K.Alekhya(APMC107351)

HUMAN RESOURCES

DESIGNATION IN POSITION
PROFESSORS 2
ASSOCIATE PROFFESOR 2
ASSISTANT PROFFESOR 4
SENIOR RESIDENT 1
POST GRADUATE 11
PHARMACIST 2
NON MEDICAL ASSISTANT 1
LAB TECHNICIAN 1
LAB ATTENDENT 1
SWEEPER 1
ATTENDER 1

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS OF FACULTY AND STUDENTS

We conduct Sobhanadri Achari & Seshavataram Nandyal Memorial Gold medal examination in pharmacology and award Gold medal for UG merit students.
5/5
Dr. Supriya stood university third in 2020 M.D Pharmacology Postgraduate university exam in AP state.
5/5
Dr. Pooja stood university third in 2021 M.D Pharmacology Postgraduate university exam in AP state.
5/5

WORKSHOPS CONDUCTED BY DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACOLOGY

  • PUBLICATIONS IN THE LAST 3 YEARS

  • Assessment of Knowledge, Awareness and Practices among health care professionals about Pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reaction reporting in King George Hospital, Visakhapatnam. IOSR-JDMS, Volume 18, Issue 7 Ser.6 (July.2019), pp. 59-67.

  • Relation of Examination Performance and Class Attendance of MBBS Students in Pharmacology – A Retrospective Study. IOSR-JDMS, Volume 19(2), 2020, pp. 15-18.

  • Assessment Of Knowledge, Attitude & Practices Of Online Classes Among Second Year MBBS Students During Covid 19 Pandemic In Andhra Medical College, Visakhapatnam. IOSR-JDMS, Volume 20 (08), 2021, pp. 37-40.

  • Assessment of drug utilization pattern in patients undergoing chemotherapy for various types of metastatic cancers in a tertiary care government hospital. International Journal of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology, September-2020, pp.1331 to 1336.

  • Prospective randomized, open label comparative study of efficacy of atorvastatin versus atorvastatin with vitamin D3 in patients with dyslipidemia attending tertiary care hospital. International journal of basic and clinical pharmacology, September-2021 10 (9).

  • An anonymous questionnaire based study of the knowledge, attitude and practice of self medication among second year MBBS students. IOSR-JDMS, Issue 5 (November 2021), pp. 1319 to 1322.

  • A questionnaire based study to assess knowledge, attitude and practice of pharmacovigilance among undergraduate medical students in a tertiary care hospital. International Journal of Toxicological and Pharmacological Research. Volume 12, issue 10 (October-2022) page no: 17-24.

  • An observational comparative study of clinical efficacy and safety of chlordiazeapoxide and lorazepam in alcohol withdrawal syndrome. IOSR Journal of Dental and Medical Sciences (IOSR-JDMS) e-issn:2279-0853, pissn:2279- 0861. Volume 18, Issue 7 ser.10 (July 2019), pp 69-72.

  • Study on awareness and knowledge about Hepatitis B virus and vaccination among MBBS students. IOSR Journal of Dental and Medical Sciences (IOSR-JDMS) e-issn:2279-0853, pissn:2279- 0861.Volume 20, Issue 1 ser.14 (January 2021), pp 34-39.

  • A study of plasma homocysteine levels in ischaemic stroke. IOSR Journal Of Dental And Medical Sciences (IOSR-JDMS) e-issn:2279-0853, pissn:2279- 0861. Volume 20, Issue 7 ser.15(july.2021), pp 51-55.

  • Prospective, randomized, and comparative study of efficacy of ivermectin, benzyl benzoate 25%, permethrin 5% and gamma benzene hexachloride 1% in the treatment of uncomplicated scabies. Int J Basic Clin Pharmacol 2020;9: 712-7.

  • Drug utilization study in patients with covid-19 associated mucormycosis in a tertiary care hospital , south India International journal of toxicological and pharmacological research Volume 12 issue 10: 2022.

  • Effect of iron supplementation in anaemic children with breath holding spells at a tertiary care hospital (KGH- Visakhapatnam) in Southern India. J Evid Based Med Healthc 2021;8(31):2870- 2874.

  • Self-Medication practices with analgesics among medical students. International Journal of Health Sciences, 6(S9), 1697–1703 August 2021

  • Pharmacology studying practices and theory presentation skills followed by under graduates: A cross sectional study in a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital in Andhra Pradesh India. International Journal of Health Sciences, 6(S8), 3509–3515. August 2021.

  • Pattern of adverse drug reactions in paediatric patients reported to adverse drug reaction monitoring center in a tertiary care hospital. International Journal of Contemporary Pediatrics (IJCP).Published in 2019; July-August 2019; Vol 6; Issue 4 Pg: 1557-1562.

  • Neonatal Sepsis: Clinical Spectrum, Bacteriological Profile and Antibiotic Sensitivity Patterns in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in a Tertiary Care Hospital. International Journal of Contemporary Medical Research (IJCMR). Published in Volume 6 ; Issue 6 ; June 2019 ; Pg : F1-F4.

  • A comparative evaluation of the perception of self-medication among medical students of a tertiary care teaching medical college and hospital – A cross sectional study. National Journal of Physiology, Pharmacy and Pharmacology (NJPPP). Published in Vol 9 Issue 8 Page : 714-718 2019.

  • Knowledge, attitude and practices of rural medical practitioners on generic medicines. International Journal of Basic & Clinical Pharmacology (IJBCP). Published in Vol 8 Issue 7 Page : 1652-1656 July 2019.

UG PROJECTS