Institutions

Constant Lievens Academy of Health Sciences, Ranchi

The CBCI General Body meeting in 2008 at Jamshedpur took the historical decision to open a Medical College and hospital as a solace to the people of the tribal heartland in Chotanagpur. The MSFS Congregation was invited by the Vice-President of the CBCI His Eminence Cardinal Telesphore P Toppo

to collaborate with the CBCI Project at Ranchi. Although the invitation was originally to the entire Congregation, the MSFS North East Province accepted the project in 2014 at the bid of the Superior General of the MSFS. Accordingly, Fr Biju Kanicherry was appointed as the Project Director and Fr Saji Puthiyakulangara as the Associate Director for Finance. On June 3, 2015, an MoU was signed between the North East India Province of the MSFS represented by Fr George Panthanmackel, the former Provincial, and the CBCI represented by His Eminence Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Catholicos by which the administration of the Medical college Project was entrusted to the North East India Province of the MSFS.

After much search for a suitable piece of land to launch the project, the place chosen was Holy Family Hospital Mandar. The Medical Mission Sisters willingly gifted 17 acres of land along with the existing hospital and nursing school. The Archdiocese of Ranchi also gave its mite by giving another 8 acres of land adjacent to the hospital. After signing an MoU with Medical Mission Sisters, the Society took over the administration of the hospital and Nursing school from June 1, 2016. CBCI president Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Catholicos described the medical college as the ‘long cherished brain-child project’ of the CBCI. The medical college at this stage is the result of the collaborative efforts of the North East India Province of the MSFS, Medical Mission Sisters and the Archdiocese of Ranchi.

The new venture envisages holistic health for everyone, especially for tribal people and other marginalized groups. Its mission statement says the project would create ‘a seat of excellence in medical education’ that would provide quality medical care and prepare medical professionals who would cater to the health needs, especially of the remote neglected rural populations of the nation.

It strives to offer continued compassionate care, foster a high-spirited collaborative team, and educate future healthcare professionnals imbibed with value. It would also provide state-of-art health service and combat local illness and disease. Through discovery and innovation it would lead the nation in quality outcome and patient safety. The college is patterned after the CBCI’s first such attempt, ‘St John’s Medical College, Bangalore’. The new project emerged from the CBCI General Body meeting held in Jamshedpur in 2008.

On September 15, 2016, Fr George Pekkadankuzhyil was appointed in place of Fr Biju while Fr Sijo Kunnel had joined the project in place of Fr Saji on March 1, 2016.