Echoes of Healing: SKIMS and Its Outreach of Light...... Akram Sidiqui

Echoes of Healing: 

SKIMS and Its Outreach of Light......

By Akram Sidiqui

 “Ilm ki roshni se zinda hain dil,

Jo andheron mein the, wo ujale ban gaye.”

— Allama Iqbal

The other day, while carrying forward his selfless mission of public service and dissemination of knowledge among people, the Director SKIMS and Ex-officio Secretary to the Government, Prof. (Dr.) Mohammad Ashraf Ganie, was once again at the helm, exemplifying how leadership in modern medicine must transcend institutional boundaries. Tirelessly on his toes since day one, he has turned SKIMS into a living laboratory of ideas where clinical service, academic vision, and civic engagement coexist in intellectual harmony.

It was in this continuum of purpose that SKIMS hosted the Safe Food Conclave, an event that elegantly bridged the realms of healthcare, policy, and public participation. Convened in the wake of growing public concern over food safety, it was not a ceremonial exercise but an academic declaration: that the science of medicine begins at the table, long before it reaches the ward or the theatre.

Under Prof. Ganie’s discerning stewardship, the conclave evolved into a forum of thoughtful debate, where physicians, public health experts, and policymakers reflected on the ethical dimensions of nourishment. The event underscored a vital truth, that public health is not confined to hospitals but resides in the everyday choices of citizens, in the integrity of the food chain, and in the vigilance of institutions that safeguard it. In this light, SKIMS reaffirmed its identity not just as a tertiary care hospital but as a guardian of collective well-being, uniting intellect and responsibility in the service of society.

The conclave’s resonance extended beyond academic corridors; it symbolized a new phase of SKIMS, one where scholarship and service converge, where prevention is embraced as profoundly as cure.

Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), Soura Srinagar, has been abuzz with educational activities from its very beginning, but over the past two years something remarkable has unfolded within its walls. The institute has witnessed an unprecedented bloom of academic and research excellence, a transformation that has quietly, yet profoundly, altered its intellectual landscape.

Lecture halls are livelier, laboratories busier, publications more frequent, and the collective spirit more luminous. The air carries a sense of purpose, as though SKIMS, after years of devoted clinical service, has rediscovered its true rhythm: the rhythm of scholarship.

Behind this quiet revolution stands a visionary figure, Prof. (Dr.) Mohammad Ashraf Ganie, Director and Ex-officio Secretary to the Government of Jammu & Kashmir. A physician of exceptional intellect and an academic with an unflinching moral compass, Prof. Ganie has been instrumental in shaping SKIMS’s current academic renaissance.

From the moment he took charge, he brought with him both resolve and reflection, insisting that a medical institute must not only treat disease but also create knowledge. He redefined leadership through quiet discipline, empathy, and a relentless commitment to quality.

Under his stewardship, SKIMS has grown not just in infrastructure but in intellectual architecture, the kind that nurtures inquiry, integrity, and innovation.

 “Institutions,” he often says, “breathe only when thought circulates through them.”

Under his gaze, thought began to circulate again, steady and strong.

December 2024 became a landmark in SKIMS history when the institute launched its Intramural Research Grant (IRG), a pioneering step that empowered young faculty and residents to pursue independent research. This initiative, envisioned and encouraged by Prof. Ganie, unlocked doors for those who had ideas but lacked institutional backing. Suddenly, the hesitant voices of curiosity found a microphone, and the corridors once filled with clinical bustle now buzzed with research proposals, discussions, and data design.

The IRG program democratized research. It allowed young doctors to experiment, explore, and express, transforming curiosity into contribution. It was not merely funding; it was faith.

May 2025 brought another milestone, the Grant Writing and Funding Opportunities Workshop, conducted by the Research Cell and the Multidisciplinary Research Unit (MRU). This event, more than a workshop, became a movement of minds. Doctors, scholars, and residents gathered not to listen passively but to learn actively: how to design studies, frame objectives, handle ethics, and pursue grants with global competitiveness.

Prof. Ganie’s message to participants was simple yet stirring:

 “Let us not be content with treating patients; let us also contribute to the science that treats humanity.”

The result was a ripple effect of intellectual confidence. SKIMS began producing doctors who not only healed with precision but also wrote with purpose.

Between 2024 and 2025, SKIMS embarked on a determined faculty and resident recruitment drive, filling long-standing vacancies and bringing in fresh energy. The arrival of talented academicians from premier national institutes such as AIIMS, PGIMER, and JIPMER injected new vitality into departments. Teaching deepened, mentorship broadened, and interdepartmental research collaborations flourished.

This expansion was not just numerical; it was intellectual. It restored balance between service and study, ensuring that every department could simultaneously heal, teach, and inquire.

The fruits of this quiet academic revolution are now visible to all. SKIMS’s departments have begun appearing prominently in indexed international journals and even in the Nature Index (2024–2025 window), a clear sign of elevated research output and quality.

Departments like Medical Oncology, Pathology, Pharmacology, and Community Medicine have published collaborative, data-driven research with national and international partners. Each publication stands as a testament to diligence and direction—proof that the new SKIMS is not only treating patients but advancing the science of healing.

 “Tere ilm se zameen ka har zarra nazara ban gaya,

Jo tujh se roshan hai andhera bhi sitara ban gaya.”  Ghalib"

Beyond papers and projects, something more profound has changed, the atmosphere itself. The faculty feels inspired; the residents feel guided; the administrative staff feels part of a purpose.

This cultural renewal, subtle yet strong, is perhaps the most enduring achievement of Prof. Ganie’s leadership. He has restored a sense of belonging, reminding every contributor that SKIMS is not a workplace but a work of faith. When intellect is honoured, innovation follows. When effort is appreciated, excellence becomes inevitable.

The impact of this academic resurgence reaches beyond classrooms and conference halls. Research emerging from SKIMS now finds direct application in patient care, from improved diagnostic algorithms in pathology to new therapeutic insights in oncology and pharmacology. Clinical audits, outcome studies, and community health research are refining protocols, customizing care, and shaping regional health policy. The distance between the bedside and the bench is narrowing precisely, the harmony modern medicine seeks.

To institutionalize this spirit of inquiry and compassion, SKIMS under the dynamic leadership of Prof. (Dr.) Mohammad Ashraf Ganie, has constituted a network of dedicated committees and cells designed to facilitate smooth patient care, ethical research, and meaningful public outreach. The Institutional Research Committee, Ethics Committee, and Patient Care Facilitation Committee ensure that every scientific endeavour remains compassionate, compliant, and patient-centred. Parallelly, the Public Relations and Outreach Committee, Health Education and Awareness Cell, and Community Health & Preventive Medicine Committee carry SKIMS’s healing mission beyond its walls,borganizing health camps, awareness drives, and community lectures that link the science of medicine with the soul of society. Through these coordinated efforts, SKIMS has emerged not merely as a tertiary care centre but as a living ecosystem of service, scholarship, and social responsibility, where research refines care, and care inspires research.

The journey, though glorious, is far from complete. The real test for SKIMS now lies in sustaining this momentum. Challenges remain,securing continuous research funding, establishing a dedicated Research & Grants Office, maintaining methodological rigor, and institutionalizing mentorship programs. Yet these are signs not of weakness but of growth.

The years ahead, 2025 to 2028, promise consolidation and expansion. Plans are underway for a Three-Year Institutional Research Vision, flagship interdisciplinary projects, and collaborations with national and international universities. Annual research awards, transparent progress reports, and the integration of medical humanities into curricula are also envisioned, bringing empathy, ethics, and eloquence back into medicine. For SKIMS, the horizon gleams bright, a horizon where intellect and compassion walk side by side.

In just two years, SKIMS has journeyed from silence to synergy, from service to scholarship. Its transformation stands as a living testament to what visionary leadership, collective spirit, and disciplined dedication can achieve.

At the heart of this renaissance stands Prof. (Dr.) Mohammad Ashraf Ganie, a leader who turned administration into aspiration, and governance into grace. Under his stewardship, SKIMS has rekindled the ancient lamp of learning—a lamp that illuminates not only Kashmir’s medical landscape but its intellectual destiny.

 “Utho wo subah kareeb aayi,

Jis ke intezar mein the hum.

Ilm ka diya jalao phir se,

Ki andhera door ho jaaye har dum.”