KDU Teaching Hospital's Chief Executive Officer Takes Appointment
 

Surgeon Rear Admiral Nicholas Jayasekera, MBBS, MSc, MBA, MD, USP, VSV, has been appointed as the first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) with effect from 18^th April2016. The state of the art 704-bed hospital is scheduled to be fully functional by the end of this year, and will include 20 surgical operating theatres and 70 Intensive Care beds. Constructed on a 56-acre land in Werahera with an investment of US$ 202 million, the project is set to provide direct and indirect employment to over 3,000 people.

The Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital of KDU will include a dedicated team of healthcare professionals to provide the best quality care to the patients. It will consist of ultra-modern facilities to provide tertiary outpatient and indoor care facilities to service personnel, their families and general public. A special feature of this hospital will be a dedicated area for short stay Day Care Surgery, a rarity in Sri Lankan hospitals. As a teaching hospital, it will serve as a centre of excellence for around the clock accident and emergency care including military, underwater and aviation medicine, and engage in high quality research and development activities. It will also provide in-house training at both undergraduate and postgraduate level for military medical students and allied health staff from Sri Lanka and foreign countries. The KDU is the only university offering graduate courses in defence studies in the South Asian region and is a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities (United Kingdom), the world's first and oldest international university network. KDU awards Bachelors’ and Postgraduate degrees in Defence Studies, Engineering, Law, Management, Social Sciences and IT.

Surgeon Rear Admiral Nicholas Jayasekera has been appointed to this position in consideration of his extensive experience in military medicine and medical administration. He is currently the senior most Medical Officer in the tri services, with over three decades of experience in the Sri Lanka Navy and almost a decade of service in the rank of Surgeon Rear Admiral. He took up his first appointment In the rank of Surgeon Lieutenant, as the Medical Officer of Naval Hospital Karainagar in July 1986, becoming the first military medical officer to hold a permanent appointment in the North after the onset of hostilities. In recognition of his unblemished service career, which has covered almost the entire 30 year conflict period, has been decorated with 10 medals, including the Uttama Seva Padakkama (USP) and Vishishta Seva Vibhushanaya (VSV).

His contribution to the development of Military Medicine in Sri Lanka has been immense. He is currently the Sri Lankan representative of the International Council of Military Medicine (ICMM), which has a membership of over 110 countries. He was instrumental in the formation of the Sri Lanka College of Military Medicine (SLCOMM) last month, which was set up with the vision of assisting local military men and women achieve professional excellence, and currently serves as its Founder President. In addition to his extensive experience in Military Medicine, Radm Jayasekera has two decades of experience in Medical Administration, which will enable him to develop the KDU Hospital to stand among the best in South Asia. In 2006, he reached the pinnacle of his administrative career when he was appointed the Director General Health Services Sri Lanka Navy. He has been an active member of the College of Medical Administrators of Sri Lanka (CMASL) for 16 years, serving as the President of the College in 2012-2013.

He has produced over 15 research publications and over 20 presentations in international seminars, primarily in the areas of organizational behaviour and military medicine, and is a Lecturer at the Post Graduate Institute of Medicine (PGIM), Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC), Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA) and KDU.On the academic front, he holds an MBBS, an MBA, an MSc and a Doctorate in Medical Administration from the University of Colombo and is currently reading for his second PhD in Philosophy at the KDU. Following his postgraduate studies he underwent foreign training at the New York Methodist Hospital in USA and Princess Margret Hospital in Western Australia. Having received his primary education at St Thomas’s College, Colombo 3, he joined St Peter’s College, Colombo 4 to complete his secondary education.Besides his many professional commitments, Radm Jayasekera has been an active member of the St Peter’s College Old Boys’ Union (OBU) for many years and served as its President in 2013-2014. He is also a keen sportsman and is a Past Vice President of the Sri Lanka Tennis Association (SLTA).