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Coimbatore
PSG Hosts Distinguished Harvard Professor Dr. Vikram Patel for Centenary Lecture on Citizen centered health system for India
August 12, 2026
Coimbatore : As part of its year-long centenary celebrations, PSG hosted a special Centenary Lecture featuring renowned global health expert Dr.Vikram Patel, Paul Farmer Professor and Chair of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, USA. Dr Patel co-leads the Department’s “Mental Health for All” lab and co-leads the GlobalMentalHealth@Harvard initiative. He co-led the Lancet Commission on Global Mental Health & Sustainable Development and the Lancet-World Psychiatric Association Commission on Depression; he serves as co-chair of the Lancet Citizens Commission on Reimagining India’s Health System. He was listed in TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential persons of the year in 2015.
The event began with introduction of the speaker by Dr Sudha Ramalingam, Director Research & Innovation. The topic “Citizen centered health system for India” resonated with the century long commitment of PSG in serving the society. For a hundred years, PSG has remained committed to the principle of giving back to society through education, healthcare, research, and social service. A citizen-centred health system reflects this very ethos—placing people, their needs, dignity, wellbeing, and equitable access to quality healthcare at the heart of the health system.
The lecture brought together healthcare professionals, academicians, researchers, students and administrators for an engaging discussion on the future of healthcare in India.
Drawing upon his extensive experience in global mental health and health systems, Dr. Patel highlighted the need to build healthcare systems that are people-centered, equitable, accessible and responsive to the realities of communities. He emphasized the importance of moving beyond conventional models of healthcare delivery and strengthening community-based approaches, task-sharing, digital innovation and partnerships across sectors.
The lecture also explored how India can leverage its demographic dividend, technological capabilities and community resources to create a healthcare system that places people and their lived experiences at its centre.
The PSG institutions, with a century-long legacy of service, education and healthcare, continue to evolve while remaining committed to their founding vision of service to society through excellence in education, healthcare and research.
Dr. Vikram Patel’s lecture added a significant milestone to PSG’s centenary journey, reinforcing the institution’s commitment to shaping conversations that can influence the future of healthcare in India and beyond.
Dr T M Subbarao Principal, PSGIMSR, Dr J S Bhuvaneswaran Director, PSG SSH, Dr Balaji, Advisor, PSG Institute of Oncology, Dr R Jayadeepa Principal, PSG College of Nursing graced the event along with several physicians, academicians and students.
