Anaesthesiology & Critical Care

Dr. Anura Abeysundara, MBBS, MD (Anaesthesiology), FRCA (UK), is a Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Anaesthesiology and Critical Care at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, and a Consultant Anaesthetist at Teaching Hospital and Dental Hospital Peradeniya. With extensive training in Sri Lanka and the UK, his interests include intensive care and pain medicine. He is actively involved in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, trauma life-support training, and postgraduate supervision, contributing significantly to clinical service delivery and academic development in anaesthesiology and critical care.

Prof. Vasanthi Pinto, MBBS, MD, FRCA (UK), FCARCSI (Ire), is Chair Professor of Anaesthesiology and Critical Care, Chair Board of Study in Anaesthesiology and the former Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya. A highly accomplished clinician–academic, her interests span intensive care, pain medicine, nutrition, and medical education. She has held numerous national leadership roles in postgraduate training, emergency medicine, and anaesthesia, serving as examiner, curriculum developer, and guideline contributor to the Ministry of Health. Trained in Sri Lanka and the UK, Prof. Pinto has received multiple national research awards and has made outstanding contributions to undergraduate and postgraduate medical education, critical care development, and life-saving training programs in Sri Lanka.

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Professor P. S. K. Nanayakkara, MBBS, MD(Anaesthesiology), MA(History), MA(Archaeology), PGDip(Sociology) , currently serves as the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and a Professor in Anaesthesiology, in the Department of Anaesthesiology & Critical Care at Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. He is a Consultant Anaesthetist at the Teaching Hospital Peradeniya and the Dental Hospital, Peradeniya, with extensive experience in multidisciplinary clinical practice.
His clinical and academic interests include anaesthesia for maxillofacial surgery, pain medicine, labour analgesia, resuscitation, and cancer pain management, as well as the history of medicine and surgery in Sri Lanka. Professor Nanayakkara is widely recognized as a national leader in pain medicine and resuscitation.
He has held several key leadership roles in professional organizations, including President of the Kandy Society of Medicine, Sri Lanka Association for the Study of Pain, and Cancer Care Service. He is actively engaged in postgraduate training, academic mentorship, research, and has received national recognition for his academic and training contributions. He is an instructor in ALS in European Resuscitation Council and Essential Pain management programme.

Dr. Ashani Ratnayake, MBBS, MD (Anaesthesiology), FRCA (UK), is a Senior Lecturer in Anaesthesiology at the Department of Anaesthesiology and Critical Care, Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, and an Honorary Consultant Anaesthetist at the Teaching Hospital, Peradeniya. She obtained her MBBS degree from the University of Peradeniya and completed her MD in Anaesthesiology at the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, University of Colombo, followed by overseas training at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, UK. Dr. Ratnayake also serves as a Visiting Lecturer at the Faculties of Allied Health Sciences and Dental Sciences, University of Peradeniya, and the Faculty of Medicine, Wayamba University of Sri Lanka. She is an accredited trainer of Focused intensive care Echocardiography -UK, instructor of Advanced life support course of the European resuscitation council and instructor of the National Trauma management course. Her academic and research interests are on advanced airway management, regional anaesthesia and point of care ultrasound.

Dr. Senani Samarasinghe, MBBS, MD, PG Dip (App. Stat.), is a Senior Lecturer in Anaesthesiology and Critical Care at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya, and Head of the E-Library. Has contributed to the dental hospital Peradeniya as the divisional head in the year 2024 . A clinician, educator, and researcher with postgraduate training in Anaesthesiology and Applied Statistics, she has served locally and internationally, including as a Liver Anaesthesia Fellow at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, UK. Her research interests span anaesthesia, peri-operative medicine, solid organ transplant , intensive care, and the integration of artificial intelligence into clinical practice and medical education. Passionate about innovation and teaching, she contributes extensively to undergraduate and postgraduate training in anaesthesia, critical care, and AI-enhanced learning. Dr. Samarasinghe plays a key national role in resuscitation training and the development of Sri Lanka’s liver transplant program. Her commitment to advancing healthcare education through technology and interdisciplinary collaboration continues to inspire the next generation of medical professionals.

Dr. P.H.D.P. De Silva, MBBS, FFARCSI, DABA, is a Visiting Fellow in Anesthesiology (Honorary) at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Peradeniya. He brings over three decades of international experience, having served as Consultant Anesthetist and Director of Neurosurgical, Orthopedic, and Trauma Anesthesia at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, and as Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School. Dr. De Silva continues to contribute to academic anesthesia through teaching, mentorship, and research, including recent publications in obstetric anesthesia and perioperative care.