Ž .International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics 76 2002 253�255

In memoriam

Professor Shan S. Ratnamž /1928�2001

Professor Shan S. Ratnam

Friends and colleagues of Emeritus ProfessorShan S. Ratnam were saddened by the announce-ment of his death on 6 August, 2001 in Singapore.Professor Ratnam was past president of the Inter-national Federation of Gynecology and ObstetricsŽ .FIGO and former head of the Department ofObstetrics and Gynecology of the National Uni-versity of Singapore.

Shan S. Ratnam was born in Sri Lanka on 4July, 1928 and received an MBBS with honors

from the University of Ceylon, Colombo, SriLanka. He subsequently moved to Singapore andwas responsible for bringing distinction to Singa-pore in the international arena of obstetrics andgynecology. In his lifetime, he achieved much andwas greatly honored.

In 1963, Professor Ratnam was appointed lec-turer to the Department of Obstetrics and Gyne-cology of the then University of Singapore at theKandang Kerbau Hospital. He pursued his post-graduate studies in the United Kingdom and re-turned to Singapore in 1965, having obtainedmembership in the Royal College of Obstetri-

Ž .cians and Gynaecologists MRCOG , the FRCSŽ .Edinburgh Obstetrics and Gynecology , FRCS

Ž .Glasgow General Surgery and FRCS EnglandŽ .General Surgery .

In 1970, the National University of Singaporeappointed him professor and head of the Depart-ment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, a post heheld for 25 years, stepping down in July 1995. In1972, he was made a fellow of the Royal Collegeof Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, FRCOGŽ .UK , and in 1977, he was made a fellow of theRoyal Australian College of Surgeons. Between1983 and 1993, honorary degrees were conferredon Professor Ratnam from the colleges and soci-eties of obstetricians and gynecologists of Aus-tralia, West Africa, United States, Japan, Korea,Sri Lanka and the Philippines.

In 1988, the National University of Singapore

0020-7292�02�$20.00 � 2002 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics. Published by Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.All rights reserved.

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( )R.N.V. Prasad, P.C. Wong � International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics 76 2002 253�255254

appointed Professor Ratnam director of theSchool of Postgraduate Medical Studies. Underhis leadership, as head of the Department ofObstetrics and Gynecology, a post he held con-currently with the directorship of the Postgradu-ate School, the department rose to a position ofinternational leadership in research, while at thesame time providing exemplary patient care andteaching.

Professor Ratnam was a well-known and well-liked figure, not only locally, but also regionallyand internationally. Locally, he was president ofthe Obstetrical and Gynecological Society of Sin-gapore, chairman of the Chapter of Obstetriciansand Gynecologists of the Academy of Medicine,and president of the Family Planning Associationof Singapore. Regionally, he served in an editorialcapacity on several obstetrics, gynecology, andperinatology journals. He was secretary-generalof the Asia and Oceania Federation of Obstetricsand Gynaecology, and he was president of theFederation of Asia and Oceania Perinatal Soci-eties and the MASEAN Chapter of Obstetriciansand Gynecologists.

Ž .The World Health Organization WHO en-listed his services as chairman of its Policy andCoordinating Committee and as a member of theWHO Scientific Technical Advisory Group.Among his other international positions, he waspresident of the International Federation of Gy-

Ž .necology and Obstetrics FIGO , the highest in-ternational honor in the specialty, president ofthe International Association of Supporters of

Ž . ŽFIGO SOFIGO , a representative Asia and.Oceania for the International Association for

Ž .Maternal and Neonatal Health IAMANEH , anddirector of the Society for the Advancement ofContraception.

As an academician, he obtained his Doctoratein Medicine from the then University of Singa-pore in 1970. His publications include some 596articles in international refereed journals and 396in local and regional refereed journals. He wrote138 chapters in books and made some 795 pre-sentations at conferences many of which wereseminal papers.

As a clinician, Professor Ratnam was beyondcompare. In his early years as a gynecologist, he

gave his attention to the plight of subfertilewomen, pioneering in the field of reproductivebiology. Professor Ratnam initiated an in vitro

Ž .fertilization IVF program in the Department ofObstetrics and Gynecology of the National Uni-versity of Singapore, and subsequently led a teamof renowned clinicians and scientists as theyachieved Asia’s first birth after in vitro fertiliza-tion in 1983, Asia’s first GIFT baby in 1986,Asia’s first live birth from a frozen embryo in1987, the world’s first live birth after microinjec-tion in 1989, and the world’s first infant born viahuman ampullary coculture in 1991.

The infrastructure of a sound and sophisticatedŽ .center for assisted reproductive technology ART

that Professor Ratnam built formed the founda-tion on which scores of other scientists were ableto achieve innovations and earn internationalrecognition.

Professor Ratnam also made significant con-tributions to the surgical procedures for genderreassignment. His published work in this areawith the late Professor Sheares prompted a maletranssexual to seek his help for reassignmentsurgery. Professor Ratnam developed the surgicalprocedures and treatment thereafter for male tofemale and for female to male gender reassign-ment. Today, this surgery is an accepted mode oftreatment, and Professor Ratnam’s innovativetechniques are widely described in the literature.

Professor Ratnam received numerous nationalhonors. In 1977, he received the Singapore PublicAdministration Gold Medal. The following year,the Singapore National Trade Union Congressawarded him the ‘Friend of Labor’ medal. In1985, on Singapore National Awards day, he washonored with the Public Services Star. In 1988, heand his subfertility team received the NationalSciences and Technology Award, and in 1991, theASEAN award for contributions to reproductivemedicine.

Professor Ratnam’s significant contributions tothe National University of Singapore were ac-knowledged at the time he was made EmeritusProfessor in 1996, and subsequently, in 2000, withthe endowment of the Shan S. Ratnam Professor-ship, which will be awarded annually to interna-tionally recognized specialists in obstetrics and

( )R.N.V. Prasad, P.C. Wong � International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics 76 2002 253�255 255

gynecology. For Professor Ratnam’s contributionsto family medicine in Singapore, he was posthu-mously awarded honorary fellowship in the Col-lege of Family Physicians of Singapore in August2001.

Professor Ratnam was kind, and he always hadtime for his staff and their concerns. Having theopportunity to work with him was a rare andvaluable experience. Although Professor Ratnamretired in July 1995 as head of the Department ofObstetrics and Gynecology of the National Uni-versity of Singapore, he continued to serve asprofessorial fellow in the department, remainingactive despite poor health following a mild strokeat the end of 1999.

Emeritus Professor Shan S. Ratnam is remem-

bered with admiration and love by his family andfriends, his grateful patients, and his colleagues inSingapore and throughout the world.

R.N.V. Prasad, M.D., D. Sc, FRCOGProfessor,

Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology,National University of Singapore,

Singapore.

P.C. Wong, M.D., FRCOGAssociate Professor and Head,

Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology,National University of Singapore,

Singapore.