Visionary founder and his team
The relevance of Kankanady Hill to the region of Mangaluru and to the districts surrounding has a longstanding history. Kankanady Hospital, as it is popularly known in Mangaluru has put behind an impressive growth story, interjected with hundreds of epoch- making developments. The barren hill where the Founder Fr Augustus Muller, a Jesuit missionary, started the hospital for the love of his life – lepers or the persons affected by Hansen’s disease, has metamorphosed into a giant health care Institution. The leprosy affected, abandoned by their own, were tended with care and were given dignity of their person that was due to them. The healthcare landscape 144 years ago, was abysmally low, virtually with no hospital of worth even for general ailments, let alone a hospital for lepers. “My Hospital is not for the rich” said the stern looking Fr Muller, awakening a disciplined German within him, when a rich man compelled himself to be admitted in the hospital. The poor man’s hospital since then has grown steadily and has become first and last port of call for many, should the physical and mental ailments trouble the very existence, for people in and around Mangaluru. Father Augustus Muller laid the strong foundation and he was at its helm for 30 years from 1880 to 1910 till his death. But he was prudent enough to see that his hospital would continue even after his death. He chose Dr L P Fernandes and sent him to be a trained doctor. Dr L P Fernandes was from an affluent Catholic family of Mangaluru. On his return from medical studies, Dr L P Fernandes, popularly Lorsab, served at the hospital. He made service at the hospital as sole priority of his life, till his death in 1946. Father Muller and Dr L P Fernandes were the two strong pillars on whose foundational work, the hospital became an important institution for the future.
Dr Peter Paul Saldanha, Bishop of Mangalore & FMCI President
Super Speciality Hospital
A 1500 bedded multi-specialty hospital, a medical college, nursing colleges and nursing schools, around 15 allied health branches, students more than 3500, personnel more than 2500 working round the clock, have made Father Muller Charitable Institutions, a formidable healthcare provider in the region. The districts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Madikeri, Kasargod have immensely benefited as also others who flock to its precincts in search of healthcare. It’s only the sick and ailing understand the value of being nursed back to health. A combination of loving nursing care, dedicated Catholic priests directed by the Bishop of Diocese of Mangalore, the management committee, qualified health professionals, state of the art medical equipment, a Medical College that brings in innovation and new thoughts as to how the healthcare is to be looked with a fresh outlook, all have made the Kankanady Hospital started by Fr Augustus Muller, a place to flock to when one is down with physical and mental ailments.
There are five hospitals under Father Muller Charitable Institutions. Father Muller Medical College Hospital- the flagship super speciality hospital at Kankanady, Father Muller Hospital at Thumbay, Bantwal 15 Kilometers away from Mangaluru, Father Muller Homoeopathic Medical College at Deralakatte, Father Muller Salvadore Monteiro Rural Healthcare Training Centre at Bajpe with 15 beds about 17kms away and St Joseph Leprosy hospital which is in the Kankanady campus. Of these St Joseph Leprosy Hospital that served the cause of leprosy has bowed out of service as Leprosy is on the way of total eradication and the purpose for which it had been set up in 1890 has long been fulfilled.
The corporate set up of the hospitals has become a norm in India, where patient is a client and he pays for the services availed. The human touch, a soothing smile, a compassionate hand- an essential element of patient care is almost absent and people at lower strata are deprived of quality healthcare and are often left to fend for themselves. Hospitals have become more technology oriented but less humane. It is where institution like Father Muller Charitable Institutions enters, fills the vacuum of absence of humane touch and comfort the suffering humanity. The different branches of medicine mostly neglected in other healthcare institutions like the leprosy, psychiatry, substance abuse and rehabilitation of the affected are taken up thereby rendering the broad-based approach to healing. Thousands flock to its OPD seeking an understanding to their ailments, and they get comforted.
The Institution anthem penned by the great poet Dr Mary Agnes Saldanha sung on important occasions, reaffirm the spirit Father Muller Charitable Institutions stands for. The first stanza of the anthem reads;
We come to comfort and to heal, to love and serve in woe and weal we come to comfort and to heal, to love and serve in woe and weal
Let a lusty chorus swell and soar beyond the skies
As white robed bands with healing hands to daily tasks arise, And eager limbs await their hour with aching, grim surmise While fading visions float before half open, gleam less eyes
Let the name Augustus Muller proudly write in gold Flame across Karnataka’s vast and Bharat Millions hold, In admiration of his zeal whose vision bright and bold
In Mangaluru’s fair bossom raised its home of peace untold.
Dr Mary Agnes Saldanha was the great literature teacher of yesteryears, praises the legacy of the Founder in the anthem. The Institution and the city of Mangaluru stand to benefit for these 144 years and no wonder reminisces the founder every day. The hospital facade, Director’s office, wards, corridors, classrooms, labs, letterheads, intra institutions communiques, hospital bills, communication materials in newspapers and media all sport the oval shaped portrait of bearded and bald-headed German Jesuit Fr Muller. The cross symbolic of Christian institution is mounted in all important places and all-important sacraments of Catholic church are administered on the people of the Catholic faith. Rosary is recited every evening. But for these Christian devotions, the hospital is open to all without making any distinction on the basis of caste, creed, religion, race or language from the very beginning.
Fr Ajith B Menezes
Administrator, FMMC
Celebrating 25 Years of Excellence: Father Muller Medical College
Father Muller Medical College (FMMC) has set a remarkable standard in medical education over the past 25 years. With a mission to impart quality education and produce competent medical and allied health professionals, FMMC has consistently embraced innovative teaching practices. The institution places significant emphasis on moral values, ethics, and patient-centric healthcare, ensuring that its graduates are well-equipped to alleviate human suffering.
As FMMC celebrates its Silver Jubilee, it reflects on the legacy of Rev. Fr. Augustus Muller, whose vision of healing and comfort continues to thrive. Established in 1999, the college revolutionized healthcare in Mangalore, bringing significant advancements in infrastructure, human resources, patient care, and technology. Today, FMMC stands as one of India's premier medical schools and hospitals.
As we mark the Silver Jubilee year in 2024, best wishes are extended to all those who helped us to grow to this level. May all our Well-wishers, Faculty, Staff and Students continue to uphold the rich legacy of Rev. Fr Augustus Muller, advancing the College’s mission to become a global leader in medical education and healthcare.
Fr Denis D’Sa
Silver jubilee year of Father Muller Medical College
One of the primary ministries of Jesus Christ was of healing and comforting. The Holy Bible has umpteenth examples of Jesus’ healing ministry.
The same ministry was continued by the missionaries when they came to India (along with Education and Social Service).
In Mangaluru, Fr Augustus Muller sowed a seed of healing and comforting. Today, this seed has grown into a huge tree giving shelter to thousands of sick and suffering persons.
The Legacy of Fr Augustus Muller was continued by his successive Directors/Administrators, Staff and Students.
The year 1999 is to be etched as the golden year in the history of Father Muller Charitable Institutions as it marked the advent of Father Muller Medical College. This brought about a revolutionary change in the infrastructure, human resources, patient care and technology.
Today, Father Mullers is known as one of the best Medical Schools and Hospitals all over India.
I had the good fortune of serving this Medical College as Administrator from 2006 to 2013. It was a huge responsibility of preserving, promoting and fostering human life with medical ethics. At the same time, it gave me a lot of contentment when the patients and their relatives returned home with good health and a smile of gratitude.
The year 2024 is another milestone in the history of Mullers as it marks the Silver Jubilee Year of the Medical College.
I would like to convey my heartiest Congratulations, Warmest Felicitations and Best Wishes to the Director, Administrator, the staff and the students.
May you carry on the rich legacy of Fr Augustus Muller for years to come.
Fr Rudolph Ravi D’Sa
Father Muller Medical College in its own way, has set a standard in the formation of medical professionals. For the past 25 years, it has accomplished its mission by imparting quality education & forming qualified, competent & confident medical and allied health professionals. Core medical education guidelines like adoption of innovative practices in learning, inculcating moral values and ethics in the medical practice, observing patient centric healthcare modality to alleviate the sufferings of ailing humanity are given due importance in the training of healthcare professionals. Thus today, Father Muller Medical College has evolved itself as a brand for medical education & moves ahead with new vision & mission to become a global leader in the medical education.
Pioneer in Nursing Education
Father Muller Charitable Institution’s tryst with healthcare education dates to 1959, when Fr Marian Fernandes was the director of the Institutions. He was a man with vision. With a visionary thinking he envisaged starting of School of Nursing, of course primarily to help the young girl students to earn a job, thereby improve their social status. He wanted the nurses to be backbone of the healthcare system at the hospital, imbibing Christian values. Then in 1959, it was unusual in Mangaluruan Catholic girls to enter into the profession of Nursing. With Fr Marian at the helm, a change in the attitude was brought in and with an impetus to awaken them to the needs of the time, 12 newly recruited candidates came forward to take up the profession. Ever since then the nursing education in Father Muller’s has not looked back. Thousands of nurses have been trained in the School of Nursing and College of Nursing and they serve in different parts of the world. Nursing education in Father Muller’s is synonymous with getting a free gate way to enter into the healthcare sector. The training imparted is thoroughly professional making them much sought after by the hospitals in the country and in recent years in different parts of the European Union and particularly England. Father Muller College of Nursing was added to the Institution in 1987 with BSc Nursing course. With excellent academic results in nursing both School of Nursing and College of Nursing, it’s a march ahead, adding laurels in its long list of achievements.
Beginning Father Muller Medical College
The success in the field of nursing and the name earned through Father Muller institutions, it was by now a project well executed. Building brick by brick, the directors, assistant directors, administrators, teaching faculty made it the Institution of pride. Institution was marching ahead with strides in nursing and hospital sectors. But the best was yet to come. It was in the 1999 that the long-cherished dream of Father Muller Medical College was realized. Father Muller Medical College is the centerpiece of the institution bringing with it the much-needed new thought, new blood and innovative approach to providing health care. The Institution blossomed with the medical college around. As far as back in the times of Fr Marian Fernandes establishing medical college was thought of. The directors who succeeded him renewed their efforts by liaising with the government authorities and tried to convince about the need for a medical college. There were state government processes added with central government approvals, that often proved to be labyrinthine. It was only during the time when Fr Baptist Menezes was the director, the medical college was sanctioned. The Institution was by now 119-year-old. Looking at the long history of the institutions and its dedicated service, the Chief Minister of Karnataka State JH Patel who was also part of the approval process reported to have said “If Father Muller is not getting a medical college no other hospital or institution will get” chief minister JH Patel by saying so was paying tacit tribute to the work Father Muller Charitable Institutions did for more than twelve decades.
Former directors Fr Baptist Menezes, Fr Patrick Rodrigues & Fr Lawrence D'Souza
As a premier institution that provides healthcare to the needy Father Muller has come a long way to be in the place where it is now. Years of visionary outlook, wholly and selflessly dedication to serve the sick, Sisters of Charity and nuns of the other orders who truly bore witness to Christian charity and values, introduction of technology at the right time, promotion of educational institutions attached to the institution, dedicated staff working in clock like precision and smooth transitions of standard operating procedures have all combined to create a best healthcare Institution in the country. Father Muller Charitable Institutions is geared towards ushering an innovative approach and no stone would be left unturned in the process. With so many institutions under its care, it is destined to become a University that will give an umbrella affiliation to all institutions under its care.
The director of FMCI, Fr Richard Aloysius Coelho, places the success of the smooth running of the institution on the teamwork of all. He has adeptly guided the affairs of the institution for the last 8 years. “It is the teamwork of our dedicated staff that makes things happen in FMCI. The technological and innovative impetus given to different healthcare institutions under our care has resulted in taking us to the next level of becoming a super speciality hospital. The progress of the Institution, keeping Christian values at the core of operations, has resulted in manifold growth. At FMCI, we believe humanity can touch everyone and always walk that extra mile,” says Fr Coelho.
With similar enthusiasm, Fr Ajith Menezes, the Administrator of Father Muller Medical College, envisions a university, saying, “Our future goal is to bring all medical science courses under one umbrella by establishing the Father Muller Deemed to be University.”
He also mentioned the immense contribution, dedication and commitment rendered by the former deans Dr B Sanjeev Rai (Tenure: 15.04.1999 – 08.03.2009), Dr Jayaprakash Alva (Tenure: 09.03.2009 – 05.12.2021) and current Dean Dr Antony Sylvan Dsouza (Tenure: 06.12.2021 till date) whose efforts and guidance have propelled in the Medical College to gain international name and fame.
Dr Antony Silvan D'Souza, Dean. FMCI
With an intake of 150 seats at the undergraduate level i.e., MBBS and 19 post graduate degrees in clinical, para clinical and super speciality streams, Father Muller Medical College becomes the health care educator of the future. The required medical infrastructure aided by the vast number of patient footfalls and its location in the middle of a growing city of Mangaluru, the Medical College will be the flagbearer of healthcare. With 28 department of different medical branches, Father Muller Medical College has become formidable force to take on medical challenges.
Fr Richard Aloysius Coelho - A true visionary
The director Fr Richard Coelho is a true team leader at Fr Muller Charitable Institutions. He is loved by all for his endearing and affable qualities. He attributes the smooth running of Institution to the personnel at various levels. He has been the Director for the last 8 years, has anchored the responsibility with tact, despite challenges. Prior to becoming director, he was the Administrator of the Medical College Hospital for 7 years. He was also assistant director of the hospital in the early 90s and knows the hospital closely.
A true believer in innovations, he is ready to walk that extra mile that will place the Hospital and Institution in a higher pedestal. Keeping the Christian values of charity and service he has maneuvered the Institution in providing the best healthcare and medical education. The Covid 19 pandemic was a challenging time of his directorate. The hospital is now accredited with NABH (National Accreditation Board for Hospitals) and NABL (National Accreditation Board for Laboratories) and has become the only hospital to get such accreditation among the hospitals and medical colleges affiliated to Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences Bengaluru. New cancer equipment, MRI 3 Tesla, Advanced Ultra-sound machines, advanced cardiac care machines were procured, that gave the hospital the technical edge. Pneumatic shoots to directly deliver medicines to wards and lab samples from wards to the lab saved time and man hours, increasing the efficiency of the hospital operations. With introduction hospital software that managed OPD records, admissions, billings and all other hospital related services, the hospital has now become paperless besides enabling availability of ready patient data for more efficient diagnosis. Intensive and Critical care in the hospital got a big boost when its capacity was increased from 20 beds to 100 beds. Primary health care was given a boost with taking over some of the government primary health centers besides establishing one in Bajpe. By doing so, hospital went from the city to the rural. Infrastructural facilities received a big boast. He strongly believes in using the same built spaces but renovated them to suit the present times. This helped in preserving the architecture of the old times.
Directing his energy towards improving the medical education, he was instrumental in starting super speciality programmes. Apart from General medical specialties, new Post graduation programmes in DM Neurology, Nephrology, Medical Oncology, MD Emergency Medicine, MCh in Gastro- enterology and Plastic surgery, were introduced. The paramedical courses of allied health sciences were carved out of the medical college and made into a separate Father Muller College of Allied Health Sciences. The paramedical courses were increased from 4 to 15 with undergraduate and post graduate levels. Father Muller College of Pharmaceutical Sciences is started in Deralakatte. Fr Coelho, believes in carving rivers out of oceans to be more pragmatic and workable, that is to say he created many divisions for ease of management. Simulation and skill center for the medical college was a big boost and aided the learning process. Father Muller Research Centre was opened to aid research into medical fields and research papers were published in known journals such as Scopus Journal, known internationally in the medical publications. NAAC accreditation and NIRF ranks have given the institution the place among top medical schools in the country. Fr Richard Coelho created a strong spring-board for the Institution with which institution is now geared to look at the future with energy and confidence.
The path ahead
It is with years of legacy Father Muller Charitable Institutions have become a part of daily life of people. With ever-growing number of patients with different types of health concerns it’s a challenge to the medical fraternity to heal them. The role of the hospital in the society it exists gets renewed every day. Its working is on a daily basis, meeting and confronting realities of life. But when these realities come to the door steps of Father Muller, they are dealt with compassion, love and a smile is brought back in a gloomy scenario. There are others those who are not working at Father Mullers but have passed out of its educational institutions. Hundreds of nurses, doctors and paramedical science students who pass out of the Institution, take with them the core values of the Father Muller to the place where they are placed and become ambassadors of kindness and compassion. That way values learnt and imbibed echo in different parts of the world. It has indeed transcended the geographical regions mentioned by poet Dr Mary Agnes in the institution anthem “of Karnataka, or Bharat” but has become truly global, to be belonging to the world and its people. Fr Muller’s dream of being succour to the suffering is fulfilled with a renewed pledge, even the stern looking German in him is now smiling, as his sons and daughters have taken upon themselves to be in charge of his mission. The broader mission is to continue the vision of the Founder, to be healing and comforting those who come to hospital doors seeking solace.
Visit website for more details
https://fathermuller.edu.in/
