About Dr. Charles Kanagasunderam:
Charles Rajadurai Kanagasundaram MBBS DO was born in 1923 into a Christian Tamil family in Ceylon where he went to school, and qualified as a doctor. After 5 years in general medical duties in the Government Health Service he came to Britain in 1952, where he held junior ophthalmic posts in the Midlands before his appointment as a Consultant Ophthalmologist in Newcastle upon Tyne. His publications up to that time indicated what were to be the outstanding features of his work as a consultant, namely, anterior segment surgery and clinical photography. One contemporary account reported that,
‘It was always a delight to watch Charles operating; he made it look so easy and graceful and one learned much by doing so.‘
At this time, he brought to ophthalmology the fruits of his other hobby – engineering – and he applied his logical mind and knowledge of engineering principles to surgical techniques and to the improvement of surgical instruments and sutures. Indeed, he actually manufactured some instruments of great delicacy in his own workshop and he repaired instruments that the professional instrument makers claimed were beyond them.
Charles’ spirit of innovation and adventure was evident in many other areas outside of his professional life, from boat building (including the manufacture of a submarine medice to view the coral reefs off the coast of Ceylon) to his single-handed overland drive from the UK to Jaffna (recorded, for posterity, with a fixed cine camera replacing the passenger-seat of an absent co-traveller).
Although a naturalised British citizen, he nevertheless retained a great love for his own country and people. He was a co-founder of SCOT (the Standing Committee of Tamil Speaking People; www.scot-uk.org.uk), established in 1977 for the relief of poverty and social upliftment of Tamil speaking people. On his frequent visits to Sri Lanka he spent time operating in local hospitals, provided medical assistance to refugees following the upheavals of 1977, and lectured the Association for the Advancement of Scientific Students in Columbo.
After a massive stroke his inventive mind was put to solving the problems he encountered, so that he had already designed medices for use by paraplegics and was taking steps to see that they were manufactured, when he suffered his last illness, a further coronary occlusion, at the age of fifty-six.
[With gratitude to Miss M.A.C. Jones, ret’d Ophthalmic Surgeon].
Gold Medal
This Gold Medal is awarded annually to a candidate who obtains the highest marks amongst those who obtain a distinction in Physiology
Awarding commenced in 1984 for the deserving student from the fifth batch.
The names of the recipients of this medal are listed below:
(Table Here)
| Batch No | Name | Year of Admission | Date of Examination |
| 5 | Miss.T.Thurairajah
(1982/FM/67) |
1982 | July 1984 |
| 6 | Miss.N.Balasubramaniam
(1983/FM/07) |
1983 | July 1985 |
| 7 | Miss.N.D.Anthonimuthu
(1984/FM/01) |
1984 | July 1986 |
| 8 | Miss M. Jamhuna | 1985 | March 1988 |
| 9 | Not awarded | 1986 | June 1989 |
| 10 | Mr. P. Lakshman | 1987 | May 1990 |
| 11 | Miss N. Nagulasingaratnam | 1988 | June 1991 |
| 12 | Miss P. Kandiah | 1989 | June 1992 |
| 13 | Mr. S. Rajendra | 1990 | July 1993 |
| 14 | Mr. T. Sivakumar | 1991 | August 1994 |
| 15 | Not Awarded | 1992 | August 1995 |
| 16 | Mr. T. Gobishangar | 1993 | February 1997 |
| 17 | Mr. Amalaseelan Julan Vimalenthiran | 1994 | January 1998 |
| 18 | Not Awarded | 1995 | July 1998 |
| 19 | Not Awarded | 1996 | September 1999 |
| 20 | Miss Pavani Arulliah | 1997 | July 2000 |
| 21 | Miss Premila Srikanthan | 1998 | July 2001 |
| 22 | Mr. Sivapalan Sanchayan | 1999 | July 2002 |
| 23 | Not Awarded | 2000 | July 2002 |
| 24 | Not Awarded | 2001 | April 2003 |
| 25 | Miss Jane Sangetha Bendict | 2002 | October 2004 |
| 26 | Mr. Muthulingam Athavan | 2003 | October 2004 |
| 27 | Not Awarded | 2004 | April 2006 |
| 28 | Not Awarded | 2005 | July 2007 |
| 29 | Miss Karthiha Balendran | 2006 | July 2008 |
| 30 | Not Awarded | 2007 | March 2009 |
| 31 | Miss Mary Anusha Ferdinand Chandran | 2008 | February 2010 |
| 32 | Miss Thanikai Sivakumar | 2009 | January 2011 |
| 33 | 1. Mr. P. Tharmeesan
2. Miss.Chaturika Madhubashini Samarasinghe |
2010 | January 2012 |
| 34 | Mr.Sivagurunathan Kajanan (2011/FM/21) | 2011 | 2013 |
| 35 | Miss.Jothiji Sivahurunathan (Reg.No:2012/FM/035) | 2012 | 2014 |
| 36 | Mr.Sivakumaran Vinojakan (Reg.No:2013/FM/121) | 2013 | 2015 |
| 37 | Miss.Thakshana Sangaradas (2014FM/097) | 2014 | 2016 |
| 38 | Mr.Kathirgamanathan Sithamparapanan (2015/FM/103) | 2015 | 2018 |
| 39 | Mr.Anandarajah Lukshayan (2016FM/060)
Miss. Karunanithy Dinoshiga ( 2016/FM/021) Miss.Rajaratnam Rinothja ( 2016/FM/089) |
2016 | 2019 |
| 40 | Mr. Uthayakumar Jathushan (2017FM/042)
Mr. Nalendran Jeevidhan (2017/FM/047) Miss. Umashangar Sahana (2017/FM/047) |
2017 | 2019 |
| 41 | Miss.Mohamed Gazzall Hassan Fathima Aqkeela (2018/FM/013) | 2018 | 2020 |