Born in Colombo on 30th April 1900, Dr Cyril Fernando was educated at St Benedict’s College and University College Hospital, London. He qualified with the Conjoint Diploma in 1925 and graduated MBBS the year after. He was elected to the Membership of the Royal College of Physicians the same year. He did so well in the MRCP examination that he was excused the final viva, a component dreaded by many.
Returning to Ceylon, he joined the Colonial Medical Service and became Medical Registrar to the General Hospital, Colombo. In 1929 he returned to London and took his MD and was awarded the Gold Medal as the best candidate of the year. On his return to Colombo he was appointed in succession, additional assistant
Pathologist, Physicians to Out Patients and in 1934 Physician to the General Hospital Colombo which he served with unwavering devotion for nearly a quarter century.
Dr Fernando was a great clinician and a diagnostician who prided himself on not being a specialist and claimed to be a non-specialist consultant in General Medicine. In every sense a good doctor, he was held in high esteem by his colleagues and loved by his patients. He was an active member of the Ceylon Branch of the British Medical Association and its successor, the Ceylon Medical Association. He was successively CMA’s Honorary Secretary, Treasurer, Vice President and in 1948, the President.
He was twice honoured by the Sovereign for his service to Medicine in Ceylon. In 1949 he was appointed an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire and in 1955 he was made a companion of the most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George.
| YEAR | TOPIC | ORATOR |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Some changes in the pattern of disease and in the practice of Medicine | Prof Bruce Perry |
| 1972 | Occupational lung disease in Ceylon | Dr CG Uragoda |
| 1973 | Community Medicine | Prof Sir Donald Turnbridge |
| 1974 | Experiences with viral hepatitis | Dr N Nagaratnam |
| 1976 | Milk Intolerance & chronic diarrhoea | Dr PT de Silva |
| 1977 | Encephalitis | Dr L S Illis |
| 1982 | Palsy due to contamination of gingerly oil | Dr Nimal Senanayake |
| 1984 | Mitral stenosis in childhood | Dr S J Stephen |
| 1988 | Motor neuron disease in the youth | Dr Govry Devi |
| 1990 | Major risk factors of coronary heart disease in Sri Lankans | Dr Shanthi Mendis |
| 1992 | Cytokines in the Pathogenesis of Shigellosis | Dr Harendra de Silva |
| 1993 | Renal disease – the Sri Lankan and Global spectrum | Dr S. Ramachandran |
| 1994 | Malnutrition related diabetes- Fact or Fiction | Dr Upali Illangasekera |
| 1995 | Cardiac applications of high frequency ultrasound | Prof P A N Chandraratne |
| 1996 | Developments in medical education | Prof Norman Mackay |
| 1997 | Clinical epidemiology of thyroid disease in Sri Lanka | Prof Devaka Fernando |
| 1998 | Diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease: a question of channels | Dr H Asita de Silva |
| 1999 | Tuberculosis meningitis | Dr S M Katrak |
| 1999 | Tuberculosis meningitis | Dr S M Katrak |
| 2000 | Sarcoidosis –an enigma? | Prof Roland Clark |
| 2001 | Tropical medicine: increasing reference in the 21st century | Prof David Warrell |
| 2002 | Bone mineral density and hip geometry in women referred for bone density testing | Dr Sarath Lekamwasam |
| 2003 | Renal fibrosis – can we prevent it? | Prof Gavin Becker |
| 2004 | Pathogenesis and new therapeutic options for portal hypertension | Prof S K Sarin |
| 2005 | Guillain-Barre syndrome: a Sri Lankan profile | Dr Udaya Ranawaka |
| 2006 | Alcohol as an exploding health hazard | Prof Ian Gilmore |
| 2007 | High blood pressure in Sri Lanka: epidemiology & implications for health | Prof Rifdy Mohideen |
| 2008 | Salt and Health: Time for Action | Prof Graham A MacGregor |
| 2009 | Multifaceted manifestations of paediatrics endocrinology | Dr Shamya de Silva |
| 2010 | Haemolytic uraemic syndrome | Dr Paul Warwicker |
| 2011 | The controlled clinical trial and its application to neglected healthcare problems in Sri Lanka | Prof Asita de Silva |
| 2011 | The controlled clinical trial and its application to neglected healthcare problems in Sri Lanka | Prof Asita de Silva |
| 2012 | Dengue fever in adults : Evolution of the illness and the bedside challenges | Prof Ranjan Premaratna |
| 2013 | The discovery of a novel snake neurotoxin, candoxin- implications for cholinergic signalling mechanisms in health and disease | Dr Selvanayagam Nirthanan |
| 2014 | Atrial septal defect (ASD) device closure- the revolution continues… | Dr Gamini Galappatthy |
| 2015 | Not awarded | N/A |
| 2016 | Changing epidemiology of dengue in southern Sri Lanka | Dr Champica Bodinayake |
| 2017 | Dengue, bleeding and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs | Dr Ananda Wijewickrama |
| 2018 | Not awarded | N/A |
| 2019 | Not awarded | N/A |
| 2020 | Combating burden of CVD through innovative strategies to improve BP control | Prof Asita de Silva |
| 2021 | Not awarded | N/A |
| 2022 | Dengue viral infection: Untangling the host viral knot | Dr Nilanka Perera |