17th International Congress on Infectious Diseases

<strong>17th</strong> INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON INFECTIOUS DISEASES
In Memoriam
Dr. Suniti Solomon ~ 1938–2015
Dr. Suniti Solomon, an eminent physician and microbiologist from India, and
a member of the National Organizing Committee of the <strong>17th</strong> <strong>International</strong>
<strong>Congress</strong> on Infectious Diseases passed away on July 28, 2015 in Chennai, India.
Dr. Solomon’s name is synonymous with pioneering HIV and AIDS research in
the country. In 1986, she and her team at Madras Medical College in Chennai,
India, documented for the first time the extent of HIV infection in the country.
Her efforts in this area facilitated several policy and programme actions.
Dr. Solomon established one of India’s first voluntary HIV counselling and
testing facilities in 1993 at the Y. R. Gaitonde Centre for AIDS Research and
Education, a premier HIV/AIDS care and support centre in Chennai. She was
actively involved in the work of the YRG Centre and in HIV education to the
end of her life.
With an MD in Microbiology from Madras University, Dr. Solomon trained in
pathology in the UK, the USA, and Australia before returning to Chennai in
1973. Her experience covered a wide range of aspects linked to HIV infection,
biomedical parameters to socio-economics. She published extensively on HIV
epidemiology, prevention, care, support and related gender issues. In 2009,
the Ministry of Science and Technology conferred the National Award for
Women Bioscientists on Dr. Solomon in recognition of her contributions to the
field of HIV/AIDS research in India.
Dr. Solomon will always be remembered for her groundbreaking research and
significant contributions towards care and support work in the area of HIV and
AIDS in India.
#<strong>17th</strong>ICID FINAL PROGRAM ~ 7