Chandigarh, September 8:- In a significant achievement for PGIMER, Chandigarh and India, Prof. Babita Ghai, Professor, Anaesthesia and Intensive Care and Consultant In-charge, Pain Clinic, PGIMER, has been elected as a Councillor of the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), representing Asia/Oceania and Australia for a six-year term, following a rigorous and competitive election.
IASP is a leading international organisation in the field of pain, with approximately 10,000 members worldwide. Prof. Ghai is the second Indian woman and the youngest Indian to be elected to the IASP Council.
Associated with IASP since 2004, Prof. Ghai has held several leadership positions, including roles in its Global Advocacy Working Group, Presidential Task Force on Interdisciplinary Pain Treatment, Developing Countries/LMIC Working Group, Pain Education SIG, Acute Pain SIG and Pain Research Forum.
With 27 years of post-MD experience, she is the Course Coordinator for the Pain Medicine Fellowship at PGIMER. She completed a Commonwealth Academic Staff Fellowship in Pain Management at Barts and The London NHS Trust, Queen Mary University of London, UK, in 2012. She has approximately 150 peer-reviewed publications, has led several funded research projects and has delivered more than 250 invited national and international lectures. She has also served as invited faculty at nearly 20 international conferences, including the World Congress on Pain.
A notable aspect of her work has been her commitment to taking healthcare to underserved communities. She has organised several free health and pain-relief camps in rural and underserved areas, providing consultations, screening, pain management and medicines, along with community-based yoga programmes and referrals for specialised care.
Prof. Ghai has developed an evidence-based yoga protocol for chronic low back pain and published an illustrated back-care booklet in Hindi, Punjabi and English, which has been distributed free of cost. Her contribution to health education through Hindi was recognised with the National Hindi Award from the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. She has also conducted public awareness programmes through community organisations, FM radio and other platforms and was invited as a TEDx speaker on “Accessibility”.
She is currently leading a DST KIRAN project focused on reaching rural communities and teaching yoga to patients with chronic low back pain. Her ICMR-funded community research has resulted in two large studies examining the prevalence, disability, psychosocial and mental health impact of chronic low back pain.
Prof. Ghai’s contributions have been recognised through 16 national awards, including the President’s Appreciation Award of the Indian Society for the Study of Pain, in addition to four international professional awards.
Her election to the IASP Council recognises her contributions to pain medicine, education, research and advocacy, while highlighting PGIMER’s growing international leadership in pain care and academic medicine. Her work continues to strengthen the link between excellence in tertiary healthcare and compassionate, accessible care for the wider community.