Dr Santhanam was a DAISI Board Member until he stood down in 2020. Dr Santhanam remains an active DAISI member, Dr Santhanam was born in Chennai, India, and graduated from Medicine at Madras University in 1968 and migrated to Australia in 1972, trained at Royal Newcastle hospital, from June 72 till jan 1980, and was in Sydney Hospital, in 1980 and at St Marks for 6 months in 1988. After a short hon. fellowship in Sydney hospital, Dr Sahthanam started his private specialist practice in 1981, mostly colorectal and some general surgery. Dr Santhanam worked for many years at Belmont public hospital, and now works at Lake MacQuarie Private Hospital and Mater Private Hospital in Sydney where his is involved in colorectal and robotic surgery.
Dr Santhanam visited and taught surgery as a DAISI member at numerous hospitals in the Solomon Islands, including the Methodist Helena Goldie Hospital in Munda and the government Gizo Hospital in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands. He also visited Taro hospital in the remote Choiseul province on a fact finding mission in January 2017.
Since 2021 Dr Santhanam has also been responsible for the monitoring of all morbidity and mortality data associated with DAISI surgical visits.
