The Department of Microbiology, Vinayaka Mission’s Kirupananda Variyar Medical College & Hospitals (VMKVMCH), Salem, in collaboration with the Indian Society of Medical Mycologists (ISMM), organized a National Hands-on Workshop in Clinical Mycology on 13th & 14th October 2025.
The workshop aimed to strengthen diagnostic skills and clinical understanding of fungal infections among faculty and postgraduate clinical microbiologists. A total of 56 delegates from across the country actively participated in this two-day academic event.
The sessions were led by eminent ISMM faculty — Dr. Anup Ghosh, President, ISMM & Professor, PGIMER, Chandigarh; Dr. Shukla Das, General Secretary, ISMM & Director, Professor & Head, UCMS & GTBH, Delhi and Dr. Pratibha Kale, Joint Secretary, ISMM & Additional Professor, ILBS, Delhi.
The scientific sessions included lectures on the clinical spectrum of fungal infections, antifungal susceptibility testing, diagnostic stewardship, and non-culture-based diagnostic methods, followed by hands-on training on techniques such as germ tube, chlamydospore, slide culture, fungal teasing and CHROMagar Candida interpretation.
A special Sensititre plate demonstration for antifungal susceptibility testing (AFST) was conducted by the technical team from Thermo Fisher Scientific, which provided participants with valuable practical exposure to automated antifungal testing.
Mounted and histopathology slides of common and rare fungal pathogens were also displayed for learning. The workshop was highly interactive and well appreciated by participants for its practical orientation, academic depth and expert mentorship.
