Priyani Soysa: Renowned professor emerita of paediatrics passes away

Deshamanya Priyani Elizabeth Soysa, professor emerita of paediatrics at the University of Colombo, has passed away.

Prof. Soysa was aged 97 at the time of her demise.

From 1966-1991, she served as the Professor of Paediatrics at the University of Ceylon (now, the University of Colombo), becoming the first woman in Sri Lanka to be appointed to a professorial chair.

Hailing from Moratuwa, Prof. Soysa was educated at the Princess of Wales College, following which she completed her MBBS at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Colombo.

Prof. Soysa then pursued specialist studies in paediatrics in the United Kingdom.

During her distinguished career, Prof. Soysa has held a number of positions including the chairpersonship Board Study in Paediatrics of the Post Graduate Institute of Medicine, the chairpersonship of National Science Foundation of Sri Lanka. She was also a consultant to the World Health Organization and the United Nations Subcommittee on Nutrition.

Prof. Soysa was a past president of Sri Lanka Paediatric Association (Sri Lanka College of Paediatricians, the Sri Lanka Medical Association and the Sri Lanka Association for Advancement of Science.