RAMIE
VEERAPPAN
As a lady who has committed her life to community service, Ramie is a lady of great dedication to her beliefs. She has achieved so many “firsts” in her life that it would be difficult to imagine her failing at anything to which she sets her mind.
A
South African by birth, Ramie was the first person in her predominantly
East Indian community of Doornfontein to leave her home to study abroad. An
achievement that showed her commitment to making a better life – both
for herself and others.
On completion of her studies in England, Ramie returned to South Africa
and her work in hospitals there resulted in her being the first non-white
person, male or female, to be awarded a scholarship by the Rockefeller
Foundation.
Her chosen field of specialisation was family planning and Ramie studied
at the Downstate Medical Centre and Brooklyn, New York – the first
black South African to enroll at that facility. At the end of this
course, she returned to South Africa for a further two years and with her
new skills she became a family planning counselor for the Family Planning
Clinic in Johannesburg.
When
she moved to Canada, Ramie continued to practice nursing and set up
the first family planning clinic at St Joseph’s Hospital and
also developed birth control programs for the public health department. For
six years, Ramie worked in pharmaceutical sales where she received
several awards but she returned to her first love – that of nursing.
As
a labour and delivery nurse at Mount Sinai Hospital she supported mothers
during labour and assisted physicians with the delivery of babies,
including premature and high risk infants.
In 1990, Ramie established Maternal, Infant and Child Ltd a company
that specializes exclusively in caring for new mothers, and their babies. Her
company has been recognized by the health community for its commitment
to quality nursing.
Apart from her academic achievements, Ramie’s entrepreneurial and business skills have allowed her to provide high calibre, highly significant health care to mothers, infants and children.
There are two outstanding facets that are obvious to anyone meeting Ramie, either socially or through her work.
She has an abundance of love for people and a selfless dedication to community service. It is these attributes that make Ramie a very special person whose heart is firmly in the right place.