International Institute of Islamic Medicine (IIIM)
A project of IMANA with global and perpetual implications
Historical
The International Institute of Islamic Medicine (IIIM) was formed by a mandate given by the Executive Committee of Islamic Medical
Association of North America (IMANA) at its executive meeting held in Orlando, Florida in February 1993. The concept had initially been presented by a white paper read by Dr. Husain Nagamia at the International Conference of IMANA in Nerja, Spain in 1990. Subsequently the concept was formulated and IIIM council was formed consisting mostly of the past-presidents of the IMANA. Dr. Husain Nagamia past-president of IMANA, past-editor-in-chief on “JIMA” (Journal of Islamic Medicine Association) was elected to serve as chairman and Dr. Tajuddin Ahmed was elected to serve as treasurer. IIIM’s main function and purpose was to resurrect, research, redefine the knowledge of “History of the Islamic Medicine” and to publish, publicize and propagate this information especially amongst the Muslim Physicians, students, health professionals and the Muslim masses. “Islamic Medicine” in this context being defined as the Medicine developed and practiced during the culmination and zenith of the Islamic civilization.
Aims, functions and goals of the Institute
1. The aims, functions and goals of the Institute have been to gather together as much data as possible on the History of Medicine during the early Islamic period.
2. To collect all books, manuscripts, texts, folios and illustrations relevant to the period and the subject of Islamic Medicine and its history and create a Reference Library “History of Islamic Medicine Library”. A library has already been started and now has about 1000 books periodicals and collectibles.
3. Encourage research and publications of the golden period of “History of Islamic Medicine”. Several publications have been undertaken, including articles in journals, occasional papers a historical series translation of books and a text book on this subject.
4. To develop a curriculum for all medical schools in the Islamic countries to teach “History of Islamic Medicine” as an independent and important subject. This will be available in 2009- 2010 from the Institute to all Medical Schools from the Institute.
5. Eventually be able to offer annual accredited courses in Islamic Medicine so that we can propagate this knowledge.
- Develop and maintain a web page on the History of Islamic Medicine so that it is available for the knowledge of the Muslim population and all humanity in general. A web page was developed in 2000 and is under revision in 2008. Please visit at : www.iiim.org or www.imana.org
- Encourage research into the subject of “History of Islamic Medicine” by giving scholarships and prizes to young medical undergraduates. This has been instituted in 2008 by the announcement of a “Valiunnisa Essay Prize” to be awarded in 2008 and other prizes to be awarded yearly.
- Encourage the ultimate development of an Islamic Medical University and Hospitals in the North American continent.
Achievements of the Institute
So far IIIM has achieved quite a few of its objectives already. There have been six international and national conferences of the International Institute of Islamic Medicine (IIIM) that were held independent of the IMANA. Subsequently about 4 have been held as a subsection of the IMANA conferences. The National conferences were held in Orlando, FL (twice) USA. The International conferences have been held in; Birmingham, England Hyderabad, India Karachi, Pakistan, Dubai UAE and Doha, (Qatar).
IIIM web page was created in the year 2000 and has been visited by a large number of Internet visitors. We have received positive comments about this page from all over the World including China, Japan, India, and Malaysia etc.
Many articles on History of Islamic Medicine have already been published under the auspices of IIIM. Most of these have been published in the Journal of Islamic Medical Association of North America or JIMA adding to additional wealth to this cadre of knowledge, but others have also been published in other leading worldwide journals for example: Hamdard Medicus, Journal of International Society for History of Islamic Medicine (JISHIM), Islamic Review, Islamic Horizons, to name a few.
A traveling IIIM Exhibition has been created to educate the Muslim and Non Muslim Physician, about the rich heritage of Islamic Medical History.
Exhibitions have been held in the following cities: Toledo, Detroit, Orlando, Dallas, Chicago, Durham, Tampa, Springhill, Dubai, Doha (Qatar).
Future aspirations of the Institute
The IIIM has become a very important part of IMANA. It can play a leading role in all future developments of IMANA. This is because the “History of Islamic Medicine” is so scintillating and the lessons learnt from it so illustrative; that we can continuously learn from experiences of these great physicians, philosophers and scientists,if we care to learn why and how they did it.
Accumulation and dissemination of this knowledge has been neglected by all Islamic Nations and all Medical Schools in Islamic and non-Islamic Nations. The only people that can and could bring about a change are the Muslim physicians themselves, because nobody else is going to undertake this task for them. Thus, the Islamic Medical Association of North America being the largest body of Muslim physicians in the United States and North America, has to become dynamically involved in building this Institute. It has to be built on a very solid foundation and has to achieve the same caliber as the other Historical Medical Institutes founded by West to cultivate and preserve their heritage and contributions to the development of Medicine.
Many of these Western Institutions (like the Wellcome Institute, British Museum, Escorial Library, National Library of Medicine) already posses a lot of information regarding the History of Islamic Medicine including some of its most priceless books and manuscripts. It is for us the Muslim Physicians of the United States and members of the Islamic Medical Association of North America to pattern the International Institute of Islamic Medicine in the North American Continent on a similar basis. Islamic Medical Association can achieve the stature of a body that not only supports annual conventions and periodic discussions about contemporary medicine but also gets accredited for the development of a full-fledged research facility in the history and practice of Islamic Medicine in the form of IIIM. This is to preserve our heritage and encourages our children to continue ongoing research. This will also encourage the future development of the Science and Ethics of practice of Islamic medicine which is significantly different from the philosophy and practice of Western Medicine.
Financial outlays:
By a modest but generous endowment of a benefactor, IIIM became functional and operational. International Institute of Islamic Medicine (IIIM) can become a fully functional and world-renowned Institute if it is funded properly. The minimum endowment necessary for this purpose would be at least a million dollars. We need to raise this money, and earmark it for the development of the Institute. With the large economic base that the Muslim Physicians have in the USA, with good efforts, with dedicated fund raising, and with continuous requests for bequests from generous and prosperous donors it would be easy to convince many Muslim physicians to donate generously to this endowment in their wills and estate and raise the endowment to even10 million dollars within a few years. The capital of the endowment is never be used.Only the income from it has to be used.
Future projects of IIIM:
The projects that the Institute can undertake from the income generated are as follows:
1. Development of a “Virtual Cyber library” of Islamic medical Manuscripts monographs. Books journals and periodicals can be collected from various parts of the world, and these can be put on a “Cyber” database accessible to all scholars and students through the internet. This is relatively inexpensive way of collecting rare books and manuscripts for research without having to spend funds to acquire very expensive original material and “sources of knowledge.”
2. Development of a “Museum of History of Islamic Medicine” where actual artifacts or replicas from the “golden Period” can be
displayed and be available to educate Muslims and Non-Muslims alike.
3. Development of a “Department of Translation” where systematic translations of the important and pertinent texts can be undertaken. This will revolutionize the History of Medicine by enlightening the world of the contributions that the “Golden period” made to the development of Medicine and which at this time lie buried in the World Libraries.
4. “Department of Research”: This would award research grants and scholarships to students who undertake research and publications in this subject.
Conclusion
If IMANA were to undertake and endorse the project wholeheartedly and appropriate the “Endowment Capital” necessary as outline above this Ideological Institute can become a functional reality in less than a few years and earn world wide fame in less than a decade.
| Contact Info: |
| IIIM |
| Tel 813-661-6161 |
| P O Box 160 , Brandon FL 33509-0160 |
| USA |
| Web page: www.iiim.org |
| Chairman: |
| Husain Nagamia MD FRFCS (Eng & Edin) |
| Tel: 813-654-4466 |
| Email:hnagamia786@aol.com |
