Dr. Bal Ramsaran is the Founder and Medical Laboratory Director of the St. Augustine Medical Laboratory. He is the holder of a PhD in Chemical Pathology from Leeds University, England, and has over 30 years experience in Laboratory Medicine. His initial experiences were at Leeds Infirmary and St. James’ Hospital, England. On returning to Trinidad, he held a temporary position as a Clinical Biochemist in the Pathology Department of San Fernando General Hospital, Trinidad. In 1981, Dr. Ramsaran along with his brother Dr Joe Ramsaran, founded St. Augustine Medical Laboratory. Dr. Ramsaran is a longstanding member of the American Association of Clinical Chemistry, American Association of Clinical Pathology and European Association of Hematology.
Dr. Shari Ramsaran graduated from the renowned Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) as a medical doctor, MB Bch BAO LRCP&SI . Through her time as a medical trainee in Ireland, she gained clinical experience and returned to Trinidad where she worked for a short time at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) before deciding to pursue a career path similar to her father.
Dr Shari then pursued a Master of Science in Clinical Biochemistry (Chemical Pathology) at the prestigious University of Manchester in the United Kingdom with her focal research based in identification of cell signaling pathways associated with Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma. Dr Shari intends to maintain a career as a Clinical Biochemist as well as future involvement in academia.
Mr Awai holds a Bachelor of Science in Pure and Applied Chemistry followed by a post graduate diploma in Management from the University of the West Indies. He is certified as an IRCA Lead Auditor (International Register of Certified Auditors – Institute of Quality Assurance, UK) and an IRCA Registered Principal Auditor- ISO 9001.
He worked for 10 years in the manufacturing industry as a quality practitioner and laboratory manager. Following this, he joined the Trinidad and Tobago Bureau of Standards (TTBS) where he served for 27 years and acted as an executive director on many occasions. His work in the Certification Division successfully developed it as the only Caricom Quality System Registrar, auditing and granting ISO 9001 certification to a range of industries. He is an expert in quality management systems performing over 100 audits in the chemical, construction, packaging, energy and training institutions. His portfolio has since been expanded to laboratory accreditation.
He successfully realized the international accreditation (ISO 15189) of St. Augustine Medical Laboratory Ltd., the first of its kind in the region.
Consultant Hematologist MBBS(UWI), MRCP (UK), DM (UWI), FRCP (Edin), ESMD CERT, SPECIAL CERT (Medical Oncology - Royal College).
Consultant Geneticist Phd Yale University (US), Postdoctoral Fellow, Human Genetics Stanford University (US).
Consultant Surgical Pathologist MA BMChB (Hons) FRCPath CCT(UK).
