Biography

I received BSc in Pharmacy in 2004 from the University of Colombo and then completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Education in 2009 from the same university. In 2009, I started my career as a lecturer in the Bachelor of Pharmacy Degree Programme which was conducted by the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ruhuna. My Master of Philosophy degree was obtained from University of Ruhuna in 2014. Master’s thesis title was “Pharmacodynamics of Costus speciosus leaves and its effects on insulin resistance and atherogenesis” and it was funded by Faculty of Medicine research grants of University of Ruhuna. My current research focuses on medication adherence in elderly patients with chronic diseases. Further, I do lectures on Pharmacology, Clinical pharmacy, Therapeutics and Biopharmaceutics for Bachelor of Pharmacy undergraduates in the Faculty of Allied health Sciences, University of Ruhuna.

Qualification

PhD (UK)

MPhil (Ruhuna)

PG Dip in Education (Colombo)

BSc.in Pharmacy (Colombo)

Course/Modules Teaching for undergraduates

• Pharmacology
• Clinical Pharmacy
• Therapeutics
• Biopharmaceutics

Research and publications

Present research interests

Medication adherence and chronic diseases

Special awards and prizes

• First place - Three Minute Thesis Competition held by the Faculty of Science and Engineering, the University of Wolverhampton, UK on 22nd February 2019
• The Best Oral Presenter - 11th Academic sessions of University of Ruhuna held on 19th March, 2014 for presenting the abstract - Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S, Liyanage T, Effect of methanolic extract of Costus speciosus (Thebu) leaf on insulin resistance in Wistar rats: Comparison with pioglitazone.
• 1 st runner up - Scientific Sessions 2012, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura held on 6-7 th December, 2012 for presenting the abstract - Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardene S. Rapid Onset of Action of Costus speciosus Leaf Extracts on Insulin Resistance in Experimental Wistar Rats.

Research publications(full paper)

• Subasinghe HWAS, Lekamwasam S, Ball P, Morrissey H, Waidyaratne EI, Performance of Sri Lankan FRAX algorithm without bone mineral density and with Quantitative Ultrasound data input. Ceylon Medical Journal 2019; 64: 17- 24, DOI: http://doi.org//10.4038/cmj.v64i1.8836
• Sarath Lekamwasam, Manju Chandran, Sewwandi Subasinghe Revised FRAX®-based intervention thresholds for the management of osteoporosis among postmenopausal women in Sri Lanka, Archives of osteoporosis, 14 (1), 33
• Subasinghe H.W.A.S, Ball P, Morrissey H, Waidyaratne E.I and Lekamwasam S, Development and validation of a country-specific prediction tool to screen Postmenopausal women for osteoporosis or high fracture risk, International Journal of Current Medical and Pharmaceutical research, 4:6 (A); 3405-3413
• Mahesh KHD, Weerasundera R, Morrissey H, Ball PA, Subasinghe HWAS, Comparison of relapse rates of depot and oral antipsychotics in Patients with schizophrenia. International Journal of Current Medical and Pharmaceutical Research, 2018;4 (1B): 2947-2953 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.24327/23956429.ijcmpr20180374
• Madhushani H.P.D and Subasinghe H.W.A.S. Knowledge. Attitudes and Practices of Asthma; Does It Associate With Socio-Demographic Factors of Patients?. Asian Pac. J. Health Sci., 2016; 3(4S):87-92. doi: 10.21276/apjhs.2016.3.4S.13.
• Subasinghe Hewa Walpola Amila Sewwandi, Hettihewa Lakshmi Menik, Gunawardena Sampath, Liyanage Thushari. Methanol and water extracts of Costus speciosus (J.Konig) sm leaves reverse the high-fat-diet induced peripheral insulin resistance in experimental Wistar rats. International Research Journal of Pharmacy 2014; 5(2):44-49.
• Hettihewa LM, Jayarathna K, Subasinghe S. Cross sectional surveillance of drug dispensing efficacy, availability and quality of labelling by patient care indicators in health care facilities: Journal of Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapeutics 2013;4(2): 142-4.
• Hettihewa M, Subasinghe S, Kulathunga N, Cooray P. Evaluation of cost/ utility of parenteral antibiotics consumption in a tertiary healthcare facility: A cross sectional study. Journal of Pharmacy Research 2012; 5(7): 3602-4.
• Hettihewa LM, Amarasinghe I, Subasinghe S. A survey: Precepts and practices in drug use indicators at government healthcare facilities: A hospital based prospective analysis. Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences 2011; 3(1):165-9.

Published abstracts of oral presentations

• Subasinghe H.W.A.S, Ball P., Morrissey H., Lekamwasam S., Waidyaratne E.I. Low vitamin D levels among middle-aged, healthy females in Sri Lanka, Annual research conference of the University of Wolverhampton held in 12th June 2018
• Subasinghe H.W.A.S, Ball P., Morrissey H., Lekamwasam S., Waidyaratne E.I. Vitamin D status among community dwelling healthy females: a descriptive study covering two Matara and Kandy districts. Oral presentation at the Annual Academic Session of Galle Medical Association, Sri Lanka, 11th to 13th October, 2017
• Mahesh KHD, Weerasundera R, Morrissey H, Ball PA, Subasinghe HWAS, Depot antipsychotics vs oral antipsychotics in treatment of schizophrenia; a survey in Darwin, Australia, World Psychiatric Association’s Thematic Congress, in February 25th to 28th 2018 Melbourne, Australia
• Mahesh KHD, Weerasundera R, Morrissey H, Ball P, Subasinghe HWAS, Treatment in schizophrenia; Is second generation depots are effective than first generation depots in minimizing relapses? National Health Research Symposium 2017, 4th -5 th December 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka
• K.H.D. Mahesh, R.Weerasundera, P.A. Ball, H. Morrissey and H.W.A.S. Subasinghe, Comparison of oral and depot antipsychotic medications in perspective of relapse rates in patients with schizophrenia, 15th Open University Research Sessions, 16th -17th November, 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka.
• Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S, Liyanage T, Effect of methanolic extract of Costus speciosus (Thebu) leaf on insulin resistance in Wistar rats: Comparison with pioglitazone. 10th Academic sessions, University of Ruhuna, 20th March, 2013
• Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S, Rapid Onset of Action of Costus speciosus Leaf Extracts on Insulin Resistance in Experimental Wistar Rats. Scientific Sessions 2012, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Colombo, Sri Lanka 6-7 th December, 2012

Published abstracts of poster presentations

• Subasinghe HWAS, Lekamwasam S, Ball P, Morrissey H, Waidyaratne EI, Osteoporosis risk assessment tools to screen postmenopausal women in Sri Lanka, World Congress on Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases, 4 th -7 th April, 2019, Paris
• Subasinghe HWAS, Lekamwasam S, Ball P, Morrissey H, Waidyaratne EI, A tool to identify postmenopausal women with high fracture risk in Sri Lanka, World Congress on Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases, 4th - 7 th April, 2019, Paris
• Subasinghe HWAS, Lekamwasam S, Ball P, Morrissey H, Waidyaratne EI, Concordance between radial SOS and central DEXA in diagnosing osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, 25th Annual Scientific Meeting of the International Society for the Clinical Densitometry, 20th -23rd March, 2019, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• Subasinghe H.W.A.S, Ball P.A., Morrissey H., Waidyaratne E.I, Lekamwasam S., Sun exposure and serum vitamin D status in middle-aged females in Sri Lanka, 78th FIP World Congress of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science, 2nd -6 th September 2018 in Glasgow.
• H.P.D. Madhushani and H.W.A.S. Subasinghe, Assessment of patient knowledge about asthma and its medications; A survey in a tertiary care setting, 9th International Research Conference of General Sir John Kothalawala Defence University of Sri Lanka, 8-9th September 2016; 258
• Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S, Liyanage T, Evaluation of Hepatic and Renal Toxicities of Aqueous Extract of Costus speciosus (J.König) Sm. leaf in Animal Model; Biochemical and Histopathological Perspectives. 11th Academic sessions, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka, 19th March, 2014
• Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S, Liyanage T, Cumulative quantal dose-responses of Costus speciosus leaves on the lipid sub-profile in high-fat-diet induced insulin resistant Wistar rats. 6th Asian Association of School of Pharmacy Conference, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 14th -17th November, 2013
• Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S, Liyanage T, Costus speciosus leaf water extract reduces the atherogenic risk in high-fat-diet induced insulin resistant rats. 6th Asian Association of School of Pharmacy Conference, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 14th -17th November, 2013
• Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S, Liyanage T, Quantal dose response relationship of leaf extract of Costus speciosus on achieving peripheral insulin sensitivity in high-fat-diet fed experimental rat model. 4th Academic Sessions, Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, Colombo, Sri Lanka, 17th -19th July 2013
• Subasinghe S, Hettihewa LM, Gunawardena S. Liyanage T. Induction of insulin resistance/ impaired glucose tolerance in experimental Wistar rats fed on modified high fat diet regime. Galle Medical Association Annual Academic sessions, 2012
• Subasinghe HWAS, Hettihewa LM, Amarasinghe IM. Prospective encounter study on patient care indicators in healthcare facilities, 2010, The International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research 4 th Asia- Pacific Conference, Phuket, Thailand