Prof. D.S. Ranawaka
It is impossible to tell the story of professional counselling in Sri Lanka without telling the story of Prof. D.S. Ranawaka. In 1968 he gathered a handful of interested young people into a small counselling circle and, with no local precedent to follow, wrote from scratch the syllabus that would train Sri Lanka's first professional counsellors.
His own clinical training spanned Colombo, Queensland, Brisbane, Copenhagen and London. That international standard of practice became the benchmark the Institute still measures itself against today.
From the Southern Province to a professorship
Prof. D.S. Ranawaka was born on 20 January 1944 in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka. He passed the university entrance examination and entered Vidyodaya University in 1966 — known today as the University of Sri Jayewardenepura.
He completed his M.Phil. under the tutelage of Fulbright Professor Gruganhime, choosing “anxiety disorders among university students” as the subject of his research — a topic with little local precedent at the time.
He was conferred the Professorship in 2004.
A practice built across four countries
Prof. Ranawaka pursued clinical training wherever the best of it was being practised — and brought each method home.
Ward 59, General Hospital Colombo
Prof. Ranawaka carried out his clinical practice in the psychiatry ward of the General Hospital Colombo, serving alongside Dr. Rathnin Dewaraja. The team practised team therapy, clinical hypnotic therapy and behaviour therapy to improve patient outcomes, under the guidance of Psychiatry Specialist Prof. Nalaka Mendis.
University of Queensland
Seeking further clinical experience, he travelled to Australia and worked at the university's psychology centre under the guidance of Professor Theon.
Green Valley Anxiety Disorder Clinic
He trained at the Green Valley Anxiety Disorder Clinic, conducting a number of client sessions and delivering relaxation therapy and team therapy for clients living with agoraphobia.
Brisbane Hospital & Alexandra Hospital
He undertook clinical practice across both hospitals working alongside Professor Robert Swetzhere.
Training for Treatment of Torture Victims
Prof. Ranawaka was invited to attend a workshop convened by the medical faculty of the University of Copenhagen, organised for the rehabilitation of torture victims — work through which he was able to render significant service to that vulnerable group in Denmark.
Postgraduate research symposium
He took part in the postgraduate research symposium held at the University of London.