Two Indian-Americans appointed White House Fellows

While Pat Basu is a radiologist at Stanford University and the Palo Alto Virginia, Sunny Ramchandani is a Lieutenant Commander and physician in the United States Navy.

"This year's White House Fellows are comprised of some of the best and brightest leaders in our country," said the First Lady Michelle Obama.

"I applaud their unyielding commitment to public service and dedication to serving their community," she said.

The White House Fellows Programme was created in 1964 by President Lyndon B Johnson to give promising American leaders "first hand, high-level experience with the workings of the Federal government, and to increase their sense of participation in national affairs."

This unique position in our nation's government encourages active citizenship and service to the nation.

The Fellows also take part in an education programme designed to broaden their knowledge of leadership, policy formulation, military operations, and current affairs.

Community service is another important component of the programme, and Fellows participate in service projects throughout the year.

At Stanford, Basu is Course Director of Health Policy, Finance and Economics, and lectures nationally and internationally on these areas of expertise. He was named the Consultant Physician of the Year at Stanford in 2009, where he served as Chief Resident Physician in 2008.

He received the AMA's National Excellence in Medicine Award for Leadership in 2007. Pat co-founded ExtendMD, a web portal designed to enhance outpatient care. He serves as a business consultant to medical centers, Fortune 500 companies and venture capital firms.

Pat founded STARS Luncheon, a non-profit designed to support lower socioeconomic children for future college and career success. He graduated with Honors from the University of Chicago, earning his MD and MBA degrees.

In Chicago, he served in the highest leadership roles on the Dean's Council in medical school, as president of his business school cohort, and led the Adolescent Substance Abuse Program.
Pat attended the University of Illinois on a National Merit Scholarship where he graduated with Honors in Mechanical Engineering and served on the University Senate.

Pat served on admissions committees at the University of Chicago and Stanford University.

Ramchandani is currently Integrated Chief of General Internal Medicine at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he co-founded an innovative primary care delivery model that has enhanced quality, reduced overall costs, and been adopted by the entire US Military Health System.

In 2009, Ramchandani was deployed to Afghanistan as the Senior Medical Mentor for the Afghan National Security Forces, guided the execution of a new healthcare reconstruction strategy, and received the Bronze Star Medal.

As an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Uniformed Services University and prior Chair of the American Medical Association's Resident/Fellow Section, Sunny teaches and mentors young physicians on how to address today's healthcare challenges.

Ramchandani is also the Vice-Chair of the Serve DC Commission and manages city-wide community service programs in Washington DC. Sunny earned his M.Ph from the Harvard School of Public Health and his MD from the Yale School of Medicine, where he received the Norman Herzig Award for his dedication to humanitarian service in India.

He earned his BS from the US Naval Academy, where he was a Truman Scholar and graduated first in his class academically.

Selection as a White House Fellow is highly competitive and based on a record of remarkable early career professional achievement, evidence of leadership potential, a proven commitment to public service, and the knowledge and skills necessary to contribute successfully at the highest levels of the Federal government.

Throughout its history, the programme has fostered leaders in many fields including leaders in government, business, media, medicine, diplomacy and the military.