"The need is for a new breed of physician, who has a broad understanding of human biology, who is imbued with the ingredients of rural and peri-urban societies and their way of life, who can communicate effectively with the patient's family regarding the nature of the ailment, who can address himself to preventative aspects in the homes, who will be an effective leader of health workers, and who will use his knowledge to stimulate other community building programmes. We need in effect a social biologist. Mass public health and hospital patient care, however well developed cannot fill this gap."

-Dr. Ramalingaswami, Director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), 1968.