Doctors' Day: Caring For Healers The Need Of The Hour

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Doctors prioritise the lives of others, often neglecting their own well-being. It is only pertinent, then, that this year’s theme for National Doctors’ Day, which is on Tuesday, is a reminder to care for those who care for people.

‘Behind the Mask: Who Heals the Healers’ aims to reflect on the mental and emotional challenges faced by healthcare workers. The theme calls on society to recognise not just the doctors’ efforts but also their need for support. On the eve of Doctors’ Day, Free Press spoke to some illustrious doctors who have done exemplary work in their respective careers.

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When shift stretched to 72 hrs after Bhopal gas tragedy

An assistant professor as well as the assistant medical superintendent back then, Dr H.H. Trivedi recalls the challenging times in the aftermath of the Bhopal gas tragedy. “Beginning the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, I spent 72 hours at the Gandhi Medical College (GMC) to treat gas victims in the biting cold.

I called all junior doctors from the GMC hostels for first aid for normal breathing, and MANIT students for support. The students rushed on my call. Nobody knew the nature of the gas, so giving the correct medication itself was a challenge. We only gave medicines and injections to normalise their breathing. The entire campus was full of gas victims…I was on tea and biscuits for three days.”

When dealing with young patients, convincing parents a task

Diabetologist Dr Sushil Jindal says when dealing with Type-1 diabetes cases, it is the parents who are tougher to bring around. Narrating one such incident, he said, “A senior bank official confronted me in my clinic when I prescribed insulin for his 10-year-old son after the detection of Type-1 diabetes. To convince him, I gathered five to six children who were suffering from Type-1 diabetes and were my patients, and visited his house in the evening.

But he preferred to turn to some spiritual guru’s camp in Gwalior with some more Type-1 diabetes children, just to discard my prescription. Under the baba’s influence, the man threw all my prescribed medicines and insulin injections on the train. After a couple of days, his son took ill and had to be hospitalised in Bhopal. His wife phoned me, and I visited them, yet the man wouldn’t let me give the child insulin. The boy died.”

‘Saving lives sole aim of my life’

Her profession is also her passion. Dr Kavita N. Singh, GMC dean and former WHO-accredited gynaecologist and oncologist, said, “I am a passionate medical obgyn teacher with a special interest in gyn-oncology, hence I completed a PhD in the subject. As a gyn-oncosurgeon, I perform surgeries, especially on women fighting cancer.

On my first day at the GMC as Dean, I performed a rare surgery. Later, I got a message from the patient that she was doing fine. For me, the operation theatre is the best place. I love to spend my time and energy there. Saving lives is the sole aim of my life.”