Professor & HoD Department of Surgical Gastroenterology PGIMER, Chandigarh
His reputation is of being a surgeon par excellence! His patients and peers often quote him as ‘God of Surgery’. His perseverance, consistency, honesty and one-pointed focus has helped scores of patients come out of traumatic conditions. Here is an honest conversation with an honest surgeon for whom his country is paramount!
Please tell us about your Journey- from a medical student to a leading gastroenterologist?
It was my childhood dream to become a doctor and was also the dream of my parents. Hence, I got attracted towards the medical field. When I joined the medical field and did my internship, I liked only one branch: surgery. When I joined PGI Chandigarh for Master of Surgery (MS), I realized my attraction was to Surgical Gastroenterology and was also largely influenced by my mentors. That is how I landed being a surgical gastroenterologist.
What do you consider your greatest success as a Gastroenterologist?
The greatest success for me is to take care of people in distress and sometimes in advanced stage of cancer particularly related to Surgical Gastroenterology i.e., the field of surgery that includes Hepato-pancreato-biliary surgery and GI cancers. My major area of interest is diseases of the pancreas, biliary tract and esophagus. I have done a lot of research in the area of acute pancreatitis. We have formed a very good team in PGI for taking care of patients of acute and chronic pancreatitis which involves intervention gastroenterologist and intervention radiologist. We are major referral center for these diseases. We take care of our cancer patients by working in collaboration with gastroenterologist and radiation oncologists. To add to this, we arevery good friends who work cohesively in the team. To me forming this great team is a greater success because it allows us to treat very serious patients who are in the advanced stages of the illness.
How do you handle a difficult patient or a complicated professional situation?
I just remember God and carry on with my work! Working at PGI has given me enough experience and confidence in dealing with difficult situations arising during surgery. So honestly, I do not have to put an extra effort. Each patient that is referred to us is challenging being in a tertiary care center. After years of experience in the field, handling such difficult patients comes naturally to me. I maintain my cool in adverse situations and remember God. It gives me the strength and help me to make best decision for my patients in difficult situations.
What do you think about patient care in contemporary public hospitals in India?
Patient care in the contemporary times has improved compared to the times when we were getting training as a medical student. This is because we have guidelines and protocols available for every situation. We also have sophisticated gadgets for monitoring the patient’s condition; like monitors, ventilators, hence we can actually take care of our critical patients in a much better way. Oxygen support, organ support, areall readily available;be it dialysis or ventilator care or cardiac care. All these developments that have occurred in various fields help in general the patient care today.
One needs to understand clearly the complexity of derangements in patient’s physiology as our patients today are more elderly, who suffer from coexistent issues like diabetes and hypertension. Hence, when are not only dealing with surgical problems, but we also have to deal with these co-morbidities that can put our patients at higher risk. The availability of better gadgets of patient monitoring and patient support, makes it possible to take care of sicker patients.
What are your top life lessons professionally?
Hard work and sincerity to goal are keys to success for everyone. Whatever you do professionally, it should be for the upliftment of the society and for the nation’s benefit in general. One must do meditation and remember God every day and that givesme a lot of strength.
Your advice to young medical aspirants or doctors who have started their careers.
There are no shortcuts in life. The goal must be clear. And if the goal is to become a good surgeon, one needs to be ready to slog. A work shirker is not smart but a fool who lets go by the opportunity to perform and learn. The indications of surgery, the techniques and how to manage different kind of situations during and after a surgery, all has to be learnt properly and in a methodical manner without any shortcuts. One has to be willing to give up personal comfort and sacrifice personal time to become a good surgeon.
What are your hobbies? How do you deal with stress?
My hobby is trekking. Me and my family like to trek in the mountains. I am also fond of going for long walks. I used to play cricket but not anymore. I like to watch TV and sports channel.
In a stressful situation, I react immediately as per the needs of the situation, and I do not take anything back with me! I like to be upfront with the situations and do not procrastinate in taking tough decision.
How do you balance your personal journey and professional life?
I have never tried to balance it because my family understands my responsibilities, and I never had any pressure to do any balancing. However, when I find time, I like to spend it with my family.
Describe your greatest challenge and your greatest success in life.
Every time I go to the operation theatre, it is the greatest challenge of that day, and whenever I come out of the OT and have done the surgery, that is the greatest success for me! So there is no single instance that can be quoted as a great challenge or success. For me, every day is a challenge. And at the end of that challenge, once the result is positive, I consider it a success.
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
I feel I have more weaknesses than strengths. My strengths are perseverance, determination and belief in God. Blessings of my parents and love of my family and friends is my greatest strength. But my shortcomings are many! I am a volatile, short-tempered person; outside the operation theatre, not in the operation theatre. I do not tolerate non-sense. I am intolerant to inefficiency and work shirkers. I am a proud Indian and if somebody says anything against my nation, I get angry and that is my weakness. Each time I don’t perform well, I feel unhappy. I do not take failures kindly!
