The Alchemist

The Founder of GNRC Dr NC Borah has faced extreme financial adversities in his life. But the man of steel did not deviate from achieving his dream of setting up a dedicated neurological centre in India. Rita Dutta profiles the visionary

The Reformist: Dr Borah has dedicated life towards uplift of medical facilities in the North East

In any industry, existence of a new venture is dictated by the feasibility and profitability of the project. Unless, of course, the creation is by a trust for the benefit of the people. In this age of corporatisation of healthcare, cases are few and far between of individuals per se dedicating their lives to plug the gaping holes of a system, serving the needs of others and creating a whole new system without profit being the bottom line. And when every effort is thwarted by financial crunches and quirks of fate, the effort ceases to be just reform and metamorphoses to become a tale of triumph of human will and spirit against all odds.

Renowned neurologist Dr NC Borah is one of the rare medicos who dedicated his life towards uplift of medical facilities in the North East. When he realised that healthcare facilities in the North East left a lot to be desired, he set up the Guwahati Neurological Research Centre (GNRC) in Assam, distinguished for being the only neurological centre at the Northeastern part of the country. Be it soulful singer Bhupen Hazarika or ordinary populace, the 125-bed GNRC is the preferred stop for people of the east seeking medical care. So, I was overwhelmed to receive an invitation to meet the legendary man behind this prolific institution - Dr Borah.

After reaching GNRC in Dispur, I met Dr Borah's eldest daughter and full-time director of GNRC Priyanka, who with other staff took me for a round of the hospital. The hospital, offering ten super super-specialities, caters to over 100 out-patients every day. Besides the advanced facilities, what captures one's attention are the smiling and cordial staff and the peaceful milieu, and that in a way defines the motto of the hospital - 'caring people with a difference'.

Setting A Precedent: GNRC, the only neurological centre in the North East

I met the modest, humble and soft-spoken Dr Borah only in the evening. He came with his team to inform me about GNRC's growth plans. But more than the institute, I was intrigued by the fascinating journey of the man who has envisioned the project, built it brick by brick and today at the age of 56 is inexorably steering it towards further growth. After all, the birth and evolution of the institute was inextricably linked with the endless struggle of the founder. Dr Borah obliged. Over the next few hours and on the next day, he recalled his life, a tale of grit and courage and conviction, one that motivates to see every challenge and adversity in life as an opportunity for growth. Like the little boy in Paulo Coelho's novel, The Alchemist, Dr Borah has proved that when one wishes to do something, the whole universe conspires with him to achieve that.

Humble Beginnings

Born in Dubia, Sonitpur district in Assam in 1950, Dr Borah's earliest memories of his childhood are of helping his parents plough land and tend to cows in his village. His parents were unlettered and worked incessantly as peasants to feed their six children. Education was thus a distant dream with the nearest school located 12 miles away, which one had to trudge through a dense jungle to reach!

Dr Borah was destined for higher things. By the time he was six, a primary school sprang up in his village. The school with thatched roof and 10 students was sans any walls and benches and chairs. "I used to carry a jute sack and I shared that with my teacher for sitting. I still vividly remember the face of my teacher who taught me Assamese," recollects Dr Borah, fondly. From the primary school, he went to a high school, which was manually built by students and teachers though public donations. From that tender age, he learnt the invaluable lesson of self-sufficiency. He funded his education and its associated paraphernalia by selling at the village market, vegetables and betel nuts that he grew in his field.

His quest for knowledge took him to a school in Biswanath Chariali, 40 miles away from his home. In this school, for the first time, he had science and maths teachers. Luckily, he could stay with his sister, who was married and settled there. But his stay here was curtailed by the concerns of his sister about the influence of the place on young and naïve Dr Borah. "My brother-in-law was staying in the drivers' barrack, where people used to come drunk and mouth expletives. My sister was worried about the impact of the ambience on me and asked me to shift to a boarding school," he remembers.

So, once again in class nine, he shifted bag and baggage to a boarding school. Here, not only did he cook for himself, he also started giving private tuitions to fund his stay. He passed his higher secondary exam with flying colours.

Why Medicine?

Overcoming the financial hurdles was only a part of the struggle. He was now at the crossroads of life, where he had to make the crucial choice of the road ahead. The conflict was between his poor financial background and his thirst for higher knowledge. The deciding factor was his mother's long-term illness. "My mother was ill from the time I was in class four and nobody could comprehend the reason for her suffering. This egged me to take up medicine to cure her and many such people who suffer like her," says Dr Borah.

The Kindness Of Friends

The decision made, now the next hurdle was to mobilise funds for studying medicine. Would his parents be able to sponsor his education? No, that was out of question for his poor parents. Would he be able to fund his studies? At least, he could try his best, he mused.

His parents' reaction to his decision is still etched in Dr Borah's memory. With tears welling up in his eyes and choked with happiness, Dr Borah's father supported his decision whole-heartedly. He also gave Dr Borah Rs 600- a sum that he had saved for his old age. Additionally, state merit scholarship and an education loan from the government of Assam helped him sail through the financial crisis.

But as is known, studying medicine is expensive. And often Dr Borah faced financial hardships. "Sometimes, it was so acute that I felt like giving it all up," he says, sombrely. Once in the second year, he had to even sell his book on anatomy a day before the exam on the same subject just to arrange money for the application form of the exam.

The Humane Touch: Dr Borah with a patient

For every obstacle, there was always a saviour. On one instance, a classmate's father stood guarantee for him for a loan of Rs 3,000. "He gave me the entire money little by little. I never kept an account of how much he gave me as I trusted him immensely. That was also a blessing in disguise as it taught me the importance of every penny," he says. In the fifth year, once again he was distressed when he needed an amount of Rs 1,000 to further his studies. His banker neighbour lent him the money this time. "When I got my scholarship the very next year, I repaid the entire amount," he shares.

All the travails did not stop Dr Borah from snatching the top position in more than one subject in MBBS. That was in 1975. Thereafter, he honed his skills by garnering a string of degrees¾diploma in pathology and MD in internal medicine, DM in neurology from AIIMS in 1984 and a course in epidemiology and biostatistics from the University of Michigan, US.

Planting Seeds Of The Future

He started his career in 1977 as a demonstrator in pathology with Guwahati Medical College (GMC) for a meagre salary of Rs 500 and then shifted to internal medicine as a registrar. "Though I earned little, I never stopped myself from giving the best. I toiled day and night and even on Sundays just for the happiness it gave me by teaching and serving others," he philosophises.

Like most medicos, his neurologist colleagues left for lucrative career abroad. Even as tempting offers from overseas kept pouring in for Dr Borah, his strong roots prevented him from falling prey to the lure of the lucre. By this time, he realised that he was destined to fortify medical facilities in the North East. And the unfolding of events in the next few years consolidated his mission. "While I was working at AIIMS from 1982 to 1984, I was pained to see how people had to wait for at least a year for doing a CT Scan. Most people died before any diagnosis could be made. The situation in Assam or the North East so to say was dismal to say the least. People had to travel to Delhi, Kolkata and Vellore for CT, EMG and EEG. And people who did not have the means, perished. I was determined to make a difference," says the reformist.

In 1983, Gohpur in Assam witnessed terrible violence where 86 people were torched to death. The injured died because of lack of medical facilities. Dr Borah was part of the relief team. "The suffering of the people pained me and after that incident, I did not want to go back to Delhi," he says, pensively.

He ultimately came back to Guwahati in the year 1984, after completing his DM in neurology. After he resumed work at GMC, he tried convincing the government to upgrade neurological facilities in the government hospitals, which were devoid of any neurological diagnostic tool. In the North East, every year around 200 patients suffer from strokes and around 80 die every year due to lack of treatment. "Thus, we needed an integrated centre, specially so in view of the communication barriers, nature of diseases, time and financial constraints of the rapidly growing population of the North East," he elaborates.

With Family: Clockwise-Priyanka, Madhurjya, Satabdee, wife Jayashree and Dr Borah

As his pleadings went unheeded, he decided to carve a different path. He thought of addressing the lacunae himself. A couple of incidents emboldened his resolve. In 1984, while he was sound asleep, at the middle of the night, he was awakened by the loud poundings on the door. His wife panicked to see a sea of students in front of their house. But the Borahs faced them. "Around 50 students had hijacked a bus to take me to a patient in a nursing home, miles away. But before I could reach, the patient died," he sighs. In another instance, a patient was operated for a clot in the brain. Though the patient was saved, he continued to live a vegetative life because he was brought in late. These two incidents underscored the importance of having advanced facilities within reach.

He decided to give up his job and set up a dedicated neurological centre in Guwahati. It was a brave entrepreneurial decision, fraught with risks and uncertainties. He did not have a place for the setup, his wife was without a job, his daughter Priyanka was young and he did not have any equipment to start the centre. While the odds were unfavourable, and any man at the beginning of his career would not have dared to take embark on such a venture, Dr Borah had unflinching belief in his vision.

He set out pursuing his dreams with a sum of Rs 5,000, which he saved during his residency at AIIMS. He chose land in the outskirts of the city and the enthusiast Dr Borah went all the way to Chandigarh to buy equipment for the setup. "Since I went all the way to see the machine, I was given a discount also," he remembers.

Laying The Foundation

He started GNRC in 1984 with only eight beds for neurology. The project cost was Rs 1.4 lakh, of which Rs 40,000 was raised from friends and well-wishers and the rest was taken as loan from Bank of Baroda. By 1985, GNRC was converted to a limited company with the plan of Rs 140 lakh to set up a hospital with CT scan, indoor and outdoor facilities. The project had debt funding from IDBI and AIDC.

The new project at the present site was commissioned in 1987. After various expansions, today the hospital stands tall with 125 beds with 900 employees. Besides, cardiology, neurology, trauma and orthopaedics, it offers GI, ENT and reconstructive surgery. The year 2001 was memorable, as the hospital became the first in Eastern India to be 1SO 9002 accredited. "I have been able to create a place where people do not die," Dr Borah says with pride-filled eyes. To be able to sustain and power a vision for more than two decades has not been easy in strife-torn Assam.

His staff is full of praises for him. Says Dimple Sonari of Corporate Communication, "He is like a father figure to all of us, always very loving, respectful, humble and approachable."

Marketing consultant Vivek Shukla, who is doing a project for GNRC on excellence in patient care, waxes eloquent about the visionary doctor. "He treats patients with a humane touch. In him, there is a perfect balance of a doctor and a leader."

Striking A Balance

Perhaps Dr Borah would not have been so successful in his mission if not for the unstinting support given by his better half Jayashree, a doctorate in geography from Guwahati University, whom he married in 1982. His wife is his conscience-keeper, his motivational force and his critic. Besides teaching geography in Cotton College, she also writes for various publications and journals.

The couple is blessed with three children. Daughter Priyanka, after completing her management studies at the University of Sheffield in England, assists Dr Borah with hospital administration. Daughter Satabdee is studying CA, while son Madhurjya, an aspiring neurologist, is studying in class 10.

Though a workaholic, Dr Borah always strikes a balance between spending time with his family and hospital. A normal day for Dr Borah starts at four in the morning. He commences his day with an hour of exercise and two hours of study in the morning. After having breakfast, he leaves for the hospital, where he is till 9:00 in the evening. He teaches DNB students for an hour everyday in the hospital. He leaves for home at 9:00 to be with his family.

Urgent Need

As a founder member of Indian Academy of Neurology, Neurological Society of India, Dr Borah has been on the forefront on neurology research, with GNRC participating in a few ICMR-sponsored research projects. So, what are his predictions for neurology diseases for the years to come? "By 2010, out of every three Asians, two will have a neurological problem. Of every three Indians, two will have a neurological problem by 2012," he warns. What are the reasons for the rise? "As longevity increases, more people with these problems are detected," he replies. The medical breakthroughs, which have impacted neurology as a speciality, are efficient treatment for epilepsy, better medication for epilepsy (neuro-protective drugs), degenerative disease of nervous system like muscular dystrophy, PD and motor-neuron disease. To tackle the situation, India needs at least 100 neurologists catering to stroke, epilepsy and movement disorder, he suggests.

Spreading The Neural Network

His future plans for GNRC include creating a nursing college to meet the shortage of nurses in Assam and a chain of medishoppes to ensure that people get authentic medicines.

In The Limelight: With singer Bhupen Hazarika and film director Kalpana Lazmi

He also wants to build two more hospitals of 100 beds each in Guwahati, for which land has already been bought. Each hospital would be built at a cost of Rs 25 crore. "After the two hospitals, each of the hospitals including the present GNRC would be dedicated to one speciality,' he reveals. Another 100-bed franchisee hospital is coming up at Silchar.

The decision to build these hospitals is driven by the need for such facilities in those areas, than of profit, insists Dr Borah. A few years back, Dr Borah shelved a plan to build a hospital in Borpeta in Assam as the government decided to build a civil district hospital in the same area.

In an effort to reach out to more people, GNRC has recently introduced a co-operative scheme, whereby for Rs 499 a family of four gets discounted medical treatment for a year. Already, around 20,000 people have enlisted for this programme. From time to time, GNRC holds medical camps where people are given free medical treatment. Besides its expansion plan, the focus area for GNRC would always be quality patient care, training and medical research, insists Dr Borah.

Expansion plans, quality enhancement, et al the legacy would stay on for years to come. And humanity, especially the people of North East, will always bless him for this alchemy. My heart was unwilling to leave the company of the noble visionary. To interview this erudite man was an exercise in re-affirming belief in dreams and diligence. And all I wanted was to continue to be a part of the universe, which was already conspiring for his achievement.

rita@expresshealthcaremgmt.com