Achievers

Every month Express Healthcare highlights achievements of doctors and other professionals and contributors to the healthcare industry. To nominate your employees/colleagues for Achievers, mail healthcare@expressindia.com and we will get in touch with you!

The Painter

Most of our artistic abilities come to the fore in one's childhood. But painter-cum-Head (Finance), Max Healthcare's Patparganj and Noida branches, V Arun Kumar (42), developed a panache for painting five years ago, when he started working with Max Healthcare. "Our hospital is replete with beautiful paintings; that inspired me to paint," he discloses. The passion was fuelled by the need to express inner thoughts and also seek ways to soothe frayed nerves. The subjects of his oil paintings are mostly religious, be it a reclining Vishnu, Krishna, Buddha, or temples. "I don't know why I prefer religious paintings. Perhaps, it is soothing," says Kumar, whose favourite painters are Raja Ravi Verma and Michelangelo.

What is interesting is that he learnt the art from the internet. "Sometime, I might see a painting and re-create it in my style, like I did with Yamini Roy's painting of mother and child. Other times, I might see a picture on the internet and emulate it. It can also originate from the inner recesses of my mind," he says.

Kumar takes anywhere between from a few days to months to complete a painting. And the works are neither for personal possession nor for sale. "Where can I possibly keep all the paintings? A few of them I keep it for myself while the rest I gift to friends, family members and colleagues. Though friends have suggested I hold an exhibition, I have not given it any thought," he quips.

The Saviour

Dr A K Singal, (32), Chief Operating Surgeon, MGM Hospital, Navi Mumbai, in the process of saving 20-day-old Sahil Patil from a disorder called gastric volvulus, has created a medical record of sorts by conducting 'laparoscopic gastropexy on a child so young'. Only one such surgery was done earlier on a newborn from Ahmedabad.

Gastric volvulus is an abnormal rotation of the stomach of more than 180 degree, thus creating a closed loop obstruction that can result in incarceration and strangulation. "Traditionally, this surgery is performed by doing a laparotomy i.e. a large incision on the belly, but we did it laparoscopically," says Dr Singal. The procedure performed under general anaesthesia, involved inserting a five mm telescope via the belly button and then carbon dioxide gas was infused to distend the belly. Two more instruments were inserted into the belly via three mm incisions and the stomach was returned to a normal position. What makes this surgery unique is its difficulty to perform it on a newborn. "The baby weighed a mere 2.3 kg. The instruments if not used carefully, can damage nearby organs like liver and kidney. Also, carbon-dioxide gas, if used for too long, can result in breathing problems. Hence, the surgery has to be very fast," explains Dr Singal.

The Doctor with a Robotic Arm

His skilled hands have cleared blocks from clogged arteries. Now, he is ready to heal many more ailing hearts with a robotic arm. Dr AP Ganesh Kumar (36), Chief Interventional Cardiologist at Mumbai's Dr L H Hiranandani Hospital, is instrumental in bringing in the world's first robotic arm for angioplasty in India.

The hospital has also become the country's first centre to carry out research as part of the multi-centric clinical evaluation for US FDA approval. Dr Kumar will be the principal investigator to conduct this study in India.

The robotic remote control PCI system not only helps patients avail services of their preferred doctors over distances, but also helps physicians operate in an X-ray free and relaxed environment with lesser chances of spinal risk, thereby increasing their ability to deal with long procedural hours. According to Dr Kumar, in contrast with the present angioplasty procedure that requires two cardiologists, the robotic remote control procedure will require no assistance, thus making the process efficient and error-free. He was part of the team that conducted a study in Romania on 15 patients with single coronary artery narrowing with 100 per cent clinical success, and technical results in over 92 per cent of cases. "What was considered a dream yesterday is now reality. I am hopeful for the day when robotic remote-controlled angioplasty will be the preferred procedure in coronary care," he says.