Many patients with a range of illnesses walk into our Amrit clinics (rural primary care clinics in tribal south Rajasthan), sharing that they have received cautionary food advice from their traditional healers (‘bhopas’), unqualified providers (often known as ‘Bengalis’), and even qualified doctors at Primary Health Centers (PHCs). They are desperate to find out if … Continue reading Sip or Skip? The Great Khaati Chaach (sour buttermilk) Debate
Steering their own path
We often equate women empowerment with parameters of obtaining education and employment opportunity. While these hold true, several other factors including ‘lack of freedom of mobility’ can hinder the process or create a dependency on others to fulfil this wish. In cities public transport offers a great medium for women to travel independently. Personally, for … Continue reading Steering their own path
Shifting Perspectives: Rural Sensitization and the Future of Medical Education
The global health policy agenda emphasizes the need to establish universal healthcare for all. From Alma Ata declaration to Sustainable Development Goals, India’s commitment to Health for All has remained undeterred. It essentially means that all individuals should have access to all kinds of quality health services they need, when and where they need them, … Continue reading Shifting Perspectives: Rural Sensitization and the Future of Medical Education
Moving beyond vitals – looking at the person behind the patient in primary health care
After completing my post graduate training in community medicine, I worked at a medical college for almost a decade, independently leading a community health program. We had a presence in 150 villages across 3 districts of Gujarat as a part of our direct service delivery program and worked in a tribal block as part of … Continue reading Moving beyond vitals – looking at the person behind the patient in primary health care
Reflections on a Book: ‘A Doctor’s Experiment in Bihar’
Reflections on a Book: ‘A Doctor’s Experiment in Bihar’ A small introduction It is a book about a doctor who had a purpose – to transform maternal and child healthcare in the unserved population of India. After completing her MS in Obstetrics and Gynaecology she decided to work in a district hospital in Bihar and … Continue reading Reflections on a Book: ‘A Doctor’s Experiment in Bihar’
Of the glamour of primary health care, and clinical courage
Of the glamour of primary health care, and clinical courage Reflections from a physician on what primary healthcare means to her Till 5 years ago, my work as a pediatrician and public health physician was quite far away from primary health care. Be it working in a tertiary care hospital, or a training institution, or … Continue reading Of the glamour of primary health care, and clinical courage
Oxytocin paper and the important life lessons it taught me
September 2020 was a special month for me. A publication in the journal Epidemiology (https://journals.lww.com/epidem/Fulltext/2020/09000/Antenatal_Uterotonics_as_a_Risk_Factor_for.9.aspx) brought to a finale an effort that began 7 years ago. This was a journey that saw a lot of hard work and submissions in multiple journals, but yet not being able to make it, until now. The ‘oxytocin paper’ … Continue reading Oxytocin paper and the important life lessons it taught me