if she dies my son will have another
woman what's the answer I received when
I was trying to save a woman who came in
labor the two grams of hemoglobin and a
primeval first childbirth and swelling
all over her body
so I advised them to refer her to a
referral hospital in the city they just
refused
instead they carried her back home to
the village I was deeply saddened and
helplessly watch her moving towards her
death
dear friends yes this was in way back in
1990 after I walked out of the campus of
my Atma medicine transmeta College
Bangalore as a torch bearer of his motto
he shall live because of me that day I
decided to change the motto for me as
she shall live because of me I would
like to share with you today some of my
life experiences regarding the health of
the women in the rural areas of India
I'm sure my sharing will give you a
glimpse of the reality of the rural area
all over the world today it was in 1990
I took over as a doctor the hospital now
called Our Lady of Graces hospital
Serena which is in Mirek district in
uttar pradesh a hundred kilometres from
new delhi and 25 kilometres from new
merrick city it has a main literacy rate
of 71 71 % and female literacy rate of
to 5% utter Pradesh
it's a highly popular state but it had
maternal mortality rate of shocking 444
thousand live births way back in 2005
now they cut it down to the half
Saguna has got 128 villages around the
puppet population of one to five
thousand odd villages hardly had any
health facilities the health of the
women were the last priority for the
people they would spend money on cattles
rather than on health of the women
because they were the source of income
for them to be closest respiratory
diseases anemia bleeding either after
childbirth complicated childbirth and
malaria with the killer diseases then
eletricity was a very very rare
commodity well many of you might have
had candlelight dinners we used to have
delivering the babies in the candlelight
over the time change over to emergency
lights
what inverters and now with the back of
her generators we'll have a very good
specialist labor Oh
few weeks after I took over the hospital
a lady was brought in a bullock cart
with the complain of not responding
after the dead childbirth in the village
by die so I rushed her to an examination
table in the hospital just to see that
she was only dead and this instant
became very common and it stripped me to
my core
I turned to the Lord what am I going to
do here
and he said at that time this hospital
had only just 20 bets it's a building of
20 beds with no other facilities no
doctors no other person to change or to
help I was not on the first talked in
the resident in the hospital as a
residential doctor I also was saying
first talked in the congregation so I
had no one to look up for help so I
turned the Lord and asked what what do
you want me to do
I thought and reflected and I was
inspired to convert this hospital that
building to a hospital then after this
lady's arrival he inspired me to move to
the village I was inspired we should
start from the village not from the
hospital when we moved to the village we
saw abject poverty and ignorance
newborn babies and mothers had to face
many culturally and healthy practices a
mother could not breastfeed the baby due
to two reasons number one they believed
that breast milk is first breast milk is
unhealthy for the mother for the baby
secondly mother could not breastfeed the
baby to husband sister came and a little
washing done on the breast of the mother
then she could feed the baby it would
take five to six days so till then they
fed the baby with tea and sugar syrup
with a tender name listen it may be for
a purification of the setup brushing the
teeth as one of the mortal sin so we
forced them to burst the teeth in the
hospital but once they go back home the
elderly forced them to stop it it was
told to them that if they brush the
teeth the teeth all will fall off of the
child
so they were not to brush the teeth new
clothes with and never welcome for the
new newborn babies if they didn't have
at home they borrowed from neighbors
they believed that this baby one reaches
home or after birth in the even at home
after six days then they had a puja that
said T puja till then baby cannot wear
new clothes they also had some and the
practices of food given to the mothers
they used lots of ghee sugar pine nuts
and some medicinal invariants and was
given to the mother for six to eight
weeks according to the financial status
of the family
it also given if the mother gave birth
to a baby girl she would receive little
or no food the whole family reacted to
the mother if we she gave birth to a
female child female baby husbands were
never to accompany his wife to the
hospital according to them they are not
supposed to face at situations after a
few years of educating even now up now I
am the last 29 years even now we
struggle to get the husband it's a
hospital sometimes mother laws have
become very rude and I too become true
sometimes I keep back the baby in the
labor room and I tell them until the
father comes bring you back to be able
thing so father will come somehow maybe
three or four or six hours later a 30 35
year old female was brought to the
hospital with the complain of bleeding
of the childbirth of a live baby in the
village by dying an examination I found
that she was profusely bleeding and her
chest was with much relaxed and her BP
vitals were falling and hemoglobin is on
just for grabs
so I as usual husband was busy in the
field husband was not with her her
in-laws and neighbors carried her to the
hospital so I explained the risk to the
in-laws of needing the blood and his
cough I like losing her life so the man
some of the male members rush to the
city to bring the blood meanwhile we are
trying to stop her bleeding after to us
so he could not control the bleeding
her condition was becoming worsening so
I looked for husband who has not arrived
is still in the hospital so I took the
phone number from the patient called him
up made her talk to him and forced him
to come the hub in the hospital
immediately but by the time he leaves
the hospital she was unconscious never
to talk to him again these experiences
was that man is a take such situations I
thought I need more help and guidance so
I decided go to the city the hospital
where there are many conscious surgeons
position and pediatrician to get more
knowledge and teaching from them and
they taught me great lessons I must say
with you on a hot summer day a 19 year
old man was brought in labor matter 19
year which were the first child and on
examination I found that she was breech
presentation breach means normally the
delivery time hand comes out but this
patient had Maeby's buttocks coming and
usually as difficult to deliver and the
loss of baby babies death rate was very
high in case of a breech delivery so I
advised analysis which husband was not
with her he was at home I told her
in-laws that you this childbirth may be
difficult you may not get the baby so
better refer to higher center for which
they refused
mother-in-law told me doctor she can
have babies more again somehow deliver
this baby and give to us
they gave the concern for the death of
the baby and with the trembling hands I
went back to my room read and reread
again the steps of breech delivery and
in first time I tried to deliver her so
I could easily deliver her buttocks legs
and hands but the head got got stuck up
that's what he usually happens in the
bridge still willing and I was
struggling to deliver up the baby's head
and I could feel the baby's fetal baby's
heart went faster on my palm because my
hand is below on down the baby's chest
they learn of the head I could feel very
fast my heart rods was beating really
fast I was struggling to take out the
baby said and the struggle for baby and
the doctor I took out the baby's head
but the baby was dead I was very sad
though they had given me the consent for
the baby's death I had not given the
consent I just could not accept that
death of the baby which happened first
time in my life I was very sad went to
the room and bitterly cried and that day
I decided I wouldn't take up anymore
bridge presentation of bridge cases and
will now admin such patients in the
hospital next day I went to the hospital
which I was sitting going my senior
gynecologist
so my sadness on the face and enquired
about it reluctantly I disclosed to her
hoping for her some compassion or you
know understanding for me against all my
expectations she in letting me shout
that me literally doctor other help do
you think of yourself
she asked me are you a god I said no man
did you kill the baby intentionally I
said no man then don't ever think that
doctors are gods they all are human
beings with their limitations
we try our best to save lives and this
is this experience as a part and part of
doctors life so wipe your tears and be
strong that day I decided when
permission to me to take specialization
I will do obg and become a gynecologist
to save more women and children as
today's when they had I we could put up
a lab and a pharmacy in the hospital and
not speak what I knew only old ambulance
in the hospital so we would go to
villages in the ambulance and after my
specialization I came back to the same
hospital in 2005 from the hospital in
the same condition the lab and pharmacy
both were functional but no other
facilities no operation theater an
ultrasound and other diagnostic
facilities so I had to shift all the
patients who required surgical
intervention
to the st. Luke's Hospital which was in
Meerut the with the help of doctors I
could operate them there one night woman
with third pregnancy third childbirth
was brought to the hospital in labor
full-term in labor she had two previous
c-sections this was third pregnancy
whole day they were trying to deliver
now normally in the village so middle of
the night they carried her to the
hospital so as usual I examined her I
was scared what a virtual uterus before
we reach the hospital in Meerut it is 25
kilometers way to travel
similarly called the driver and try to
ship 10 an ambulance
when we covered up to 20 kilometers or
so she was howling in pain what else was
contacting I was holding on to the Lord
please nothing should happen say the
baby and mother and the ambulance breaks
down on the road
middle of the night so travel gets out
and hope opens opponent
and to fix up the vehicle meanwhile the
patrolling Hobbs comes hearing her woman
is shouting in the ambulance I'm
standing in the middle of the road they
came to ask any help they help the
driver to get it down faster I mean
that's - at the hospital and we reach
doctors and nurses as well in from front
started in my hospital they were waiting
there so we rushed her to the operation
theatre when we opened the abdomen which
blister could see the scar was rupturing
the membrane was bulging so we could
take out the baby live baby and repair
the uterus and send her back home both
mother and baby
el-tee as the days went on the number of
complicated cases like to be close to
men pregnancies lessen the previa
bleeding abnormal presentation addresses
and missed abortion threatened abortion
cases was coming up but there was no way
to diagnose ultrasounds were not
available in Sabrina we had to go to me
that - after sound come back then
managed so that I decided I would go for
after some training to do the ultrasound
in our own Hospital so after 10 years we
managed to install an artisan machine a
hospital start an operation theater
good luck a past dare and their name my
next mission was to fight against
abortions it was at a time in Meerut
artisans became mythic common number of
artists own centers increased and also
the sex determination and female
feticide was in high rate people are mad
with the idea of sex determination
abortion
such determination abortion the defect
all people are told that up to three
months is only pool of blood that clean
it easily many mothers shared the
painful experiences the minute often
told me dilma pathology home abortion
collegiate area meaning with the heavy
heart we go to the abortionist with
because of the force from the family
many of them had no voice in the family
against abortion I would like to share
with you one painful incident a 35 year
old a lady was coming to me for a few
months with vague complaints of
headaches backaches lower lower limb
pain like that so I was treating her
symptomatically but and I realized she
had something more than deepened there
something that is troubling her so one
day I spent time with her only she
disclosed that time the painful story
which might make the even stone to cry
the stories like this her husband and
she had two children he was a
businessman he was in and out of family
he wanted only two children so when she
conceived third time she did not
disclose her husband fear for fear of
forcing her abortion when she was seven
months pregnant she revealed that to him
hoping that he would not force her for
abortion but against her expectation he
beat her up clatter electronic whack and
forcefully about at the feet of
forcefully made her to deliver the baby
so this woman was watching the crack
delivering the baby she could hear the
baby's cry and the woman with the crack
held the babies by feet and dipped the
baby in the bucket of water until the
baby the mother was pretty sad she cried
and left he was very angry with her
husband really angry with the crack the
woman who put the baby in the bucket of
water she could hear the babies crying
even after five six years that was
troubling her mind she could never
forgive her husband for that did so
after narration she cried she wept and
wept and wept with me she felt with
relieved friends sometimes just
listening can bring a lot of healing now
fast-forward 2019 now a hospital has
nearly 35 beds
few private rooms 2 3 AC rooms we've got
very good spacious labor room with the
two beds and also an operation theater
and also we have I to you with the 4
beds and 4 monitors and a nice you to
phototherapy units two bombers and one
sees Bab unit and also we have good
others on machine and cardio Tokarev and
wood a clinical pathology lab and a very
good pharmacy and we also got very good
nursing staff in the hospital now
sadhana has improved but we have only
one residential doctor who is finishing
his bond this plant and myself with a
few visiting doctors for as a physician
pediatrician and anesthetist we are
still struggling for lack of doctors
number of schools have increased in
salina number of patients was coming for
antenatal checkups and hospital delivery
yourself increased husband's
accompanying the wives have increased
and today those who come to a hospital
for delivery they know that may be will
be only handed over to the father
provided he brings new clothes and the
toothbrush for his wife at least in the
hospital
we need to wake up to these issues all
around a woman's health care should
start as early as her childhood
education is the only tool it can't
solve these problems educate a biblical
child about the future her future
pregnancy returns little problems and
one in science so that she can see
timely help educate every boy in the
village to take care of his wife and
children above all to respect well child
and women in the society encourage every
medical student and junior doctors to
have an exposure program in the rural
areas and involve them in health care
services and always always listen to any
woman who comes to you in pain and then
she shall live because of you today
India has reached Mars through Mongolian
and we have reached to qian rien - and
today we and the rural areas are waiting
for rural Eon to reach with a package of
health for the women in India thank you
for your patience
[Applause]