THIS CAN HAPPEN VOL XV
THIS CAN HAPPEN VOL XV
DR.GANGADHAR SAHOO.
Dr. Dash is my friend. He retired as chief medical officer Capital Hospital, Bhubaneswar on superannuation in 2013. After retirement he joined as Senior Resident (SR) ObGy in KIMS (Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences), Bhubaneswar. He was so much committed that he retired from that Institute as Professor ObGy, truly a rare achievement. He had two sons working outside India. He was staying with her wife, retired Head Mistress from capital Girls High school in an apartment in Bhubaneswar.
Mr. Pattanaik a retired chief engineer was his immediate neighbor. Mr. Pattanaik had the same fate as Dr. Dash. His son and daughter were in United States with their families not destined to return back to India .His wife, a house wife was staying with him. They were staying in that apartment since 2013. Mrs. Dash and Mrs. Pattanaik had become close friends. Everyday they were going for morning and evening walk as a routine. Those two hours were most enjoyable time for both. Not only they were out of their monotonous routine house hold works , but also during the walk they were exploring the whole world and beyond. Theirs was a never ending story knitted with imaginations, emotions, hearsays , facts, fictions what not .
Dr. Dash was going to the medical college and in the evening attending a clinic attached to a nursing home. Hardly he was staying at home during day time. Mr. Pattanaik was confined to his home. He spends his time mainly in reading books and writing short stories.
Mr. Pattanaik was obese, diabetic and hypertensive. He was under treatment of qualified physicians of Capital Hospital. As per the advice of the physicians he was taking insulin three times daily, antihypertensive medicine twice daily, strictly following the prescribed diet chart, walking for thirty minutes daily and practicing yoga. He had one habit which is very common with all diabetic patients that in any get-together or party he can't control himself. He was taking every possible item as per his sweet will , taking little extra dose of insulin to compensate the extra calories and returning home fully satisfied. One day after such a delicious dinner he started vomiting and fell down. His friends called the ambulance and shifted him to the capital hospital. They informed his wife. She was alone. Fortunately Dr. Dash was returning from his clinic and without slightest delay he took her to the casualty of capital hospital.
Mr. Pattanaik was admitted as a case of stroke with intracranial hemorrhage. He was unconscious but responding to the painful stimulus. Management was conservative. The fundamentals of management of an unconscious patient are
- Nasogastric feeding
- O2 inhalation
- Indwelling catheterization
- Care of the bowel and care of the skin.
- Antihypertensive drugs
- Insulin for diabetes
- Intravenous fluid
After being stabilized, he went for a craniotomy and evacuation of intracranial blood clots. Following that surgery he remained in a state of coma for almost two months. During this period of hospital stay the total care was taken by his wife, Dr. Dash and his wife. They were never expecting either their son or their daughter to visit them . Other relatives who were visiting to the hospital were like guests. They were rather creating more problems than rendering any help. Their visit was just a ritual , only to have a face presentation. When he gained consciousness he had already developed right sided hemiplagia. He was discharged from the hospital after around four months. To take care of him in his flat a physiotherapy expert and a paid nurse were engaged. For round the clock vigilance to Mr. Pattanaik and for household works they were blessed with one loyal cook and a loyal driver. For any other help/assistance Mrs. Dash and Dr. Dash were available . Mrs. Dash became more intimate to Mrs. Pattanaik. Once her routine work was over she was giving company to Mrs. Pattanaik and helping her. In due course of time they worked as if they were twin sisters.
Time was smoothly passing by. All the stress, pain and apprehensions were gradually becoming the part of life. After a few months the most deadly 2nd wave of COVID had engulfed the whole country. Whenever you opened a news paper or switched on the TV you were only listening to the horrors of COVID. Everybody was in a panic state. During this period Mrs. Dash tested COVID positive. Since all the senior citizens were staying in that floor and Mr. Pattanaik had all the risk factors, Dr. Dash decided that Mrs. Dash to be hospitalized for the best interest of the inmates. That was done.Fortunately she got a cabin . It was a well equipped single room cabin. Duty room was very close to it . She felt comfortable and secured .As the better half of Prof. Dash all facilities were provided to her. As per the protocol all medicines were being given. She was to be discharged after one week. But just on the morning of the scheduled date of discharge , Dr Dash got the information that his wife was shifted to ICU and was with ventilator support. It was just a bolt from blue on the head of Dr.Dash . At that time anybody transferred to the ICU was supposed not to return back unless otherwise proved. After struggling around 15 days in ICU she left for heavenly abode.
Dr.Dash was narrating his terrible experience . The dreadful experience about his wife's death and death of other patients was really heart breaking. His final brief comment was, "My wife locked the flat and went to the COVID ward not out of compulsion but out of choice. While leaving the apartment she told that she will come back within a week as soon as she tests COVID negative. Both of us left our apartment walking on that day. I accompanied her to the COVID ward. But my fate had to tell a different story. I went with my wife Mrs. Dash but I returned alone a widower leaving behind her body under the disposal of muncipality authority for mass funeral. What an irony of fate? "
At present Dr Dash is staying alone. He is remaining busy in the nursing home from 9am to 9pm. Mrs. Pattanaik and Mr. Pattanaik one day told Dr Dash not be worried about his flooding and other domestic requirements. "You keep yourself busy in the nursing home. Tell your routine time table starting from the bed tea to the dinner time . Only do a favor by giving your tiffin carrier. Our cook is there. He was cooking for two and he will cook for three. We are not at a loss. Rather we are fortunate to serve a person and a friend like you. As a patient family we can't repay your debt. We take it as our duty rather the fruit of our KARMA of our previous birth to serve you in the present birth. For Heaven sake please don't take it otherwise. Feel free like a family member. Let us enjoy the rest of our life. "
Moral of this anecdote:
Now we are living in an aging society. In most of the families the picture is almost same. Parents in their 70s and above are living in apartments for security reasons selling out their palatial buildings which they had built for their children and grandchildren to live. But invariably most of the children are preferring to stay abroad, in metropolis or independently leaving their parents in the apartments or in old age homes. In this anecdote Dr Dash is one spectrum of the life where one partner leaves , leaving the other one to enjoy the solitude. The other spectrum is both partners are living but one partner is bedridden for years leaving the other partner to render her selfless divine service. A rarest of the rare situation is seen in this case where both the families of Dr.Dash and of Mrs Pattanaik could manage with the principle of caring and sharing, forgetting all their pains. To be practical we all the senior citizens should accept the truth and change our lifestyle accordingly to enjoy the rest part of our lives. Let's take a leaf out of the book of both the families.
MAN PROPOSES, GOD DISPOSES.
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