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| Dr.Jacob Chandy, Kottayam |
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93-year-old Dr.Jacob Chandy lives a peaceful retired life after decades of service as the 1st neurosurgeon of India. Padmabhushan Dr. Chandy was responsible for converting Christian Medical College, Velloor into a famous speciality hospital and for starting neurosurgery wing in many hospitals including Madras Medical College and AIIMS, New Delhi.
“I was not a brilliant student. But the Will of God was responsible for my becoming a doctor”, he reminisces about his young days. In fact he considers it a Divine intervention that paved the way for his getting admission in Madras Medical College.
After graduation he longed to work in a Mission hospital or go abroad for higher studies in neurosurgery. At a time when Indian doctors were having only skeletal information about neurosurgery, it took Dr.Chandy tremendous courage to choose the field.
In order to earn enough money to sponsor his higher studies, he joined Arabian Oil Company and later worked in a Mission hospital in Bahrin. With the assistance of Dr. Harrison from the hospital, he was able to secure admission for an 8-month surgery course in Pennsylvania University, USA, which ultimately paved the way for his securing post graduation in neurosurgery from renowned McGill University, Canada.
With a quest to serve God through treatment of patients, he took up job at CMC, Velloor, which was hardly conducive, infrastructurally, to house a neurosurgery unit. But things gradually improved and in 1970 when Dr.Chandy retired at the age of 60, there were all speicalities in the hospital.
Even now he is alert about the new trends in the medical field. His one son Dr.Mathew Chandy is a neurosurgeon at Indo-American Hospital, Vaikkam. Another son is doing business in Australia while his daughter is in Dubai. He lives in Kottayam with his 85-year-old wife Akkamma.
“I am very old but still alive. So I must not waste time,” he sums up his present state.
Courtesy: Bindu K. Prasad, Malayalam, Chingam 21, 1178
Contributed by: Administrator
