India is a country where a significant section of the nation’s population lives in the village. Our country’s success and development are dependent on improved living situations in rural areas, where all necessary life-supporting amenities, including healthcare, are readily available to everybody. Poverty, sickness, and a lack of sanitation characterize the environment in Indian villages. People living in villages are suffering greatly from numerous chronic diseases because of the lack of amenities and poor management in rural areas.
Special attention must be paid to health care in rural regions to control the spread of diseases and minimize the rising rates of mortality caused by a lack of suitable health facilities. Dr. Pawar Hospital Palus is among India’s foremost healthcare centers, providing excellent treatment across a spectrum of specialties.
Dr. Pawar hospital Palus was founded in 2009 by Dr. Sadhana Amol Pawar and, over the last few years, has been focused on providing quality healthcare services to the rural population and especially providing all the services related to obstetrics and gynecology.
In the following interview, Dr. Sadhana talks more about her specialty services and how she’s striving towards making rural healthcare in India more advanced and accessible.
Kindly tell our readers about yourself and your professional journey so far.
I am Dr. Sadhana Amol Pawar, and I am working as a consultant obstetrician and gynecologist at Dr. Pawar hospital at Palus, a small city in the Sangli district of Maharashtra. I have done my secondary schooling in Jawahar Navoday Vidyalaya Palus. I did my M.B.B.S at Government Medical College Miraj And my postgraduation in obstetrics and gynecology at Dr. V.M.M.C Medical college Solapur.
I have been practicing at my own 35 bedded hospital along with my orthopedic surgeon husband since 2009 at Palus. I am engaged in various social activities for women’s health. I do write about various topics related to women’s health like PCOS, adolescence, obesity prevention, premenstrual syndrome, menopause, pregnancy, contraception, sexual dysfunction, cancers in females, etc., through newspapers, magazines, social media and, I do deliver lectures on these various topics in women gatherings, school, colleges, etc.
Besides this, I work on women’s empowerment by making them aware of the constitution, politics, various laws, etc. We, through our NGO, adopted villages during floods in Western Maharashtra. We do conduct camps like bone mineral density checking, hemoglobin checking, thyroid function testing, etc.
What was your inspiration to step into the healthcare sector?
My inspiration to step into the healthcare sector was watching, since childhood, the misery faced by my villagers, relatives, and friends due to the lack of a proper healthcare system in the rural area.
Tell us about Dr. Pawar hospital, its mission, and vision, and what role did you play in furthering its development and outreach?
Dr. Pawar hospital is a 35 bedded hospital founded in 2009. Its mission is to provide quality healthcare services to rural populations and to spread health awareness amongst them.
I do provide all services related to obstetrics and gynecology, ranging from infertility to cancer management to the standard level as much as possible.
COVID-19 proved to be the biggest disruptor since the dot-com bubble. How has the pandemic affected the operation and growth of your hospital?
The COVID-19 pandemic came with a storm of horror and uncertainty in the minds of doctors, nurses, and paramedical staff working at our hospital. The time came when most of the staff were not allowed by their family to work. But still, we continued our services; we chose humanity over self. We counseled our staff, provided the necessary personal protection equipment kits, and continued to serve our patients.
We had the opportunity to serve people free of cost because of the MJPJAY and PMJAY schemes. We conducted deliveries of pregnant ladies when they were rejected everywhere due to fear. And that feels so great now when we look at those kids covid pandemic-born kids accompanying their mothers for follow-up.
What are the biggest challenges that you have faced operating such a highly reputed multi-specialty facility? What are the most important lessons that you have learned in your vocation so far?
We face many challenges because this hospital is in a small city where we have a lack of consultants, nursing and paramedical staff, blood bank, anesthetist, and tertiary care center. But still, we have proudly cared for and cured thousands of our patients without any
morbidity and mortality. What I learned so far is if you are sincere in providing your service without exploitation of patients, you will never face any medicolegal or violence.
In your opinion, what would be the future of healthcare post the pandemic? How are you strategizing your multi-specialty hospital’s operations for that future?
The future of the healthcare industry is always promising. But as in the post-covid era, the economy is in a delicate stage we have to offer people service at a low cost. We must help them come out of this together because if they survive, we do survive. There should be more research in virology, and there should be more and more new tertiary care centers even at the periphery.
What advice would you like to give to aspiring doctors and healthcare enthusiast who wishes to venture into the hospital in the coming years?
I will advise the aspiring doctors not the entry in this field for money-making and to carry forward legacy the of keeping this profession noble as it is through centuries. Also, I would advise them to enter this field only if they are passionate about serving humanity.
No one can practice medicine if there is no love for humanity and if there is no compassionate heart.
Where do you see yourself in the future? Also, how do you envision scaling Dr. Pawar hospital in the coming years?
We hope to expand our service to more specialties and treat and caring more and more patients in our area by making available all the health care schemes by the government.
