First Experiences 1980 !

Anna and I joined on line yesterday for the evening chapel service at the Christian Medical College Vellore, which was a Valedictory service of the celebrations of 125 the anniversary of the college. 

Tomorrow the  9th December will be remembered as the founder's day to recall the history of CMCV from the time of Dr Ida Sophia Scudder.

It was while attending the service my thoughts flashed back to my first experience at CMCV as a member of the faculty in Child Health department in 1980. 

Anna is alumnus of 1968 batch of CMCV. 

Although I have had contacts with faculty and students of CMCV and Anna and I had some common friends, the two years we spent from 1980 initiated me into a new consciousness about health care and healing. 

On the occasion of the 125th Founder's day, let me recollect few experiences of those two years. 

1. First day in Child Health department. Professor Malathi Jadhav, whose Child Health Unit I joined ,greeted me warmly and introduced me to the different aspects of life and work in the department. Shortly after that Dr Malathi took me to the hospital chapel, where we spent about ten minutes in silent preyer. Her remark that 'Prayer is the source of our strength at CMCV' touched me. Following this, she took me to meet Dr Jacob Abraham, the Medical Superintendent and Dr L.B.M Joseph the director of CMCV. Although they were short meetings, what stays with me even now is the culture of cordiality and acceptance I felt from Dr Malathi, Dr Jacob and Dr LBM. I felt that I was in a place where people mattered and not just work alone. The way Dr Malathi introduced me to the Medical Superintendent and the director, as the husband of Anna John made me feel, how each student is remembered by the faculty. 

2. First clinical round in the children's ward. Dr Malthi was used to getting a pone call every morning at 6 am from the resident on duty, which briefed her about the different clinical events since she took the evening round at 4 pm on the previous day. On arrival for round she would turn to each resident to enquire if they had their breakfast. In case there was someone who missed it due to an emergency in the casualty service, she would request the resident to join the round  after   the breakfast. Next she would turn to the nurses whom she would address by their name and enquire about them, and their family. She remembered even their children's name. Then she would enquire about each domestic staff. She would then turn to the parent of the child and have a conversation. The presentation of the clinical details of the child by the resident would follow after this routine. It was a new experience of watching a health care practice, where the team work was exercised meaningfully. 

3. First contact with medical students. Three or four days after I joined the department a few medical students arrived to greet me. They had heard about a new lecturer in the department and wanted to make contacts. They invited me to visit the men's hostel, which I did a week later. Meeting with about fifteen of them from different batches gave me another taste of the cordial retionshiops that exist between students and  faculty.  That initiated me to get to know some students well and their visits to our home and my visit to the hostel became a regular feature.  

4. First college Chapel service. I was invited by Dr Benjamin Pulimood, the professor of Medicine to join for a prayer time before the evening chapel service on Sunday at the Dr Scuddar room in the auditorium. During that meeting I met senior professors who welcomed me to the faculty. What followed was a time of sharing by each professor and a time of prayer remembering the faculty, students, patients in the hospital and the chapel service. Rev A.C.Oommen, the head of chaplaincy who steered this meeting made the atmosphere prayerful and devotional by his introduction and interludes. That gave me a flavour of the prayerful ambience that leads the institution.  All of us together walked into the sunken garden on time to begin the chapel service where students and faculty worshipped week after week. 

5. First class prayer. It was a custom for students of each batch to meet for fellowship and prayer once every week in the evening. Sometimes they would invite a faculty to join the group to share some thoughts from the Scripture. Meeting more than half of the class at the prayer meeting, gave me an introduction to the life style students chose to live by in the hostel and college. They were meeting together to feel guided  about their future and live by the motto of the institution, 'not to be ministered unto but to mister'. 

6 First Clinical meeting. The weekly clinical meeting which was held on Friday at 4 pm by the department of medicine was the academic highlight of the week. The residents and faculty actively participated in discussing difficult clinical scenario.  I found an exploratory attitude when matters needed resolution on difficult clinical situations. It was a pleasure and informative to hear senior consultants discuss factually and laterally, opening up new horizons in thinking. It was a forum which brought the clinicians together for interaction and camaraderie. 

7. First Medical Board meeting. All the faculty used to be invited for the meeting during which time,  the medical superintendent usually shared the important events in the life of the institution since the previous meeting. It was a forum for the faculty to express their concerns and opinions. The way conversations took place in the forum gave me an introduction to the participatory process that was inherent in the culture of the decision making process in the institution. There was openness and dialogue with an attitude of finding a middle path when opinions differed. 

Let me conclude this recollection. 

I confess that I took a while to get familiar with the ethos of cordiality that was inherent at work place and on social occasions. The weekly radiology meetings, pathology meetings, and the audit meetings in the unit gave the clinicians an opportunity to discuss and learn from the specialists in different specialities. I did feel out of place sometimes as traditions and rituals of CMC life were new to me. Being a residential campus, and  a close knit community, life was a continuum from work place to home. The long hours of work was a new experience. What lifted me up and carried me forward was the pursuit of excellence in clinical decision making and care of children that was the attitude in the unit and in the hospital. There was utmost commitment to ethical practice of medicine in a holistic way. It was a good start for me in my professional journey to have been in such an environment of academic setting, where evidence based practice of medicine was the standard of clinical practice! 

Anna and I felt through some special experiences, that we are to pursue ways of being involved with Neuro-developmentally challenged children. As there was only a limited opportunity at CMCV at that time, we relocated ourselves at Chennai to set up a Child Development Centre in 1983. Later in 1997, we were invited back to CMCV to start the clinical unit of Developmental Paediatrics. 

Anna and I look back to the time during our second spell at CMCV form 1997. It was a remarkably fulfilling period in our lives. Anna could return to do her post graduate training and become a faculty in Pharmacology, involve in Medical education,  lead the continuing medical education department and start publishing the journal, Current Medical Issues. I had opportunities to be involved with the middle level faculty and be part of the faculty retreat process. 

Our lives received an enlargement during our second season at CMCV.  We have had associations with CMCV even after our retirement. 

The photo of flower form our garden in this blog post, is a symbol to us about the future of CMCV. It is a place of history, excellence, and formation of professionals in health care. 

The buds in the photo represent the future, which is promising and envisioning!

What an opportunity in life for having had an experience to be associated with such an institution, where the rhythm of life is- 'in God we live, move and have our being'!

Anna and I wish the institution a fulfilling journey to be a leaven in health care in India, in the years to come!

May those who lead the affairs of the institution be blessed with wisdom, discernment and devotion!

M.C.Mathew (text and photo)