Accident survivor lends a helping hand to the sick

Mumbai: Twenty-four-year-old Monika More performs a unique function at Gleaneagles Global Hospital, Parel, as an intermediary between doctors, nurses and patients

Mumbai: Twenty-four-year-old Monika More performs a unique function at Gleaneagles Global Hospital, Parel, as an intermediary between doctors, nurses and patients. Since she stepped into this role last year, patients in the wards have been less anxious and are happier.

Accident survivor lends a helping hand to the sick

More is the city’s first hand transplant patient and the face of railway accidents. She had the surgery two years ago, and now keeps the patients’ spirits up with stories of her journey as an accident survivor.

To mark two years of the surgery, she, along with Dr Vivek Talaulikar, chief executive officer of the hospital, and Dr Nilesh Satbhai, her transplant surgeon, sought the blessings of Lalbaugcharaja and performed aarti on Friday.

The Kurla resident lost both her hands in January 2014 after falling into a deadly platform gap at Ghatkopar station. She was a Class 11 commerce student at the time. After the accident, she spent six months in KEM Hospital and underwent over eight plastic surgeries and bone reshaping operations. Her story moved people and a fund of ₹34 lakh was raised which helped her get one of the most advanced myoelectric-controlled prostheses of that time.

She was going about her life with prosthetic arms -- one functional (electronic) and other cosmetic – but on August 28, 2020, she had the transplant at Global Hospital after a brain-dead patient’s family in Chennai donated the hands. In the time that had passed between the accident and the surgery, she cleared the Class 12 exams and completed her graduation in commerce.

After her surgery, More was without a job for over a year and unsure about her vocation. That’s when the hospital offered her the opportunity to interact with patients, some of whom are now her friends, she said.

She sits at the nurses’ station where she works between 9 am and 5 pm. “I begin with visiting patients, checking their medical records, nursing chart and the medicine doses given to them. Initially, I had a problem in understanding medical jargon, but eventually became well-versed with it,” she said.

As she makes her rounds, patients ask her about her hand and listen to her survival story keenly. As she said, “They love to hear my story and I am glad to be able to make a difference in their lives.”

This camaraderie leads patients to share their concerns with More, which she takes to relevant departments for redressal.

Dr Talaulikar said the idea of appointing her as a patient counsellor was spontaneous and among one of his best decisions. “On August 28 last year, when we were celebrating a year of her hand transplant, we asked her about her plans. She said she wished to work and was jobless at the time. We immediately requested her to join us,” said Dr Talaulikar.

Dr Talaulikar also said, after her surgery, More was skipping her physiotherapy sessions for one reason or the other – traffic and rain being predominant. “Her appointment at the hospital served a dual purpose – she had work and she does not miss her sessions; in fact, travelling to the hospital acted as physiotherapy for her,” he said.

As she is a patient care coordinator and counsellor, and works closely with the nursing team, she is required to use her hands and fingers a lot, explained Dr Talaulikar.

Dr Satbhai said More has been an inspiration to patients, especially those who are getting registered for hand transplants. “Her journey itself is inspiring. She spent the first six months in hospital and got a hand transplant after six years. When patients watch her leading a regular life with her transplanted hands, they feel motivated,” he said.

“More is no less than a celebrity here, as patients often ask to be photographed with her. She has brought so many smiles to their faces,” said Dr Talaulikar.