With over three decades of experience, Dr Anupam Sibal is one of India's leading paediatric gastroenterologists and hepatologists. He is Group Medical Director at Apollo Hospitals Group and has been instrumental in advancing paediatric liver disease and transplant care in the country. Having treated thousands of children over the course of his career, the 57-year-old has also played a key role in shaping healthcare delivery, medical education and quality standards across India's hospital sector.
Q. What it means to be a doctor in your generation?
When I was training, there were no training facilities in India for many super specialties. So, I went to the UK and many batch mates moved to the US, UK, Australia. Today, healthcare in India is world class. Whatever can be done anywhere in the world, can be done in India with excellent outcomes. We are now set to produce more than 1,20,000 MBBS students a year and training programs in all super specialties are well established. The availability of technology was limited and today we have the best technology, including Proton therapy. Digital health, wearables and AI are redefining the way we practice and also changing are expectations of patients.
What, of course, has not changed and will not change is the privilege every doctor has to relieve someone’s pain and take away their worries which remains one of the most gratifying aspects of being a doctor. In case of pediatrics, a doctor can bring relief and joy not only to the child (who more often than not cannot fully express herself or himself) but also to parents and grandparents. Those smiles become the greatest reward for a pediatrician. As we become more hi-tech, it is equally important that we remain hi-touch as every patient wants empathy, compassion and kindness. And more so today, than earlier.
Q. What irritates you the most as a doctor?
{{/usCountry}}What, of course, has not changed and will not change is the privilege every doctor has to relieve someone’s pain and take away their worries which remains one of the most gratifying aspects of being a doctor. In case of pediatrics, a doctor can bring relief and joy not only to the child (who more often than not cannot fully express herself or himself) but also to parents and grandparents. Those smiles become the greatest reward for a pediatrician. As we become more hi-tech, it is equally important that we remain hi-touch as every patient wants empathy, compassion and kindness. And more so today, than earlier.
Q. What irritates you the most as a doctor?
{{/usCountry}}When people ignore their health! You can have many problems and then you get a health problem and then you have only one problem because everything places in comparison. Why do people not make every effort to remain healthy – diet, sleep, exercise, water intake, mental well being all need to receive the attention they deserve for a person to remain healthy. Also, I cannot fathom why people miss signs that the body gives out that it needs attention. A stich in time saves nine. We need to the change narrative from treatment to disease prevention.
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