
– Tusharika Singh I Writer & City Blogger |
A pampered yet disciplined childhood
Throwing light on his childhood days, Dr. Bhandari said that he spent his childhood with his grandfather. “There was pampering but a lot of discipline and simplicity as well, unlike today’s times. There was a fixed time for waking up, playing outside as well as studying. Our children grew up in a completely different atmosphere”, said Dr. Bhandari. Talking about his hobbies while growing up, Dr. Bhandari shared that he had only two passions – studies and sports. “I had an avid interest in tennis, table tennis and chess”, he added.
Taking up Medicine as a Career
On being asked what inspired him to take up medicine as a career, Dr. Bhandari shared that his father was a popular surgeon. During his summer holidays, Dr. Bhandari used to accompany him everywhere, including the Operation Theatre. “I saw the amount of respect that he got from people and that inspired me to become a doctor as early as when I was in class 6. And luckily, I got into medicine in the first go”, he revealed. While talking about the secret to his success, the ace medical expert said that he never took any coaching and believed in the mantra of “Retain what you Read”. “Instead of reading 20 books on one topic, I read one book 20 times and made sure that I was thorough with what I read and retained all the information. Moreover, I did not have many friends during that time and my focus was quite singular”, said Dr. Bhandari.
Handling the Covid-19 Crisis
“The last two years have been testing times but we did our best. There were mainly three challenges we had to address – treating patients, creating infrastructure and developing a policy for the state”, shared Dr. Bhandari while shedding light on the Covid-19 experience. On being asked about how he manages to maintain his calm and quiet demeanour even in stressful situations, Dr. Bhandari said that being calm gives him the inner strength to make conclusions and decide. “When there are too many things to handle, the best way to tackle them is to not react and take them up one by one”, he added while giving a word of advice.
Setting new records
Be it creating world-class infrastructure in merely 30-40 days, the use of drugs like Remdesivir or Hydroxychloroquine,or even the treatment of the black fungus cases rampant during the second wave of the pandemic, Dr. Bhandari along with his team set new records by being pioneers not just in the country but across the globe. Highlighting the future plans, Dr. Bhandari said soon there will be a Corporate Tower at SMS Hospital with an air ambulance landing facility on the roof. New types of transplants like Hand Transplant and Skin Transplant are also being introduced at the hospital.
Hectic but immensely satisfying profession
While talking about his daily schedule and his life as a doctor, Dr. Bhandari said that there is no denying that this profession is quite hectic and demanding and there is always a paucity of time. “ I wake up every day around 6 am and finish my day around 2 am. I have not seen a single movie in a cinema hall in the last 15-20 years However, the sense of happiness and gratification this profession gives me is immense”, shared Dr. Bhandari.