Vivacious and passionate is how one would describe Dr. Neelam Mohan, India’s leading paediatric liver transplant specialist and recipient of the prestigious Dr B C Roy Award. She can go to any lengths to ensure the children in her care are provided the best of clinical care, and also goes the extra mile to try and secure funding for children from families who are less fortunate.
Dr Mohan always felt connected to children, especially young infants. She decided very early on in her career that she wanted to work in the area of gastroenterology, hepatology and liver transplant in children. “It was a difficult journey but I resolved to stick to my dream. I distinctly remember August 15, 2003, when I did the first liver transplant in India on a child which was successful. There was no looking back after that,” says Dr Mohan.
So where does AMPH at ISB fit in? Dr Mohan believes to be able to give complete care to her patients, every doctor must learn about all the intricacies of management and patient satisfaction. “When I started looking at healthcare management courses, I saw that ISB ranked among the top 10 in the world. It had already made its mark in healthcare management,” says Dr Mohan. “At ISB, there is a beautiful amalgamation of faculty from India and abroad. It is a perfect blend of the East and the West. ”
Even after returning to studies after almost two decades, Dr Mohan found it relatively easy to transition as a student. “I do not remember my medical school batchmates as vividly as my AMPH classmates. I even remember everybody’s interest areas. That is the magic of ISB. Whether it is the food or class, party or studies, team management or campus activities, everything at ISB was surprisingly unique. ISB teaches you leadership and people management. We were made to work hard only to realise that there are no shortcuts. We were made to work in groups to realise the importance of integrity and team management. To be able to learn what patient (customer) satisfaction is, the School curated not just a great programme but also a wonderful experience for us. It looked at all our needs so meticulously that surprises me to no end,” she adds.
To all the doctors on the occasion of National Doctor’s Day, she says, “As clinicians, we are very satisfied with what we are doing. But there is so much more to learn. It is important for clinicians to know how management thinks and for the management to know how a clinician thinks. At ISB, you learn to learn.”
Brief Bio
Dr Neelam Mohan is a Dr B C Roy Awardee and the Director of Department of Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Liver Transplantation at Medanta Medicity Hospital. She is also the National Coordinator & Sc. Convener of IAP Diarrhoea module, President of Commonwealth Association of Pediatric Gastroenterology & Nutrition (CAPGAN) and CHILD Society. Dr Mohan was recently onboarded as an Advisor to the Board of PMJAY and is working on the issues of maternal healthcare, undernutrition and malnutrition in children.