Santhosh's ramblings

So – are there alternative solutions other than breaking the law or allowing people to explore accessing care elsewhere? Yes, a few… One – set up blood banks – 15 to 20 Lacs for building and equipment, trained manpower and a series of inspections and licenses, which need to be renewed every few years. Realistic – yes in potentially 15% of the current contexts where Blood is required… Two – Accredit yourself as Storage Centers of an existing Bank. Within a limited distance only, need to have Bank which can allow these storage centers. Need to keep “X” number of Blood always and return and replace….Realistic – tried but failed….. Three – collect blood from nearby banks in emergency – but if the nearest is 30 to 100 kms away…..will the patient remain alive till then….When the received blood has a PCV of less than 10 or Hb of 3 or 4, or when one finds that the received blood is HIV positive and or if the patient has to shell out anywhere between 2000 to 5000/- for one bottle of

  1       It is wrong…. It is legally wrong to possess blood bags, or at least found possessing the same. It is wrong to “create blood” by bleeding a donor, even if it is the wife or husband who wants to save his or her spouses life, is the donor. Not just wrong, but wrong enough to put few unsuspecting lab technicians to jail who just obeyed orders of Doctors who had no other option, than to bleed, when faced with a moral dilemma. It is wrong  to bleed and transfuse blood even if you see life ebbing away in front of you, though you as a trained Medical Practioner  knows what can be done. 2       it is not wrong…                        It is morally not wrong to save lives. It is not wrong to do all what you can, to prevent people who could have otherwise succumbed to the illness by  life giving treatment modalities. It is not wrong for a loving husband or wife to donate his or her blood to his or her spouse. 3       but when wrong is right and right is wrong…. But when

Anaesthetists - Be Aware.  I underwent an IOL implantation yesterday. I am not sure why the Anaesthetist decided on a concoction of Midazolam, Propofol and ? ketamine (I think I got all three - first two sure, third - presumption) to the well tested blocks! May be special treatment for a doctor colleague. But the experience was exhilarating. First phase - floating around in the midst of psychedelic colours, feeling on the top of the world, being transported to some kind of 'heaven' (not the real second or third as Paul would put it)....Second phase - down to earth after a loooong period of time (probably few minutes) doctors asking me to move up on the bed, feeling the pain in eye, and aware of what is happening around - the dissociative anaesthesia time, but all the time a longing to go back into phase one....Third phase, back in room, wondering why I am feeling low, yearning for phase 1! Like C S Lewis, who was surprised by Joy and was longing for it.... Anaesthetists

The three questions which one is challenged with are – questions of “Status” “Significance” and “Security”. Early and mid fifties (my age) is a good time in life especially if you are married and have elderly parents and teenage and early adulthood kids with you, to reflect on this……a sandwiched reflection…. Status     The young are asking – What can and should I become… My generation is reflecting…. Oh – what am I becoming…and carefully reflecting – what should I not become at all…! The aged parents are resting   – In the legacy of status are they are leaving…..and if we listen clearly – what we hear is – what they would like to leave behind is a “legacy of life well lived with long lasting relationships” – Status which emerges out of relationships - relationships which will be remembered long after they are gone…. Status out of relationships to God and each other – something which live beyond our life time….! Significance The young are asking - what can I contribute…

It was Thursday night. Three and half years of teaching, caring, healing, building people, trying help people to see the big picture of the Kingdom of God, was coming to a culmination. As he neared the last few days of His time of this earth, the context was becoming hysterical.   The formal leadership from the existing religious institutions, whose status was being challenged by this new entrant into field, was plotting to eliminate him. The state authorities were listening to those from the formal structures and were not willing to see anything other than the stories, the leaders brought to them. The common man – the crowd, had been well brainwashed by those wielding political power and influence and were crying to murder this well meaning, innocent Rabbi.   The close friends, who were expected to stand with him, were running away. One of them, the senior finance manager had switched allegiances and was part of the gang plotting to pull the rug from under His feet. The closest

How do we measure where we are in the communities which we are part of, be it be my family, my church, my work place or other communities we are part of? Three questions to reflect on. 1.       A community is as close to its purposes as its members are. We measure where we are first by measuring ourselves. What is the purpose of my being in the community I am part of – be it be my family, my church, institution, project or organization? On scale given below try to place yourself. My purpose of being part of the community (Family/Church/Institution/Project/Organization) Me, my needs Common agenda of work and or need to live together Identity of the community, work place or institution Need for each other for the sake of growth of each other and the community God, his purposes, commonality of brokenness bound by Grace of God   2.       Then reflect on the community you are part of and try to place the same in the sca

The heart is deceitful above all things....that is what the Bible says. We can very well understand that, since our heart testifies to this when we reflect against the standards in the makers manual. But the brain is one which betrays...betrays us from understanding the status of the inner man, the spiritual which is normally expressed through external brain responses. When organic brain syndromes occur due to organic damage to the brain, one could live a normal life with very minimal deficit or end up in a persistent vegetative state. And the visible responses of inner man varies depending on the level of deficit. When cognition loss confuses our  brain, patterns of older disciplines and behaviour become pronounced and one is unsure if it is just the degenerating neuronal functions or the inner man expressing out its deep seated desires. When Chemical dysfunctions cloud brain through emotional imbalances, one is never sure if the inner man is joyful or happy, depressed or repe