Senior interventional cardiologist K.A. Abraham passed away in Chennai on Friday. He was 79, and is survived by his wife Baby Abraham and daughters Cibi Mammen and Ann Abraham.
The Padma Shri awardee graduated from the Christian Medical College in Vellore and began his career by joining the Indian Army and serving the forces during the Indo-Pak war of 1971.
He then worked for 25 years at the Southern Railway Headquarters Hospital in the city and was the chief medical director of the Southern Railways. During his tenure, the hospital developed into a referral institution and conducted over 1,000 open-heart surgeries annually.
Dr. Abraham received a degree in internal medicine from the Gujarat University and a DM in cardiology from CMC Vellore. In the book Heart of the matter, which he authored and was released in 2017, he chronicles his 50 years in cardiology.
He has served several reputed institutions in India and abroad and has also served as the medical officer in the Army Medical Corps, in the Indian Army, from 1967 to 1970, for which he received a letter from former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, commending his dedication to duty.
Dr. Abraham has published more than 200 papers/abstracts in national and international journals.
In 1986, the Ministry of Railways honoured him with the national award for professional excellence. He was made professor emeritus at the Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University and awarded the Padma Shri in 1999. The medical university honoured him with the Lifetime Achievement award in 2011.
A keen sportsman at school and college, he tried his hand at every sport that he could.
