Senior medical professional and chairman of Hyderabad-based Asian Institute of Gastroenterology D. Nageshwar Reddy urged young doctors to be empathetic towards their patients, which he said would ensure their faster recovery.
Delivering his address at the 10th convocation of Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS University) here on Saturday, the Padma Bhushan recipient dwelt at length on the importance of empathy in medical care and the need for doctors to step into the shoes of their patients in order to understand their pain.
“You have been taught the science of medicine, i.e., the diagnosis, treatment and surgery, but what is not taught to you is the art of medicine, which involves empathy and care,” he said.
Dr. Reddy mentioned the world-famous painting ‘The Doctor’ by Luke Fildes, wherein a doctor is depicted in deep contemplation seated next to a young critically-ill girl as her parents look on helplessly in the background. “The painting shows the doctor’s empathy towards his patient. Your profession is incomplete without empathy. My statement might seem superficial to you, but when you practice for a long period, you will understand the importance of empathy,” Dr. Reddy said.
He later gave away degrees, doctorates and gold medals to the graduating doctors.
TTD Chairman Y.V. Subba Reddy, who is also the vice-chairman of the SVIMS executive board, participated in the proceedings.
SVIMS Director and vice-chancellor B. Vengamma presented her report. Among those who received gold medals were M .Soumya (M.D. Medicine), Gorantla Mamatha (Subhashini K. Yaturu Medal), Nannapaneni Sai Sameera, A. Sunnesh Reddy (both nephrology), B. Manoj (genito-urinary surgery), Kuraparthi Jasmitha (anaesthesiology), Jannu Sowjanya (emergency medicine), N. Lokeswari (B.Sc. Nursing), D. Lasya Sree (physiotherapy), T. Ravali (life sciences) P. Lokesh (biotechnology), K. Nagarjuna (MPT), Komala Sesha Kumar (M.Sc. Nursing), Pydala Shahida (B.Sc. cardiac pulmonary perfusion technology), P. Sneha (medical microbiology) and L.S. Divya (M.Sc. bioinformatics). A. Divya received a cash award of ₹25,000.
