Fellowships and Old Students View

Dr. John Ebnezer, Bangalore:
“ I visited Tejasvini Hospital & SSIOT as a IOA Fellow. Though it was a short Fellowship, I was greatly impressed with the variety of cases , the discipline and the teaching which is undertaken in this hospital. I became much richer in my knowledge And practical application during my stay in this hospital. I wish more IOA Fellows should visit this hospital”.
Dr. A. Kunal, Manchester:
“I came as a exchange fellow in Trauma from Manchester and spent 4 weeks twice in Tejasvini Hospital and SSIOT. The Trauma work going on in this institution is indeed mind bogging specially some of the high velocity injuries. The care and surgery in the trauma centre is perfect. I learnt a lot including hands on experience. I thank Trauma Team of Tejasvini”.
Dr. Anoop Nair, Dubai:
"The 3 years I spent I Tejasvini has moulded me to perfection in Orthopaedic Surgery. Both Prof. Shetty and Dr. Ajith Kumar are great teachers. The hands on experience is great. Not only I passed my DNB with great colours, but I remember everyday Tejasvini Hospital when I operate".
Dr. Bipulanand Raja Mohan, Assam:
"The two years I got trained in DNB after my D.Orth were the most successful years of my career. The teaching, theatre discipline, ward rounds and the extremely busy schedule of work has helped me to face any eventuality in trauma and orthopaedic surgery. I am thankful to Dr. Shantharam Shetty, Dr. Ajith Sir and Dr. Lathika and all the staff for chiselling me to be what I am today.Both Prof. Shantharam Shetty and Dr. Ajith Kumar have been my mentors and the surgeries, patient care and teaching methodology in Tejasvini Hospital Mangalore has been international standard. It was a great feeling to be a part of this system at Tejasvini".
Dr. Abhishek Kini, Mumbai:
"The three years of my training period in Tejasvini Hospital has been the most productive and best part of my life. The hospital has trained me to the perfection not only in Orthopaedics and trauma but in ethical values and patient care and well being".

Dr. Adebowale ADENIYI
SICOT Associate Member, Nigeria.

My SICOT meets SICOT Experience

During my last year of residency, my boss suggested to me that it would be nice to get some orthopaedic exposure outside Nigeria. So as soon as I passed the exit exams of the West African College of Surgeons, I applied for a SICOT Fellowship. I didn’t have to wait for long before I was selected. It was initially for an Observership in the United States. This however fell through as I was denied a visa.

Two months after this disappointing outcome, I got another offer from the Tejasvini Hospital & SSIOT at Mangalore, India. I was not denied a visa this time around, and I arrived at Mangalore on 4th October, 2015. I was met on arrival by an employee of the hospital and taken to my accommodation, a few minutes’ drive from the hospital.

Settling in was smooth as all members of staff and especially the doctors were eager to introduce me to the workings of the hospital. Daily activities started with a review of admissions and surgeries of the previous day as well as discussions of the cases for the day. These ‘class’ sessions, as they are called by the PGs were very educative. Though I no longer had exams to write, I looked forward to the sessions for their academic value.

There were two operating theatre sessions daily. The morning session, which starts immediately after ‘class’ runs till around 1-2pm, while the evening session, starts at 4pm. I was exposed to a wide variety of trauma cases. I also had opportunities to observe and sometimes scrub-in for arthroplasties and ring fixators with Ilizarov.

In choosing procedures to scrub-in for, among the numerous ones going on simultaneously, I chose those I felt will have an impact on my practice, given the facilities available in my centre back home. I therefore took part in more trauma cases. Also for my education, I observed arthroscopy cases and pelvic and acetabular fixations. I am grateful for the warm reception I received and for the willingness of all the surgeons to carry me along during the surgeries. I must make special mention of Dr. Arjit Kumar who usually runs a commentary while operating, for my benefit. I also enjoyed working with Dr. Ambu, my ‘unofficial chaperone’. I learnt some on-table problem-solving skills from him.

Mangalore has been described by the locals as the Boston of India, and I could see why. I attended an Arthroplasty Workshop on my first weekend and an excellently-packaged Tejasvini Trauma Conference the following weekend. These were wonderful educational experiences that I wish can be replicated at home.

It was not all work and study. I went out with the PGs and two of the consultants, (Drs Yogish and Sailesh) to the welcome party for the new residents, and I experienced and admired the camaraderie between the residents and the consultants. The banquet that held on the first night of the Tejasvini Trauma Conference tagged Bollywood Night was a high point of my social experience in Mangalore. The duration of my stay being the festive season in India also gave me an opportunity to observe a different aspect of the local culture.

Prof. Shantharam Shetty, the Chairman of Tejasvini Hospital & SSIOT who was the local SICOT contact was fatherly. Right from my first contact by email, where he addressed all my concerns, he also made sure I benefitted maximally from the experience, while my comfort was not neglected.

My time at Mangalore was a great one and will surely impact on my practice in Nigeria. I am grateful for the wonderful opportunity facilitated by SICOT and the excellent Orthopaedic practice I was exposed to at Tejasvini Hospital, which I intend to replicate at home.