TAKING CARE OF HEARTS WITH MISSIONARY ZEAL

Dr. C.P. Srivastava, Director & HOD - Cardiac Surgery at Narayana Multispeciality Hospital, Jaipur, is amongst the top few cardiac surgeons of North India who regularly performs high risk re-do cardiac surgeries on patients considered in-operable or categorized as high risk. With an enviable experience of 39 years in the profession, the illustrious doctor is passing on his skills to young aspiring cardiac surgeons, many who carry his legacy in different parts of the world. He has performed over 16,000 operations ranging from the basic to advanced cardiac, thoracic and vascular surgeries. The affable surgeon, in a chat with the India Today shares his life’s experience in the medical field.

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DR. C.P. SRIVASTAVA Director & HOD - Cardiac Surgery at Narayana Multi-speciality Hospital, Jaipur

HOW DID YOU COME TO CHOOSE MEDICAL PROFESSION AS A CAREER?

I come from a humble rural background, a village named Jatara in Tikamgarh district, Madhya Pradesh. And I remember that when I was a small boy there was a very kind doctor in our village, whom all loved. He was my inspiration and I wanted to become like him. I was a brilliant student, a topper and very good in maths also. My father then vice-principal of an educational institution wanted me to pursue engineering, but I filled the form with biology as subjects. Insistent, my father replaced the form with subjects necessary for pursuing engineering course. But I went and got that cancelled and submitted a form for biology (Laughs heartily). I was so clear and adamant about my career path. Since I was 16 and underaged, I had to wait for a year to be eligible to appear for Pre-Medical Test. I appeared for it and got selected, thus starting my eventful life to become a medical professional.

COULD YOU SHARE ABOUT YOUR LEARNING DAYS IN MEDICAL COLLEGES?

I completed by MBBS and MS in general surgery from Gwalior and went on to do my M.Ch in Thiruvananthapuram. For training in cardiovascular surgery, I went to England. These opportunities have been great learning experience for me to hone my skill in heart surgery as well as meeting interesting people from the medical profession, interacting with whom have added to my knowledge.

WHY DID YOU OPT FOR SPECIALIZATION IN CARDIAC SURGERY?