Bangalore 2013 -Dorothy, we aren't in Kansas anymore

As I have traveled around Bangalore many times the quotation from The Wizard of Oz, "Dorothy, we aren't in Kansas anymore" has come to my mind.  Bangalore today is not the same city that we lived in more than 25 years ago.  The population of is now 10 million.  It is the fifth largest city in the country, exceeded only by Mumbai (Bombay), Delhi, Kolkota (Calcutta), and Chennai (Madras).  Yet Bangalore is the fastest growing city in the country.  They are known as the Silicon Valley of India with extensive development in the electronic and technological areas.

The first and major change noted from earlier years, is the dramatic increase in traffic.  Automobiles, auto-rickshaws, and motorcycles fight for a place on the roads.  Motorcycles have replaced the bicycles of earlier years.





On one trip through a urban area where we lived years ago, we got into this traffic jam and sat for 15 minutes waiting for one person to move so that other vehicles could begin to clear the tangle.  As we sat numerous motorcycles threaded their way between vehicles at a cross street.

Multilevel buildings are seen everywhere.  This apartment complex of 18 floors is located just behind the hospital on land which years ago was a quarry.

 

Buildings are more modern.  Earlier they were stone, rough granite, or brick.  Now one sees many buildings with large glass walls, or walls of polished granite.











Years ago, Commercial Street was the major place in the city to shop and purchase nice Indian or Western style goods.   Commercial Street is still a vibrant shopping area with pedestrians and motorists fighting for the ride away on the narrow one way street.


Yet, modern malls have now been developed over the city.  The one pictured below is four floors and contains a food court (where I had pizza for lunch) and Western brand electronic and clothing stores in addition to Indian craft shops.

In the area of this multi floor mall, I saw a jewelry store which was as elegant as any I have seen in the USA or any other large city around the world.

Even the smaller community of Hebbal, where the Bangalore Baptist Hospital is located, has its own mall within 100 yards of the hospital.  Note the McDonald's sign out front of the mall.

Soon after our arrival in India in 1975 the Indian government asked the Coco-Cola Bottling Company to leave the country.  At the same time they began prohibiting Western food chains from operating within the country.  I saw signs for KFC, McDonald's, Subway, Pizza Hut, Chilies, and several other American food chains.

We left India in 1984 and the land line telephone system was still rudimentary.  Now with the development of technology in the country, cell phones are used by almost all.  Even the chief guest for the public hospital celebration, Justice N. Santosh Hegde, was interrupted during the reception by his cell phone.





Bangalore has experienced enormous changes within the past 30 years.  It is a different city.  However, as I went about the city I saw much that had not changed.......

The most beautiful and tasty vegetables can be right from merchants on the street....

Humans and animals may see see pulling their loads among the busy streets, usually now more in urban areas than rural areas........

The vast disparity between the wealthy and those in poverty remains great........

Indian food remains one of the most flavorful and tastiest (and I have enjoyed my fill during this visit).......

Indian women wear their elegant saris as one of the most beautiful of the world's dress......

And... the people of Bangalore as a whole are some of the most courteous, gentle, humble, and happy people I have know.   My life has been greatly blessed by the relationships which I have made through the years in India.  This visit has provided many opportunities to renew acquaintances with old friends and make new ones.

40th Anniversary Celebrations - January 15 Thanksgiving Service

On the actual anniversary hospital staff participated in a thanksgiving service as the final day of celebrations.  My schedule has been so busy that I have not had time to get all of the celebrations up as they occurred.  Now I will share some of the highlights of the last day's activities.

Throughout the history of the hospital the planting of trees has been done to mark special events.  This is part of the reason the campus now has such beautiful trees where in the early days it was barren land.

The beginning of the thanksgiving service was the planting of trees by all of the former CEOs, special guests, and selected individuals from the staff.  Here Dr. Santosh Benjamin, a general surgeon, plants his tree.  Santosh was the surgeon who removed my gallbladder while we were in India.  He is currently CEO of the CSI (Church of South India) Hospital here in Bangalore.  Bangalore Baptist Hospital has a policy whereby staff are expected to retire at age 60.  Thus Dr. Benjamin is now in the CSI Hospital.  Not all the trees were planted as part of the ceremony, but by the next morning a total of 40 trees had been planted in various locations throughout the campus.









I plant my tree.  Each of these is different and is a flowering tree.  Note the plaque which identifies when the tree was planted and by whom.

After a walk across campus to the nursing school, the next portion of the program was the groundbreaking for new dormitory facilities for the nursing school.  Here a group of students are joined by Benny and Carolyn Woods as they await the event.

Dr. Rebekah Naylor prepares to break ground for the new nursing dorm.  The growth of the nursing school and other teaching programs has made house for students a major need on campus.

Activities for the afternoon then moved into the Smrithi Auditorium for a time of thanksgiving and celebration.  One of the nursing school graduates, on the right, had taken the words of the stone placed in the entrance area of the original building, "I cam that they may have life..." and written a special anniversary song for the occasion.  Here she and her team sing the song.

Members of the Administrative Committee, each representing a specific department of the hospital, lead the group in a time of responsive reading, thanking God for various accomplishments, new equipment, new facilities, and the ability to serve the community through their department. I have been so impressed with the quality of leadership from those on this committee

Additional gifts were presented to visitors.  Here Col. Deepak Bunyan presents Mr. Bill Mason, former Hospital Administrator, with a copy of the "coffee table" book released earlier, another book on medical communication recently published by the hospital, and a diary developed for the anniversary.  Col. Bunyan is retired military and head of support services for the hospital.

A section of the program, entitled "Down Memory Lane" allowed former staff and visitors to share brief memories of their time at Bangalore Baptist Hospital.  Here Dr. Stanley Macaden shares memories of being the first Indian physician with specialty training hired by the hospital.  He also served as the first Indian Hospital Administrator or CEO.  Dr. Macaden has been responsible for the development of the palliative care department in the hospital.

The days of celebration brought together all former CEOs of the hospital with the exception of Mr. Phil White who was unable to attend.  When I planned to attend the celebration my thoughts were mainly about my medical work.  I had not realised that so much emphasis would be placed on my tenure as hospital administrator (in addition to working as a physician at the same time).

Following the group photo session, Dr. John Wikman led the group in a prayer session for the future of the hospital and its leaders.  This was particularly appropriate as Dr. Alex Thomas, the current CEO, is up to retire in March of this year.  It is unknown whether or not the board will ask him to stay longer or bring a new leader into this critical position.

Bangalore Baptist Hospital - 2013 - Beyond the Campus

Community health services have been a part of the outreach from Bangalore Baptist Hospital from early days.  During my tenure there I was involved in mobile clinics and teaching of village health workers.  Naturally I wanted to visit with the community health team to see what they are currently doing.  Their services and types of programs offered have significantly expanded.

Out the back gate of the hospital and about 10 minutes drive away is a section of the city called D.J. Halli.  This area's health problems include water shortage, poor sewage and drainage, mosquito infestation, and infrequent garbage disposal.  An expansion of work of the public health department to provide health care in an urban setting has been undertaken here.



 








A building has been rented and staff provide health care there five days a week.  The average number of patients seen daily is 35.




Staff waiting for arrival of patients

          

A Muslim man comes to the urban health center for check of his blood pressure and receipt of medications.  Medications are provided at a subsidized rate so they will be less than half of the cost of those purchased in a local pharmacy.

We left the urban clinic and started north on Bellary Road which runs in front of the hospital.  In 1984 when we left India this was a small two lane road.  Today it is three lanes in either direction.  In the right upper corner looking out the windshield you will see concrete structures which are being build to support the new express lanes for 16 miles north of the city to the new International Airport.  We traveled those miles until the road turned east into the access road for the airport.  About two miles north of there we came to our first village in Devanahalli taluk (county).  Here the hospital provides rural health services in several villages.

Barbara Wikman walking with nurse into the village

A big problems now being seen in many of the villages is alcoholism.  One of the services offered by the community health team is an alcohol addiction program where support groups and encouragement are offered.  We visited in the home of the gentleman in the picture above who has participated in the program and has now been able to stay sober and keep a job.  The two boys with hm in the picture are nephews, children of his brother who died of an alcohol related illness.  Not fully seen, but the picture on the wall is the picture of the dead brother.

Another of the individuals who was helped through the alcohol withdrawal program was Ramesh,  He was unable to work because of the alcohol problem.  After completing the program he has been able to get back to work, operating a barber shop in his village and driving an auto-rickshaw.  Ramesh also volunteers his help with other alcohol withdrawal camps in the area.  Here he is seen with his family and Dr. Gift Norman, director of the community health program for Bangalore Baptist Hospital.
                                                            

In another village we were able to visit the site for the mobile clinic which comes every two weeks.  In addition to the twice monthly visits by the doctor, nurse, and health team, this village has a health volunteer who resides in the village and has had training to care for basic health needs.  The building used for the clinic is owned by the dairy cooperative in the community and they allow the hospital to use the facilities to hold clinics.

A major problem which has developed in villages around
Bangalore is the flight of younger people to the cities in search of jobs.  This results in the breakdown of the extended family which traditionally has been responsible for care of the aging population.   The community health team became aware that these older adults were not getting sufficient food.  They thus began to provide one hot meal a day in a central village for the older people.  The lady in orange who is serving the food lives in the village and has volunteered to cook and serve the food.



                  
In another small village is the Mother Theresa Hospital.  Muslim man from the community was a patient at Bangalore Baptist Hospital.  He had been trying unsuccessfully to get a hospital started in the community.  He was so pleased with the care he received through the hospital that he offered to building to Bangalore Baptist Hospital.  This allowed the community health team to establish a small hospital which has a ward where patients can receive care during the day and remain overnight.  There is an operational laboratory, set up and staffed by a retired laboratory technician from the main hospital.  The small hospital also provides a place where rehabilitative therapy can be provided in the community.  An average of 300 outpatients a month are seen by staff of the hospital.

At the end of our visit the staff gave shawls to each of the foreign guests, again as part of their tradition of respect and gratitude.  The gentleman who is giving me my shawl is Jayapaul.  He is the retired laboratory technician who has helped set up the lab.   When I was hospital administrator nearly 30 years ago, I was the one who hired Jayapaul to work at Bangalore Baptist Hospital. 

40th Anniversary Celebrations - January 11 Public Celebration

The public celebration for the 40th anniversary with invited guests was held on Friday afternoon, January 11.   Again the Smrithi Auditorium was filled.

Any celebration in India is a colorful affair with all of the ladies dressed in their very lovely saris.









Two representatives from the government of the state of  Karnataka were invited as chief guests.  Each of these inaugurated a new structure for the campus.

Honorable Justice N. Santosh Hegde revealed the plaque for the Smrithi Auditorium where the program was held. 

Dr. E. V. Ramana Reddy, Principal Secretary of the state of Karnataka, revealed the place for the new outpatient waiting area,

A portion of the celebration was a traditional Indian dance performed by two dancers.


 

Traditional Indian celebrations may also include the lighting of an oil lamp.  Each of the chief guests and guests from the USA along with the present and former Chief Executive officers of the hospital participated, lighting one wick of the lamp.

Dr. John Wikman, first of the American missionary personnel present to arrive in India, was invited to bring a devotional challenge.

In preparation for the 40th anniversary, a committee from the hospital produced a  "coffee table" book portraying the history of the hospital in written and photographic form.  This book was revealed and copies presented to each of the guests.






Any celebration in India includes some form of refreshment.  As evening was approaching tea and snacks were served to all on the hospital grounds.