The Philippines organization LIMRA and the Tamil Nadu Medical Practitioners’ Association (TAMPA) jointly bestowed the “TAMPA-LIMRA Excellence Award-2017” to
Dr. G. Bakthavathsalam, Chairman, KG Hospital at a function in Chennai recently.
Doctors from the States of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka participated.
He was awarded for his contributions he made to the healthcare sector and his natural tendency to extend a helping hand to the people at the hour of need, such as providing timely medical services and relief materials to the victims of natural disasters such as floods, earthquake and tsunami and to the soldiers injured in the Kargil war.
Dr. Bakthavathsalam. Chairman, KG Hospitals said that he was a recipient of Dr. B.C.Roy Award in 1984 from the hands of the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. Later, he was honored with Padma Shri Award by the then President Dr. A.P.J.Abdul Kalam, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Tamil Nadu MGR Medical University and so on.
He further stated that “for the medical services rendered by me and having saved their lives, the patients and their relatives are calling me ‘God’ or ‘God like.’ I don’t think that people in any other professions will get such adulations as doctors get,” he added.
Dr. Bakthavathsalam further said, “Awards, recognition and appreciation are the great motivating factors for the doctors that will further propel them to render the best possible healthcare services to make the patients happy. The patients come to a doctor with a lot of expectations and trust. By transforming this trust to trustworthiness is spirituality.”
“Even the tiny tots in Lower Kindergarten and Upper Kindergarten schools aspire to get ‘Silver Stars’ (as a symbol of merit) tucked in their shirts. Bright students pursuing higher education hope to get Gold Medals.
“In the Olympics the sportspersons aim at getting at least a Silver Medal or a Bronze Medal. Depending upon our contributions or achievements in our medical professions, the society will honor us with awards that will in turn inspire us to do better,” Dr. Bakthavathsalam said.
He also noted that, “to be born as a human being is the first award given by God. He has not created us as lowly creatures in remote corners or as a python in Amazon forests or as a pig in a gutter ingesting all waste matters. Neither has He made us to be born in Kenya or any other backward places to wallow in poverty.”
The Chairman also noted that “We are fortunate enough to get education and good parental care. After completing the schooling it is customary for the meritorious students joining medical courses to say that they intend to serve the society. But once they become doctors, the word “service” simply vanishes from their dictionary.