Back to roots: NRI doctor from US flies to Punjab to hold free medical camp, ‘heartbreaking to see so many people suffering’

Connecting back to the roots, Sandhu held three-day free medical camp at Sardarni Sukhminder Kaur Memorial Charitable Hospital in Lohara village of Moga, where he has been checking underprivileged patients from the past three days. And Sandhu, hasn’t come alone.

Accompanying him are his both children- his son Dr Jeevan Singh Sandhu and daughter Keerat Kaur, a medical student- as he says that we wanted his children to see “where they belong”, and Punjab’s culture and heritage.

Huge rush of patients at the camp. (Express Photo)

Sandhu, who did his fellowship in gastroenterology from Stanford University, and also specializes in hospice and palliative medicine, said that it heartbreaking to see so many people in Punjab suffering from various diseases in Malwa belt of the state, infamous for its polluted groundwater and air.

“Patient after patient who came and I checked, I was simply heartbroken. From stomach to liver, lungs to heart, they are suffering from different ailments but not getting proper treatment and care. I spoke to the local doctors, they have all the latest machinery and treatment but the problem I felt is the access. The villagers are not having access to free healthcare facilities and they cannot afford the private ones. When I asked that why they did not get the treatment earlier, they said they had no money to go for tests such as CT scan or MRI. It is simply heartbreaking,” said Sandhu, who belongs to Mahalo village of Nawanshahr (Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar) district.

“I could not come earlier due to Covid but this time I decided that I have to go and hold a camp in Punjab to where I belong,” he said. Kahan Singh Pannu, former IAS officer and chairman of the charitable hospital in Moga where the three-day camp was held, said: “We had announced in all nearby villages that all people who were suffering from any kind of stomach related issues or others should visit the camp. We realized that people in villages are just suffering and not getting treatment done. They don’t get themselves checked with a fear that it might be something big and they don’t have money to get it treated. We wanted that Sandhu’s experience and expertise should be used to help the poor. So he checked patients for three days and advised them best possible treatment.”

Dr Sukhwinder Singh Sandhu, a renowned specialist in internal medicine and gastroenterology, returned to his roots in Punjab to hold free medical camps for underprivileged villagers. (Express Photo)

Sandhu, who is also a fellow, American College of Physicians and also held medical missions in China and Philippines, said that he was shocked to find that villagers in Punjab were still walking for kilometers altogether to reach healthcare facilities. “When I asked some of them that from where they came, they said they came from villages as far as 20 kilometers. They said they walked all way knowing a free camp was ongoing. They are not getting basic treatment and years later, diseases like cancer, hepatitis etc become untreatable. Many of these diseases are due to Punjab’s polluted water and air. I now plan to return here every year,” said Sandhu.