For bypass, heart pioneer turns to his trusted team

The roles had reversed that day and Venugopal, one of India’s best-known heart surgeons, was being operated upon himself by the same team that now assists him.

To the layman, that bypass surgery was stunning for one simple reason. Dr Venugopal, who conducted the first heart transplant in the country, picked the junior-most faculty member, Dr A K Bisoi, to operate upon him.

Bisoi has been the eminent surgeon’s assistant for five years. The rest of the team, including the anaesthetist, Dr Sandeep Chauhan, is the same that routinely accompanies Dr Venugopal during his operations.

‘‘I have been associated with the department for more than 30 years and have complete faith in people I have trained,’’ said Dr Venugopal, who is already back to performing surgery himself. ‘‘Even if a patient comes in the middle of the night, he will receive the same treatment.’’

The thought of picking another eminent name to do the honours when he went under the knife did not even cross his mind. What is good enough for his patients is good enough for him, says Dr Venugopal.

‘‘I have seen the team work with me for years. I know how they function and how good they are. So if I can trust my patients with them, I can trust myself with them,’’ he said.

Now that he is back on his feet, there is a quiet sense of pride in his eyes. He looks at his young assistant, Dr Bisoi, and says: ‘‘Do you know he was born the year I finished my MBBS? As a teacher, I am proud of all my students.’’

The surgery was conducted in the same operation theatre and on the same operation table that Dr Venugopal has been using since he joined AIIMS as a faculty member in 1970. For the team operating on him, however, it was a test of nerves.

‘‘No matter how good you are, your teacher is always the best,’’ said Dr Bisoi. ‘‘He has taught me for 11 years. It was a great feeling that he trusted me so much. Though I was not nervous, this was the first time I was praying for the patient’s full recovery throughout the surgery.’’

The responsibility was huge, as the only people Dr Venugopal had confided in were his assistants. He did not even tell his immediate family about his surgery.

He said that he detected his problem during a routine check up on January 6. The condition was not acute but he decided to get the surgery done before it worsened. So, the very next day, he was on the operating table.

The run-up to the surgery was not easy on his assistants. Emotions were involved. ‘‘I even called him even late at night before the surgery,’’ said Dr Bisoi.

Dr Venugopal made it easier for them. He walked into the operation theatre and gave them detailed instructions before lying down on the table. ‘‘Just five hours after surgery, he was giving me instructions on what to do with the tubes used for anaesthesia,’’ said Dr Chauhan.

Added Dr Bisoi: ‘‘As he regained consciousness, he inquired about the patients in ICU.’’ By night, Dr Venugopal was back a home. On January 24, he was performing surgeries again. ‘‘I believe what I tell my patients about the surgery,’’ he said. ‘‘It doesn’t make you ill, it makes you healthy and normal.

‘‘My patients keep asking me if they can travel by air, by train. I tell them if they did it when they were ill, why can’t they do it when they are fine,’’ said Dr Venugopal.