Medicos start crowdfunding for doc who risked life for patient

█ Fraternity gets together for Surat anaesthesist battling for his life

Dr Sanket Mehta awaits lung transplant which will require Rs 1 cr; his selfless act of intubating a critical patient with his own oxygen support last month had earned him a lot of goodwill

By Asik Benerjee & Kuldeep Tiwari

Dr Sanket Mehta was just another Covid patient admitted to the ICU at BAPS Hospital in Surat when a 71-year-old critically ill patient was brought in on the night of August 9 in urgent need of intubation. Realising that there was no time to be wasted, Dr Mehta, an anaesthetist himself, removed his high-fl ow oxygen support and intubated the elderly patient.

That act of his had earned him lot of admiration within and outside his fraternity. Now, as he battles for life thanks to post-Covid complications, the same fraternity has got together to raise funds for his lung transplant procedure.

His selfl ess act

The elderly patient had been brought to BAPS hospital in an extremely delicate condition and needed immediate intubation. As per the Covid-19 protocol, an anaesthetist would have to wear the PPE suit before entering the ICU. However, the intubation had to be provided within three minutes and any delay could be disastrous for the patient. Not bothering about his own condition, Dr Mehta who was admitted there removed his high flow nasal cannula (HFNC) oxygen support and intubated the patient. Unfortunately, that patient latter succumbed to his ailment.

Though he recovered from Covid-19, Dr Mehta’s condition deteriorated due to complications caused by the infection. He has been on ventilator for last 22 days and on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) for 20 days.

The complications left him in need of a lung transplant, an expensive procedure. MGM Hospital in Chennai, where Dr Mehta has been taken for advanced ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation) and lung transplant, gave an estimate of Rs 1 crore for the entire procedure.

Medicos join hands to save good doc

Talking to Mirror from Chennai, Dr Hiren Shah, an orthopedic surgeon who has been working with Dr Mehta for some time, said, “The hospital has given an estimate of Rs 1 crore for the procedure. In addition, his body will have to be prepared for the transplant. For that, he will have to remain in the hospital for a few days, the cost of which will be Rs 1 lakh per day.”

Dr Mehta lives in Surat with his wife, eight–year-old daughter and elderly father. “We started a fundraising campaign for Dr Mehta. We got good response on . Other than doctors from Surat and other parts of Gujarat, we got calls from Delhi and Kolkata as well,” said Dr Shah.

He added, “His health continued to deteriorate since he was diagnosed with Covid-19. Though his report was negative, due to complications his health continued to deteriorate. He was brought to Chennai on Sunday.”

Dr Mona Desai, president of Ahmedabad Medical Association, said, “We had got a call from the doctors in Surat and we are ready to help Dr Mehta financially. We hope he gets the right cadaver for his lungs.”

What about fi nancial help to doctors?

Asked if government would provide any financial support for treatment of Dr Mehta, Jayanti Ravi, Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare said, “We will definitely look into the matter. But this being a policy decision I can’t react immediately to it. We are concerned about everyone’s health including the young doctor, but the government will have to look into it from all aspects.” Dr Pragnesh Joshi, vice-president of Indian Medical Association, said, “There are 350 doctors affected by Covid so far in Gujarat. Why can’t the government give priority to doctors who are risking their lives to serve patients?”

Dr Bharat Gadhvi, president of Ahmedabad Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association, said, “Why can’t the government help corona warriors while they are alive? We wish it comes forward and extends financial and other help required for Dr Mehta.”