I found myself drawn to health policy and management
As a teenager living in Pakistan, I had lost my father to cardiovascular disease after he had suffered from stroke. Going to the hospital and to the physio therapist with him, I realized the phenomenon of WICOS which most chronic disease patients undergo: ‘Who Is The Captain Of The Ship’. Too many experts and a cacophony of noises: cardiologist arguing with the neurologist and so on. With the lack of health insurance, we had to pay out of pocket for all expenses and seventeen hospitalizations due to unstable angina, or dropping sodium or increased potassium or atrial fibrillation. Being an only child, I realized that responsibility of care weighed heavily on me. I accompanied my father to the follow-up visits to various physicians and physio therapists. During this process, I felt that clinical medicine with time, fails empathy. Maybe, my experience as a caregiver reaffirmed Tolstoy’s stereotype of a physician in his novel, ‘War and Peace’ where Natasha Rostova is seemingly ill, and Tolstoy wrote: “She could not eat or sleep, grew visibly thinner, coughed, and, as the doctors made them feel, was in danger. They could not think of anything but how to help her. Doctors came to see her singly and in consultation, talked much in French, German, and Latin, blamed one another, and prescribed a great variety of medicines for all the diseases known to them.”
Perhaps for the clinicians the weight of mortality becomes familiar. And at the point I found myself drawn to health policy and management. I wanted to do better and contribute in a way that helps save people from developing a disease. I was drawn to the notion of health care being effective for the rich and the poor alike. Something along the lines which Huxley had written in the ‘Brave New World’, moving towards more equality in society and between genders. What I learnt from my situation was that every patient succumbs to finitude whereas preventive medicine is the savior. The nightmare vision of the fast-paced but meaningless routine of Brave New World reflects my concern. I yearned for a career that helps a large number of people, emphasize prevention and that too primary prevention rather than secondary prevention, and would continually challenge and motivate me to develop further in this field. For this purpose I pursued my Masters in Health Policy and Management from the Harvard University, Boston, USA. This health policy and management degree provided me with a basic but thorough understanding of the issues faced in health care today and taught me how to provide foundation for health policy.
This is my story and my drive. I am delighted to be Research Fellow with a brilliant team of doctors here at VCH. It is a place where diversity is appreciated and encouraged. So glad to be here.
Dr. Sabeena Jalal Khan