My father’s healer | The Indian Express

My father’s healer | The Indian Express

Written by Anuradha Mascarenhas |Updated: September 21, 2019 11:35:39 am

Anuradha Mascarenhas is a senior editor with The Indian Express, Pune. She writes on health, environment, science and related issues.

My father’s healer

Surgeon Ketan Khurjekar was killed by rash driving. His loss is widely felt.

Khurjekar and his cab driver was killed after they were hit by a speeding bus on the Pune-Mumbai expressway.

Dad turned 80 this September. A milestone, yes, but a precious one as not two years ago, family members had to decide on a crucial spine surgery which would either help him walk or perhaps leave him confined to the bed for the rest of his life. A dilemma that consumed our every waking moment. “What if…” were the two words that left us distraught about the outcome of a surgery, either he would walk again or then face life with disposal bed pans, pressure relief mattress, food table, IV stand and adult diapers .