Dr. Dipak Shah
It is always a child’s dream to see his parents content and free from all health handicaps and always a child’s desire to somehow eliminate the cause of suffering of his family members. This cajoled me to become a sentinel to my mother’s health who is troubled with nagging osteoarthritis and recurrent gastrointestinal problems. My parents were a source of inspiration to me and incubated a sense of hard work and discipline in me. Brought up in a business oriented middle class family, they taught me the lesson "survival of the fittest". My father, who is my role model, taught me two important aspects in the field of medicine: To reduce suffering & do no harm to patients. My individuality fortunately rests on an enriched cultural heritage and family values.
My childhood desire received a boost when I was placed among the top 100 students in the entrance examinations conducted for entry in medical schools. I joined Medical College, Calcutta in 1989, which is the largest and the oldest premier referral institute in Asia. A free mind should not be restrained; hence working vigorously I was exposed to the various difficulties encountered by medical students and it was the search for solutions that made me dig out details from medical texts. My encounter with the world of medicine could not deter me from enjoying various facets of student life as I marched ahead to win laurels for my alma mater.
The intervening days between my medical residency and the medical school graduation was spent as a senior house officer in the Surgical Gastroenterology Unit at Medical College Calcutta (1995-1996) and as a junior resident in the department of Pediatrics in the same college (1996-1997). Performing endoscopies and caring for little children formed a part of my curriculum at these two residencies. I understood then that the internist not only needs extensive knowledge and skill in diagnosis and treatment, but also humanistic qualities of integrity, sensitivity, empathy and compassion
My career goals always include clinical practice in association with an academic institution. After selection through a competitive examination for the residency program (M.D.degree), I joined the much sought internal medicine residency at the prestigious School of Tropical Medicine, Calcutta; an internationally recognized 150 bedded highly specialized tertiary level hospital in Asia. The residency-training period (1998-2001) has been the most rewarding and satisfying years of my career. It was a nice experience working as a team with assistants and technicians, helping a fellow resident in other department, assisting during invasive procedures, performing conventional investigations and being on call.
Subsequently, I appeared for the prestigious MRCP Examination at the Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom with London as my base. I was awarded the coveted degree and the membership in the year 2014. I have been practising since 2001 as an independent consultant in the field of gastroenterology and hepatology and got attached with various hospitals and Diagnostic centres in West Bengal performing various endoscopy procedures and providing consultation to the people.
I follow my 3D's theory in life. I am, “Determined in doing the best, Dedicated in giving my best, Devoted in performing my best”. I have the motivation, the drive to do it.