 About
two million babies are born with facial defects like Cleft
lip, Squint eyes, Scars in India every year. These
defects can be corrected with plastic surgery which costs
in the range of Rs. 5000 to Rs. 25,000. Poor families
can't afford such corrections. But about 300 poor people
from a few months old to 70 years suffering from congenital
disorders and facial deformities got a new life and new
future in the hands of the world famous plastic surgeon
Dr. Sharad Kumar Dicksheet, at the Free Plastic
Surgery Camp held at CDR Hospitals, Hyderabad
from 4th to 8th February 2001.
"This is our second camp. We started conducting
free plastic surgery camps with the help of IIM Ahmedabad
Alumni. Dr. Sharad Kumar Dicksheet has been participating
in free plastic surgeory camps being held at Aurangabad
since 1976. From the year 2000 he has been participating
in Hyderabad camps also. He completed his Bachelor of
Science (B.Sc.) from Nizam College," said Dr.
Viajaya Kumar, Strategic Business Unit Head, CDR Hospitals
and in-charge of the camp.
 Dr.
Sharad Kumar Dicksheet, who was born and brought up in
Maharashtra is now settled in USA. His schooling
was done at Wardha while he got his Medical
Degree from Nagpur. He left for the USA for
higher studies in 1958, and specialised in Plastic Surgery
in the year 1963. Dr. Dicksheet, who hails from a lower
middle class family, went through a tough financial situation
till his graduation. He had to get financial assistance
from friends and society to pay for his higher education.
Now that he is well off financially and has gained enormous
reputation in the Medical field, he wants to work for
the society through the conduction of such camps. Young
patients, particularly small kids, and young girls suffering
from these defects on the face especially require plastic
surgery. They cannot eat or drink normally due to cleft
lip and palette, while young girls with such and other
defects are not likely to get married. Dr. Dicksheet realised
this need of the Society and decided to offer his skills
and services for such needy people. Dr. Dicksheet is also
specialised in Squint Surgeries. Many young girls of marriageable
age with Squint or Cleft Lip could get married only because
of such Surgery and reconstruction of their facial appearance
by Dr. Dicksheet. It is a new lease of life for the girls
and for the kids as well, who would otherwise have to
face rejection and depression.
 He
has conducted various free plastic surgery camps and operated
on more than 30,000 patients. He can correct a squint
in just 4 minutes and cleft lip reconstruction in 10 minutes.
He wants to give new life to as many people as he can
in his life time, because only 18% of his heart is working
properly. He met with a car accident in 1978, which left
the right side of his body paralysed. Four years later,
just when his recovery was complete, he was diagnosed
with cancer of the larynx, as a result of which his vocal
cord was removed and he lost his voice. After this he
suffered three massive heart attacks and has undergone
two bypass surgeories.
 Inspired
with Dr. Dicksheet's noble work, usually many renowned
plastic surgeons of US accompany him during his five month
free camps in India. But in Hyderabad, the local plastic
surgeons Dr. G.V. Sudhakar, Dr. Niranjani and Dr. Venkat
Rao helped him in the operation theatre, while
Dr. Ram Appa Rao provided Anesthetia services
to the patients. " A total of 330 surgeories were
performed during the five-day camp of which 83 were dermal
abrasions, 144 were cleft lip repair, 59 squint, 15 ptosis
(Falling of eyelid), 7 Nasal deformity correction and
other 22 were miscellaneous," explained Mr. Vijaya
Kumar.
As it was the second camp in Hyderabad and the publicity
through news papers and banners worked well, patients
from all over Andhra Pradesh came to the camp to utilize
the rare chance. "This camp is a boon to the children
like my son who gets a new face," praised Parvathi,
who came from Warangal with her 6-year-old son suffering
from cleft lip. Sheshagiri Rao, a 22 year handicapped,
who has been suffering from cleft lip since his child
hood said, "I would be lucky  if
I am operated by Dr. Dicksheet." Of course there
are so many people who came to the camp with great hopes
left in despair as Dr. Dicksheet had no time to operate
on so many patients in five days. But Dr. Dicksheet will
come again in the first week of January 2002, and hopefully
then all who went disappointed this time will have a chance. |
-Mohan
G Jagan
