Dr. Deepak Shokeen- the journey from a doctor to a social entrepreneur

Dr. Deepak Shokeen

Gurugram (Haryana) [India], May 22: In early March this year, 25-year-old Dr. Deepak Shokeen was wondering if the pandemic was finally over and if he could restart his further studies, three months later, he has decided to do something that he always wanted to do - set up a non-profit hospital in Gurugram to ensure that everyone has access to quality healthcare.

Deepak says April and May have been emotionally one of the most difficult periods of his life but also has been one of the most rewarding. "I learned Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda had started helping people in distress during the pandemic and I joined Team Deepender and soon I started getting calls for help. "Imagine that you get a distress call from a son who has a mother who needs to go through dialysis, but the medical system is so overwhelmed that it cannot take a non-COVID patient," he said.

"I reached out to my friends, seniors, and other doctors that I knew and after hours of effort, we were able to help them get a hospital. She went through dialysis and managed to get out of a life-threatening situation. The son called back and was crying and thanking us for the help. Helping others brings emotional rewards but there have also been occasions where we have not been able to save patients because either the medicine, they were seeking was not available or they had come to us too late. For me, these 40-odd days have been life-changing," he said.

Deepak says the pandemic has made the entire medical fraternity more aware of its responsibilities towards society and humanity. "People have been working for days non-stop and though doctors tend to stop themselves from getting too emotionally engaged in a situation, all my friends say that every death does weigh on them. There have been a large number of people who have died in their 30s, leaving behind little children and these things impact everyone," he added.

Dr. Shokeen now wants to take this work forward and plans to open a not-for-profit hospital for the economically underprivileged. "We are blessed to have the opportunities because our families gave us good education but there are many who are remaining entrapped in poverty. They come to cities in search of a better life and are living on the margins but fall into economic distress when their families are hit by illness. We need to do more to show that we care," he said.

He may be starting small but humble beginnings lead to a big impact. His patients and everyone who has helped will be praying for his success.