A Tribute to Prof Dr Seethalakshmi

Madam has left for heavenly abode…but has left behind a legacy……

Tirunelveli Medical College 1993 Tuesday Morning 8:30 am Obstetrics outpatient department…………..

We final year students were standing around the table with the assistant professors busy seeing patients and also teaching us. Dumeela madam called out to her colleague…”Di Deivanai….you people are all afraid of the chief…Iam going to tell madam that what she told us yesterday was wrong and the textbook tells exactly the opposite.” Deivanai madam who wouldn’t even dream of speaking against the chief never looked up. Dumeela mam went on…” when are you all going to come out of this and speak up bravely?” Deivanai mam smiled and continued writing the register. Kalaivani mam the senior of the two smiled, “ velaiya paaru di….Chief will come any time now.” No sooner that she had announced this Sri Krishna Kumar Sir(SKK for short) came in running ….. “Chief will be arriving shortly,” he announced, and the Queen walked in majestically in her peacock blue Kanchipuram pattu saree and a long white coat.

All the assistant professors stood in attention. There was pin drop silence. “Dumeela ,” She called out, “ You are posted to the family planning unit.”

“ When am I supposed to take over Madam?”
“They are already expecting you there.”
Dumeela mam picked her bag and walked away meekly.

“Deivanai…handle the OPD.”

Deivanai mam face still bent downwards just noded.

“Kalaivani…I came to know that the professor of medicine was trying to reach out to me for that last 3 days…find out what he wants.”

“I know Madam…They are presenting an interesting case of Dyspnoea ( breathlessness) in the physician’s conference tomorrow, and he has invited you to attend the meet.”

Seetha Matha raised her eyebrows….

Kalaivani went on…” she was discharged after a normal delivery 3 weeks back and then presented to the medicine department with breathlessness.”

“OK then , convey to him that we shall attend.” She walked away briskly.

Wednesday noon 12:30 pm- physician’s conference hall. All the big heads and their assistants were assembled. I overheard one of the senior doctor speaking to another …”Is postpartum 21 or 42 days?” The other one shrugged his shoulders and said “ Maybe in between.” “ She had discharged the case with a high total count and a high ESR. The professor of Medicine plans to trap her with this point and bring the great Seetha Matha down on her knees.”The case presentation had started. There was an acrimonious discussion as is usual for physicians and finally came Madam’s turn. She went up to the podium and before she could begin the second unit medicine chief remarked sarcastically…”Madam were you aware that the Total count and ESR were very high at the time of discharge of this patient?”

Seetha Matha looked into his eyes and spoke sternly…” I was pretty much aware of it and we also go by our clinical instincts. The abdomen was soft and she had passed flatus. We are not much bothered by raised ESR in the postpartum period.”

“It was most likely a case of pulmonary embolism”the professor of medicine told…” but we don’t know the source as the leg veins were normal.”

Seetha Matha smiled and asked the wise heads “Did you fellows look into the pelvic veins? This could have been a May Thurner syndrome.”
The wise heads could not believe it…here they were all gathered to bowl her out and she had stumped them from behind.

With SKK in the lead making way for the chief Seetha Matha strode out followed by Dumeela mam with her head held high and Deivanai as usual head bent forwards but this time with a smile on her face , angle of the mouth slightly deviated to the left.

Professor Seethalakshmi literally ruled over the O&G department of tirunelveli medical college. Bye bye Madam we will forever remember You……