Straight from the heart

 

 

I was hesitant to intrude on Dr Aggarwal as he sat conselling a patient over the phone. Dr Aggarwal, however, gestured for me to take a seat with a gentle smile on his face. While he continued with his conversation, I sat observing the room, which displayed the awards that had been conferred upon the doctor. The same genial smile returned as he ended his chat and turned to me…

Known as one of the most friendly and jovial doctors among his colleagues, Dr KK Aggarwal is a Senior Consultant Physician, Head Cardiology and Dean of the Board of Medical Education, Moolchand Medcity in New Delhi, and is also associated with research and invention of path-breaking therapies. Putting his proficient medical background to use, Dr KK Aggarwal established ‘Heart Care Foundation of India’ (HCFI). A sudden burst of energy was evident as Dr Aggarwal spoke about HCFI. “HCFI is a charitable trust, which was founded in 1986 with a vision of creating health awareness and giving medical treatment.” The seed of this mission was sown years ago in Vardha, from where he has obtained his college degree. “Back there people were not very educated, which in turn did not fetch them high-income jobs. The treatment and medicines required to cure many diseases were so expensive that some were helpless and had to leave the ailing ones to die,” reminisced Dr Aggarwal. And thus he decided to do something to help such patients.

Being in a profession which strives to provide a healthy life to people, one has to be available for them at all times. And Dr Aggarwal seems to have dedicated his life to this purpose. Swamped with patients throughout the day at Moolchand Hospital, and routinely carrying out complicated surgeries, Dr Aggarwal smoothly manages his life as a professional and a philanthropist. When asked if it doesn’t tire him to always be at people’s beck and call, he shrugs and says matter-of-factly, “My profession and my passion are not two separate things. Both give me happiness and satisfaction and I don’t think it would tire anyone to chase happiness and satisfaction.”

As the Founder of Heart Care Foundation, Dr Aggarwal makes sure that he personally participates in every initiative taken by them. The Foundation is the only one in India to provide pacemakers free of cost since 1992. It began organising the annually-held Perfect Health Mela to create health awareness. It provides free-of-cost medical treatments for any ailment in far-flung villages and for this initiative, Dr Aggarwal proudly mentions the blessings he’s received from those who have benefitted and humbly accepts the honour that has been bestowed on him with awards like Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award, Rajiv Gandhi Excellence Award and many more.

Having met a beacon of selfless service who put the needs of others before his own, I couldn’t leave without asking him how he manages the expenses on these camps and treatments, and with the same soothing smile he said, “You know everyone should try this – if you truly believe in something and wish for that with all your heart, it just happens… Yes, that’s a fact!”