Know what doctor says about newly built Kalaignar Super Speciality Hospital in Chennai

Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi's last wish was to convert his residence in Gopalapuram area of Chennai into a hospital which will provide healthcare services to the people of the State. He wrote this wish in his will in 2010. In a way of fulfilling the last wish of his father, incumbent CM M.K. Stalin inaugurated Kalaignar Centenary Super Speciality Hospital recently.

This is a perfect eulogy for Karunanidhi, says Dr. Amalorpavanathan, a pioneer doctor in organ transplantation surgery. Karunanidhi dreamt of delivering world-class healthcare services to poor sections of the society. So constructing a hospital in his name only deems fit, says the doctor.

Karunanidhi was the one who introduced organ transplantation surgery for the first time in Tamil Nadu. Now, it has become one of the pioneer programmes in India. Karunanidhi's organ transplantation programme has received appreciation from the World Health Organisation (WHO). WHO, in its Assembly, officially announced that Tamil Nadu is a role model for the Third World countries. The credit for this goes to Karunanidhi who was a person with foresight in the sector of medical treatment. Karunanidhi has never cut down the medical expenses during his reign and, without fail, he has allotted a budget for all the requested and required equipments. Karunanidhi's altruistic nature is the reason for giving away his house for the medical necessity of the people during his last days, says Amalorpavanathan.

Karunanidhi has never settled down anywhere but the Gopalapuram house, which was the first property bought by him in Chennai. He bought this property in 1955 from Sarveshwara Iyer and, in 1968, he transferred the ownership of the property to his three sons Alagiri, Stalin and Tamilarasu. Due to a change of heart, he decided to give away the property for constructing a hospital which will provide free healthcare services to the poorer sections of the society. Becoming aware of the decision, the three sons handed over the property to Karunanidhi. Following this, the property was registered in the name of Annai Anjugam trust.

The Tamil Nadu government opened the hospital as a tribute to him. The 7-floor hospital located in Guindy, constructed at a cost of Rs 230 crore on an area of 6 lakh square feet, has 1,000 beds. Additionally, Rs 146.52 crore was spent for the purchase of medical equipment. Thousands of employees, including paramedics and support staff, have been employed in the hospital. Incredible facilities like cardiovascular cathlab, cerebrovascular cathlab, intensive cardiac surgery, intensive anesthesiology and 15 well-equipped operation theatres can be seen in the hospital. The hospital is expected to advance Tamil Nadu's medical infrastructure to new levels.

The biggest accomplishment is completing the construction of such a hospital in just 15 months. As it is not located in central Chennai, it will help in the easy accessibility of healthcare services to the people of neighbouring districts. It will be most beneficial for the people from the neighbouring districts such as Chengalpattu and Kanchipuram etc. Specifically, services like cardiovascular surgery, organ transplantation surgery, kidney transplantation surgery etc will be provided by this super speciality hospital.

Biggest achievement is the provision of multi-speciality treatment for poor people which is not an exclusive privilege of rich people anymore. Such a revolution in the medical field has been brought about by CM Stalin. Patients from many foreign countries are coming to Tamil Nadu for organ transplantation surgery because Tamil Nadu is the pioneer for organ transplantation surgery in India. "I will proudly and boldly say that, compared to other States in India, Tamil Nadu excels in the field of medical treatment," said Amalorpavanathan. When compared to AIIMS, the government hospitals in Tamil Nadu have many facilities. "The hospital in Guindy is going to provide great benefits clinically in Tamil Nadu," the veteran doctor concluded.