Meet Nepal’s First Female Orthopedic Surgeon

February 12, 2015 - The Possible Team

Dr. Aaradhana was told time and time again that what she was doing was impossible.

She was on the path to becoming a doctor since birth. Her mother had wanted to become a doctor herself, but after marrying at a young age and having three children, she passed her passion to her daughter instead. Aaradhana’s older brother is also a cardiac surgeon, who acted as the “lighting lamp” on her journey towards medicine.

When she was thinking of choosing orthopedics in medical school, she was constantly barraged with resistance. Nearly everyone she met disapproved, and even condemned her choice to become an orthopedic surgeon—a specialty heavily dominated by men.

People used to raise eyebrows, whispering, “what makes her think she could do this?” To her face, they would say, “you will fail.”

But those close to Dr. Aaradhana knew she would push forward.

She went on and joined the Orthopedics residency at BPKIHS, Dhahran, and was Nepal’s first female to complete the rigorous training.

“When I entered residency, people placed bets that I wouldn’t last six, even three months. It has been great proving them wrong.”

A myriad of factors allowed Dr. Aaradhana to continue down this “impossible” path. Firstly, she was raised alongside two brothers and was always reminded by her parents that anything they could accomplish, she could as well. Her schooling at a young age (she went to an all-girl’s school until high school) also instilled in her the belief that there was nothing women couldn’t do.

She also looked to data: around the world, less than 10% percent of orthopedic surgeons are female. Yet, Dr. Aaradhana found that a handful of women orthopedic surgeons worked in countries close to Nepal, like Bangladesh and India. The opportunity to fill a much needed gap in Nepal, along with the knowledge that women nearby were pursuing a similar path, was a huge motive for her.

The Need for Orthopedics

Dr. Aaradhana first heard about Possible’s work over a year ago. She knew there was a healthcare organization that was serving the poor in a very remote area in Nepal. When she saw there an opening for an orthopedic surgeon, she got in touch with Dr. Bikash, Possible’s Medical Director, who was a colleague of hers while in residency. He invited her up to Achham, where we work.

She came with an open mind: “I told myself to spend one week and see what it was like working in rural Nepal, and what the scope of Possible’s work really was.”

At first Dr. Aaradhana had wondered why we were looking for a specialist in rural Nepal. But she quickly answered that question herself. She performed two operations in only a few days. One was a little boy who was eight years old and had walked seven days to reach our hospital. He had fallen two months prior and had yet to seek treatment for a fractured humerus and forearm, and dislocated elbow. The surgery took a little over an hour, and it was after that she realized the scope of what our team needs that she could provide.

“The patients, they are there. And without these services, they either have to travel far away to receive treatment, or they just go without it.”

Prior to having an orthopedic surgeon, we sent patients with complex cases 12 hours away to a partner hospital after they had already been driven, or even carried, many hours to reach us. Now, we will be able to take care of the majority of trauma cases we encounter—a huge step for our organization.

Access to Quality Care

Before Possible, Dr. Aaradhana had been working in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, for over a year, but was frustrated by healthcare delivery in Nepal’s private sector. Doctors get paid on a fee-for-service basis which creates incentives that often are not aligned with patient interests.  For example, surgeons often prefer to work alone so they can earn the entire fee for the surgery. (This is obviously the opposite of “solving for the patient.”)

Possible’s public-private partnership with the Nepali government allows us to realign revenue with care through performance-based financing. We get paid by the government only when we perform high-quality work, and demonstrate that we are improving the health of the population we serve. Moreover, since Nepal’s government grants universal healthcare to its citizens, the treatment is free for our patients.

“It’s a breath of fresh air coming here to see we’re not just providing access to healthcare. It’s access to quality healthcare, and everyone is working in unity to get things done.”

“The First Step Towards Possibility”

A driving motivation behind Dr. Aaradhana’s career path was to get rid of the stigma that women could not become specialized surgeons. However, her gender was never a reason she was asked to join our team; rather, it’s her distinguished talent, and acute dedication to her work. She is not only an incredibly strong addition to Possible, but a gritty model for all of us to tackle challenges head-on and thrive in whatever path we choose.

“These opportunities have instilled in me the conviction that belief is the first step towards possibility.”