In 2007, Dr. Sharan Patil was the head surgeron during the surgery which removed the parasital twin from Lakshmi Tatum's body. He was gracious enough to take time out of his schedule to answer some questions about the procedure./

What was your reaction when you first heard about Lakshmi’s case?

Dr. Patil: It was one of amazement, curiosity, great concern and my heart went out for the little girl and her family.

Looking back, do you feel that people of Lakshmi’s village carried any resentment towards you or the Tatmas for going through with the operation?

Dr. Patil: I did not sense any such feelings towards me or the Tatmas family. To immortalize the memory of Lakshmi Tatma, they have built a temple with a replicate idol of Lakshmi Tatma in her original form. They still feel Lakshmi has been a good omen for the village and she will bring in good fortune.

With Lakshmi’s likeness to the goddess and a strong belief that she was reincarnated in Lakshmi, was there much of a struggle to convince the Tatmas of the importance of the operation?

Dr. Patil: Not really, they felt the baby was special. However they were also very practical and worried about the wellbeing of Lakshmi for the present and also the future. They were willing partners in exploring the medical possibility of making her in to a more normal child.

How did it feel to be the first doctor to perform this surgery in India? Did you reach out to any foreign medical professionals for advice?

Dr. Patil: The sense of joy and fulfillment has been immeasurable. Even though it was my initiative and social commitment towards the cause, there was an entire team of high class professionals who worked with me to make this surgery possible. In our month long preparation at no point in time did we feel the need to consult any foreign medical professionals. We seemed to have every investigating modality available to us and came up with the plan which looked quite comprehensive. We reviewed the skills of the team time and again and found no one lacking. We would have had no hesitation to ask for help from any other professionals in India or abroad if we had felt the need for it.

What were the greatest challenges in performing this surgery? At what point did you realize this was a success?

Dr. Patil:The greatest challenge was to anticipate every possible twist and turn during the surgical procedure and come out with an answer for it. To identify the structures which belonged to Lakshmi as against the structures which belonged to the parasitic twin. The decision to preserve some of the structures of the parasite to reconstruct the pelvis of Lakshmi was crucial. At the end of the procedure when we found all the vital biochemical and clinical parameters were normal, I felt we had success in sight.

What was the feeling like for you personally the moment after the surgery was completely done?

Dr. Patil: A mix of elation, relief and a great sense of accomplishment and a huge sense of gratitude to God, all the people who prayed for Lakshmi and my entire team of doctors, nurses and the support staff who had so relentlessly worked for this to happen.

This was worldwide news -- has this helped to push or expand the healthcare debate in India?

Dr. Patil: It has done that to some extent, but we still have many mountains to climb. It certainly has given Sparsh Hospital the confidence to take up many issues that plague our health care system. I feel confident we as an institution will contribute positively to the changes which are required for a sound health care system in India.

Tell me about the Sparsh Foundation and how it has been able to help people like Lakshmi.

Dr. Patil:In India we have a concept of Government run hospitals to reach out to the masses who cannot afford. However lack of infrastructure, skilled manpower and the sheer lack of will have made them ineffective in delivering health care of any quality. On a parallel we have hi-tech corporate hospitals and highly skilled health care professionals located in the bigger cities. These hospitals can give the highest quality health care but only for the miniscule few who can afford it. In the event of an unaffordable patient with a complex medical problem they have no one to turn to. These situations are too many and too frequent. Sparsh Foundation the charitable wing of Sparsh Hospital will reach out and put its might to help all these people. One such child was Lakshmi Tatma. We have had the good fortune to be involved in many such cases may not be as dramatic as that of Lakshmi but equally precious lives have been touched. We intend to nurture this foundation as the heart and soul of our concept of health care at Sparsh Hospital. Being a state of art hospital with the most committed professionals to excel in the science of medicine each one of us here are committed to make a difference to that person in need.