This doctor walked on foot, crossed a hill and a river to treat a woman who had just given birth

Dr. Rath is an hod doctor at Kandamahal, Odisha. Photo courtesy Facebook.

Sitdatu Raita is a first time mother. Imagine all your years of the doctor not arriving in time do come true. Add birth complications, and your first experience of motherhood might actually become a traumatic one. But she had a determined doctor cross a hill and wade across a river to help make her experience wonderful. This was Dr Yagnadatta Rath.

The incident occurred in Odisha's Kandhamal district on Sunday. By the time Rath covered more than 1.5km on foot to reach the 23year-old mother, she had delivered a girl, but her placenta had not come out. Dr Rath then did what he could to ensure her safety.

29-year-old Rath works as an ad hoc doctor at Tumudibandha community health centre in Kandhamal, where Maoists have influence over the inhabitants. Raita's village, Balam, is only 7km away from the health centre. But it can be accessed only after walking on foot through the hill and a river which has to be crossed seven times.

Dr. Rath has become an shining example for the healthcare system of odisha. Photo courtesy Facebook.

On 25th March, Raita started walking for the Tumudibandha health centre with her husband and family members, but could not carry on after a point. Her husband left her inside a forest with the relatives and went to the house of Tumudibandha block development officer (BDO) for help.

Rath set out for the forest in an ambulance after the BDO informed the health centre. The ambulance stopped after covering 4km and the rest was covered by Dr. Rath on foot. "When I reached the spot, the woman had delivered a girl, but her placenta had not come out. Normally, there is a lot of bleeding at this stage. Luckily, nothing of that sort had happened. I asked the men to move away a little so that I could give her a little privacy. The baby weighed around 2.1 kg," said Dr. Rath. (Hindustan Times) 

Raita and her baby were taken to the ambulance and then to health centre, where they are under observation. "It was her first delivery and she was scared about her child's well-being. Both are safe. They will be discharged on Friday," said Rath.The young doctor, who did his MBBS from Bhubaneswar's Institute of Medical Science and SUM Hospital in 2012, said he was really worried when he heard Raita was travelling all the way from Balam."I had last been to that village a few years ago with a colleague for immunisation. I was worried how she would cross the river," said Rath.

His prompt action has come in for praise. Netra Manseth, a social worker in Tumudibandha, said, "He is an inspiration for doctors in our district."

Representational image.

At a time when a doctor was attacked by the angry relatives of a patient at D Y Patil Medical College and Hospital, R. Rath's Facebook post outlines what we all need to keep in mind-doctors, despite all their training are humans.

Odisha doctors setting examples

May, 2017: Three doctors in Nabarangpur district headquarters hospital donated blood to save the life of a tribal woman shortly after she gave birth.

October 2017: Dr Omkar Hota, working in Maoist violence-affected Malkangiri district, carried a tribal woman who was bleeding after childbirth for 10km on a cot. He walked 3 hours through forests to get the woman to hospital.

November, 2017: Dr Sankar Ramchandani in Odisha's Bargarh district, carried a filaria patient lying by the road in his personal vehicle to hospital.

Doctors can only treat what's treatable. Let's not blame them for not being able to be miracle-workers everyday.