In 1967, Dr. D. Shanmugam opened Dr. Shanmugam Child Health Clinic on Patel Road in Perambur. The same year, an unexpected patient came knocking on his clinic.

S. Vijayalakshmi, a resident of Perambur, was suffering from severe abdominal pain. With tablets proving futile in controlling the pain, she turned to Dr. Shanmugam. As he was running a clinic for children, the young and tall doctor was reluctant to treat her. He however broke the rule and treated her.

Through this intervention, Dr. Shanmugam gained not only a new patient, but also received his life partner. Impressed with what he had done for their daughter, Vijayalakshmi’s parents were only too glad to give her in marriage to him the same year.

Now 84 years old, Dr. Shanmugam completes 50 years of service in the neighbourhood this year.

Born to M. Dharman and D. Nagammal, who worked at the Kolar Gold Mine Fields (KGF) in Karnataka, Shanmugam pursued his schooling in Kolar before coming to Chennai, where he was enrolled at Pachaiyappa’s Higher Secondary School. Later, in 1957, he pursued MBBS at the Government Stanley Medical College.

With a meagre income, his family struggled to send him his monthly allowance of ₹15, let alone afford the education fee. Scholarships saw him through school and college.

For a decade he studied medicine and later worked in a Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC) in Karunkalagudi village in Madurai and also spent a few years at the paediatric section of Madras Medical College (MMC) in Park Town.

After serving at the PHC in Madurai for a few years, he was posted in various districts as government medical officer for child care.

His longest stint was at the state-run Institute of Child Health and Hospital for Children in Egmore, where he served the as Regional Medical Officer for 22 years.

The clinic, which celebrated its fiftieth anniversary on October 15 with a free health camp, has maintained a ‘no-charge policy’ with its patients, many of whom are economically underprivileged. If the treatment went beyond consultation and basic treatment, he would refer the patient to government hospitals.

Over the years, Dr. Shanmugam’s son Dr. S. Nagaderan, a pedestrian, has assisted his father at the clinic.

“I was keen on having my own clinic as doing so would help residents receive timely treatment.

“For nearly four decades, I had my clinic on Patel Road before shifting it to my house on Anandavelu Mudali Street in Perambur as the building on Patel Road was demolished,” he says.

Patients from as far as Ambur, Vellore, Walajabhad, Tirupathi, Sulurpet near Gummudipoondi, Thiruvannamalai and Kancheepuram have come here to consult Dr. Shanmugam.

For patients who can afford a fee, Dr. Shanmugam charges ₹200 for a consultation, while for those who cannot afford a fee, he offers free consultation and treatment.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News>Cities> Chennai / by D. Madhavan / October 19th, 2017