: With 18 ‘Jugaad’ Innovations, Surgeon Helps Thousands With Low-Cost Healthcare #IndiaNEWS #Health Care when Dr Jagdish Chaturvedi says that audiences line up to meet him after his standup shows,

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With 18 ‘Jugaad’ Innovations, Surgeon Helps Thousands With Low-Cost Healthcare #IndiaNEWS #Health Care
when Dr Jagdish Chaturvedi says that audiences line up to meet him after his standup shows, he’s not exaggerating. A full time doctor by day and standup comedian by night, the ENT surgeon says he is now used to people asking him to check their CT scans instead of asking for selfies.
“It brings me closer to my patients,� he says without an iota of doubt.
Behind Dr Jagdish’s hilarious punchlines and modest attitude lies a pioneering medical innovator, whose contributions have been a game changer in the medical field, especially in rural areas.
He says he was bitten by the innovation bug in 2008, while was undergoing his training to become a doctor. His first invention was a cheap alternative to expensive imaging equipment to diagnose throat cancer.
“It hurt me to see that many farmers were getting early stage cancers from inhaling stubble fire. We were using rudimentary tools like mirrors to check people’s throat in villages,� Dr Jagdish, who works at Bengaluru’s Fortis Hospital, tells The Better India. “But the reflection of the back of mouth never gave a clear picture. �
Dr Jagdish
In city areas, there are flat-screen TVs and advanced technology. Due to a lack of high-tech devices in rural areas, he attached a small camera to the endoscope and used it.
After seeing the results of his ‘jugaad’, he decided to build a prototype and eventually launch it in the market to help more doctors practising in rural areas.
However, reality hit when there were no takers, or encouragement from anyone except his senior professors in the ENT department. He struggled to find investors and manufacturers.

In the face of resistance, there are usually two paths one can take — succumbing to the pressure, or becoming more determined to bring a change. Dr Jagdish chose the second one.
“I faced backlash from the medical community, who believed I should stick to my job instead of capitalising on the prototype. But I did not give up and gave the licence to Icarus, who then sold it to Medtronic. As part of Shruti ear care programme, Medtronic uses the third-generation Medtronic Shruti ENTraview Otoscope (attached to an Android phone). It has helped around seven lakh people,� he adds.
How innovation and entrepreneurship go hand in hand

Dr Jagdish’s first innovation gave him more lessons than accolades. One of the first things he wanted to do was bring a mindset change among the medical fraternity with respect to innovations.
The first step was to gain knowledge and skills to translate innovations into products that doctors could use. With help from his senior professor, he enrolled himself in a Stanford bio-design programme in 2012.

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