MISFORTUNE RARELY TARGETS WHILE HANDLING. VIPs

Rarely, unpleasant experiences also I had while doing VIP physiotherapy. One of the governors of Kerala aged 82 years was my patient for physiotherapy, twenty years ago. As I mentioned earlier he was a registered patient of our National Institute. He had progressive Parkinson's disease in which he had a stooping posture. Universal flexion of the body is one of the characteristics of Parkinson's. The practical problem for him to perform his duty was, he could not stand erect behind the speech stand. You know that the governor's post is ornamental.

He is conferred with all powers given by the constitution, but cannot enforce the execution of any of them. Our constitution is a compendium of five world constitutions, the President and the governor's post, adopted from the constitution of the UK, that of the Queen. In short, the facilities given to the governor is astonishing. He has a police station, headed by an officer of S P rank, a clinic, a team of catering staff, an IAS officer as secretary, a large administrative dept., a special barber, a beautician, a team of gardeners to maintain the vast garden, a group of drivers and vehicles, and such other many things inside a 500 acre Rajbhavan, required for the highest post.

Early morning, 6.15 am, the Rajbhavan car will come to my house. It was of course a golden feather added on my cap to make the people of the township believe that I was something great. But they did not know the difficulties. I actually did Physio. for fifteen days, one session, and thereafter, fifteen days after three months. This way I continued for three years. The only benefit I had for three years of treatment was a coffee with him after the treatment. But that coffee was brought in a wheeled golden chariot, with parts for making tea in12 crockeries and cutleries, by a chef with a royal cap. What you actually consume is 150 ml of tea into your body from this paraphernalia.

My anecdote is actually on the first day of treatment. My task was to make his stooping body straight so as to reach the speech stand. As required for the first step of my modus operandi, " Tell the patient what you are going to do". I explained to the elderly governor the process. But I did not know that I had to explain to the police people also. I requested the governor to stand close to the wall facing the wall. I held his both hands up with my left hand and slowly touched the wall in front and with my right hand, I pressed his low back towards the wall slowly. With his permission, I slowly increased my pressing with Rt. hand and kept on asking him " can you bear it" "OK, OK", he said. But at one point, he cried, " Ahaa". I stopped pressing the governor and remained in the same posture, which probably gave a look for an onlooker that I was pressing the governor against the wall and going to hit him with my knees. To my misfortune, a sub-inspector, with three police suddenly arrived and saw our posture. The S I shouted, " what is that you are doing" I said nothing. The governor told them, " it's ok, go. go". to the police. Do you think the police will move out seeing this " attempt murder".? They stayed there. My hands were slightly shivering, although I loosened them and stood still. But the governor said, " What happened?, Not doing anything?" I said," sir, we will not do this today. We will go to bed and do bed exercises only". Bu the governor said," when a person gets abrupt pain, he will express grimace, you don't worry, you do whatever you want to do" But I had no courage to continue, the same" attack" keeping the police people watching, although, that was the blessed treatment for his deformity and later proved wonders. I did some physio for namesake and concluded on the first day and had governor's coffee, which was hosted by his wife also on the first day. But I could not enjoy the company of the governor and his wife that day, because I was deeply obsessed with the feeling of how to convince the police people that I was a very harmless physiotherapist and not to loose their peace of mind during my physiotherapy. I don't blame them because they had their tension for safeguarding the governor.

I came down to the police station and met the superintendent of police and explained everything. Meanwhile, the so-called S I and party also came there. The SP was convinced and the same treatment continued for three years. With one session he would reach the speech stand and it would remain for three months, and again another session to maintain it. The Parkinson is an incurable disease and this way only the progression can be retarded. I maintained him to stand erect for the remaining three years of his tenure with the same, " detrimental" mode of operation.

Thank you.