After spending four decades in Sevagram, I often find myself reflecting on the past, comparing it to the present, and pondering what the future holds.
Itโs one of my most cherished pastimesโa price I pay for the salt that now outnumbers the pepper on my scalp.
The conversation begins with medical students. We often blame them for skipping classes. Missing bedside clinics. Focusing solely on their exam-oriented learning and preparing purely for NEET.
โThey lack interest in bedside learning,โ laments one of my colleagues. โThey only care about career and commerce, not the art and science of medicine,โ sighs another old-timer.
โYou know, at the patientโs bedside, we hardly ever see residents actually checking for physical signs anymore. Instead, theyโre glued to their iPhones, hunting for apps that can give them quick answers,โ says one of the old professors. โItโs like they canโt wait to order CT scans and MRIs, often skipping the whole neurological exam,โ another colleague adds, shaking his head.
โAnd can you believe it? Pregnant women are wheeled into the ultrasound room before anyone even thinks to check their bellies!โ sighs an obstetrician, visibly frustrated.
The comparisons are everywhereโin classrooms, post-graduate seminar rooms, OPD chambers, wards, ICUs, labour rooms, labs and operating rooms.
The older generation seems to have a long list of concerns about the younger one.
We believe that values were stronger then and that we worked harder.
Itโs easy to think today canโt possibly live up to the “good old days.” We may feel that the world has changed in ways that have lost something important. Students seem less engaged, and thereโs a growing reliance on technology over clinical wisdom.
But are these comparisons really fair? Is it right to compare our experiences in medicine across different generations?
As we grow older, itโs natural to look back with nostalgia. We often compare the present to those earlier days, convinced that the past was better. Back then, things felt simpler and more meaningful. Dedication, respect, and commitment were the norm. A focus on clinical skills and genuine patient care was standard practice.
Aren’t we simply romanticizing the past? Are we yearning for a time when we felt more in control and certain about our roles? Maybe these are just our biases. Perhaps our view of the present is clouded by nostalgia and cynicism. Maybe weโre struggling to keep up with the changes around us.
Iโm reminded of a quote I once read: โThe past wasnโt as good as you remember. The present isnโt as bad as you think. The future will be better than you expect.โ
I canโt recall where or when I read it, but it helps me grasp the complexities of the world around me more clearly.
