Chinese woman has Indian name because of doctor who saved her life

In his 35 years as an obstetrician, Professor Arijit Biswas has delivered more than 14,000 babies, but the 69-year-old is not ready to hang up his scrubs or even slow down.

In fact, when he and his wife Tapati visited their family and friends in Kolkata, India, in September 2024, he took only five days off work, after which he left her to continue the vacation alone.

"He is so dedicated to his patients that he even has his phone by his side 24/7. He flew back to Singapore after the five days while I stayed on for my vacation," said Mrs Biswas.

For his years of service, Prof Biswas was conferred the National University Health System's lifetime honorary title of emeritus consultant at its tribute award ceremony recently.

When he first became a doctor, he was drawn to the opportunity to bring life into the world.

"I love watching them grow from a jelly bean to a human being," said Prof Biswas.

Prof Biswas obtained his basic degree from Calcutta University in India, and received his postgraduate training in obstetrics and gynaecology at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in 1981.

He later sat the exams for MRCOG, an internationally recognised postgraduate qualification in obstetrics and gynaecology, while working for the National Health Service in London in 1989.

He joined Singapore's National University Hospital (NUH) in April 1991 and is now the clinical director of its department of obstetrics and gynaecology. He previously headed the maternal foetal medicine division, with special interests in prenatal diagnosis, prenatal ultrasound and high-risk pregnancies.

Every year, Prof Biswas delivers about 400 babies, each one delighting him as much as when he delivered his first baby in 1979.

"It is difficult for me to see young children suffer from cancer. As an obstetrician, I mostly encounter joy and good news. I love how the field is a happy mix of surgery and medicine," he said.

The joys of his job clearly outweigh the times when the outcomes were hard-won - not uncommon for someone who specialises in high-risk pregnancies.

A case that made a deep impression on him was that of baby Karuna, born 24 years ago.

Her mother was in her fourth month of pregnancy when she discovered there was no amniotic fluid surrounding the baby in her womb.

Among other functions, amniotic fluid helps a baby's lungs, digestive system and muscles to develop, as well as cushions and protects the baby and the umbilical cord from pressure or outside injury.

Madam Magdaline Tan, 52, told The Straits Times: "There was no amniotic fluid seen on the ultrasound scan but the heartbeat of the foetus was strong. That was when Prof (Biswas) was called in. It was because the heartbeat was strong that he asked me to consider going through amnioinfusion."

Having previously lost her first baby, Madam Tan decided to undergo amnioinfusion, which adds amniotic fluid to the uterus. During the procedure, the doctor pumps saline or sodium lactate into the womb with a catheter.

Prof Biswas said it was the first time he was carrying out the procedure on someone who was at such an early stage of pregnancy and that he had only read about it in international medical annals.

Madam Tan was discharged after the procedure. Unfortunately, the water gushed out, and she had to return to hospital every fortnight to have the procedure done again.

Eventually, she was hospitalised in NUH for 95 days of bed rest until she gave birth on Dec 2, 2000, by caesarean section.

"I was very gung-ho while staying at the hospital. I even asked to walk from my bed to the toilet in case I forgot how to. But when I was wheeled to the (operating) theatre, I burst into tears. The unknown became too great," she said.

Her daughter was only 2.1kg when she was born and stayed in the neonatal intensive care unit for two weeks to ensure her lungs were healthy. The child was named Karuna, Sanskrit for compassion, mercy and gentleness, because Madam Tan and her husband were moved by Prof Biswas' care and the family is Buddhist.

Today, at 24, Karuna Lee works as a community nurse who visits seniors who are not able to leave their homes.

She said: "The story would come up every time on my birthday and it serves as a reminder of how hard Prof Biswas and my parents worked against all odds to give me a chance to survive and be who I am today."

Ms Lee is not the only baby delivered by Prof Biswas who is now in healthcare. The youngest of a set of quintuplets he delivered 19 years ago is now in medical school.

It was a rare obstetric challenge for Prof Biswas and the sonographer, as they "could not tell whose limbs were whose and each scan took at least two hours".

Multiple pregnancies carry their own sets of risks for mothers and babies, increasing significantly with each additional foetus.

Yet with painstaking care from Prof Biswas and his team, the patient eventually delivered all five girls through caesarean section at 33 weeks.

"They were all healthy and beautiful. We followed up with their care until they were four," he said.

"Obstetrics is my happy place, and what makes it even more meaningful is the opportunity to work with many others - our surgeons, neonatologists, geneticists, nurses - really, a multidisciplinary team - who come together to give every mother and child the best possible chance. Each birth is a team effort, and I'm honoured to be part of that journey," he said.