Dr. Shirley Paranavitane

I believe that we should write appreciations of people while they are still alive, not after they are dead and gone, hence this humble tribute to Dr. Shirley Paranavitane, who may be described as a physician with all the qualities of the legendary Jeevaka, the perfect doctor. At a time when human feelings of love and compassion are being replaced by unlimited greed for money and power, he is an embodiment of those noble values that have all but disappeared. I am sure there will be thousands who would share the sentiments I express here.

His name is a household word in a vast area around Nugegoda, where he has lived and worked for over half a century. Such is the power of his benign personality that many of his patients used to swear that having spoken a few words with him, they would feel so much better that they would take their prescriptions away in their pockets, having no further need for medicine.

He would start each day with the intention of curing the sick, and it is impossible to compute the numbers that have come under his ministration. He captured the hearts of all those who knew him, by his principles of strictly adhering to professional ethics. He never perverted his knowledge for the purpose of making money. As far as I know, he has amassed no wealth.

His property consists of nothing except his humble dwelling. This, I believe, is ample testimony of his dedication to the welfare of his suffering fellowmen. When a grievously ill patient entered his house, the first impression he got was the homely atmosphere akin to the good old home of the village “Vedarala.” Just as the physician of old would personally brew and administer medicine with his own hands, this doctor, with keen awareness, would himself pour the medicine into the open mouth of the patient in a most kind and sympathetic manner.

I remember a certain incident in my own life many years ago, when my son became extremely ill, and having kept up the whole night in agony, I visited the doctor at early dawn. There were many patients and several cars there already, but a certain middle aged woman, poorly clad in an old cloth and jacket, seated on the ground, caught my attention.

At this instant, the doctor came out of the room carrying some medicine to be administered to a little child and having done so, no sooner did he perceive the poor woman that he inquired kindly what her problem was. She declared that her young son was stricken with vomiting and fever for two days and she needed some medicine for him as she could not afford a conveyance to bring him over. Immediately, the doctor asked his faithful driver to go with the woman and bring the patient.

I soon realized that the doctor’s children went away to school without breakfast that day, as they searched for the driver to bring the bread and he was not to be found. Just as a father would look after his children, the doctor would visit poor patients living in slums or in the case of more affluent patients, inquire about their progress through the telephone.

This fatherly concern over his patients went a long way towards ensuring speedy recovery. While the majority in society goes after wealth and power, his thoughts would eternally seek out the sick and downtrodden. Long years ago it was my parents who benefited from his consultations, today it is my children and grand children, for he has cared for four or five generations in the locality.

His love for little children was amazing, and I experienced this fact on one occasion when I happened to take the doctor by car to see my aged father-in-law. Halfway through the journey, when we stopped the car for a short rest close to Panadura, we noticed a group of street urchins playing by the wayside. The doctor approached them and spoke to them kindly, cracking jokes and capturing their hearts. He soon noticed one child in the group with eyes drawn,and bulging stomach. He brought him to the car and after examining him carefully, wrote out a prescription, taking a piece of paper from his pocket.

Then he asked the driver of our car to fetch the medicine from a nearby pharmacy. We waited for the medicine, and when it was brought he gave specific instructions to the elder brother of the sick child and blessed him for a quick recovery, before we resumed our journey. I can still recall the faces of those little children gazing at our car until it disappeared in the distance. I have had the privilege of knowing this noble gentleman for many years and it would take a whole book to record many similar incidents that I know of.

One day he was turning the pages of one of his old diaries when I entered his house, and he told me that there was one night when he examined twenty one patients. The amazing thing is not the breaking of rest and being disturbed throughout the night, but the fact that he never charged for any of these night calls. What a contrast to many of today’s doctors who close shop at 8 p.m. and refuse to be disturbed after that, even to see a seriously ill patient.

Despite his extremely busy professional life, he never neglected his family. As long as his aged mother was alive, it was his habit to visit her daily and speak to her for a few minutes. His wife Sheila was a tower of strength, looking after him, their children and their home with quiet efficiency, leaving him free to minister to his numerous patients without having to worry about domestic needs. Sadly, she passed away recently, and left a void in his life that could never be filled.

Now, in quiet retirement in the evening of his long and exemplary life, he reads, works crossword puzzles and loves the company of boisterous teenagers. A deeply religious man, he once told me that he fears no one except God. It is our great good fortune that he has groomed his eldest son to follow in his footsteps.

May he live many more years in peace and comfort, and continue to provide guidance and inspiration to the medical profession.

Arnold Manchanayake