16/11/2025
I spoke at at Jaipur today.
Yes, me.
The same person who last year delivered three sessions on AI in Pulmonary Medicine.
This year?
I was invited to speak on something far more radical. Far more uncomfortable. Far more overdue.
Compassion in Medicine.
Yes… to a hall full of Eminent National and International Pulmonologists.
Honestly, at this point in my career, that shift says more about me than any award ever could.
And I’ll say this without hesitation:
As I grow older in this field, this is the session I’m proudest of.
Modern pulmonology can predict exacerbations, read ABGs like poetry, and summarise a lifetime in a CT scan.
But you know what it still can’t do?
Read the fear behind a patient’s forced smile.
Reassure a family with a single steady sentence.
Hold space for grief, anger, confusion… without rushing.
That requires something no machine learning model can replace.
That’s why deserves a seat at the big tables … NAPCON included. Because evidence is clear: compassion is a powerful science.
Now before someone says, “This is all theory… where do you actually practice this?”
Let me just proudly highlight our monthly workshops at NMC Speciality Hospital, Al Nahda, Dubai.
We practise real-life conversations like:
• “Why didn’t anyone tell me this earlier?”
• “I’m angry. I want the consultant now.”
• “Please… just tell me the truth.”
It gets loud. It gets emotional.
Sometimes it gets painfully honest.
But every month, it shapes us into better Health-caregivers.
But that’s just the background track.
Today, NAPCON gave me the stage to put the spotlight on the thing we all feel but rarely talk about:
Medicine doesn’t fail because of science.
It fails when communication breaks.
It succeeds when compassion shows up.
After the session, I met mentors, friends, juniors. They said, “Oh the doctor! We love posts!”
This was the bonus serotonin I didn’t know I needed.
So let me ask you … and I REALLY want your thoughts:
👉 Do we need to formally teach compassion and communication in medical training, the same way we teach procedures and pharmacology?
👉 Should every medical college have a “compassion curriculum”?
👉 Would YOU have been a different doctor if someone had taught this to you earlier?
Comment. Debate. Disagree. Share your story.
I’m listening and I want this conversation to reach every young doctor who needs to hear it.
(Compassionomics: Dr Stephen Trzeciak & Dr Anthony Mazzarelli)
Dr Padmavathy Ramadoss
Pulmonologist | Building systems where science, communication & compassion work together