Indian Spinal Injuries Centre: A tale of survivor’s vision to serve the society

New Delhi: Delhi-based Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (ISIC) is a tale of a superspeciality centre that came out of the vision of a strong-willed survivor, which was later followed by a sense of service to the society. An army officer, who took a bullet in his spine during the 1965 Indo-Pak war and was later confined to a wheelchair, developed a Hi-Tech Holistic Care Centre that now offers one of the world’s most advanced medical care centre to patients facing problems related to spine, bones, joints, and neurological issues. ISIC which was set up by Major Hari Pal Singh Ahluwalia provides quality care, good infrastructure, highly experienced experts, and world-class treatment and care to lakhs of patients.

Over two decades (2001- 2022 till date) ISIC has provided nearly 16 lakh OPD and 1 lakh IPD Consultancies and performed over 75,000 high-tech surgeries. The Centre has now become an epitome of awareness and treatment of Spinal cord injuries. The centre is entirely wheelchair accessible and moreover employs people with disabilities. ISIC has become a one-stop centre that takes holistic care of patients suffering from a wide range of conditions related to spine, bone & joints, to re-gaining mental strength post operations. The centre houses a team of highly skilled and well-trained spinal surgeons, spinal anaesthetists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, psychologists, assistive technologists, orthotists, and counsellors. In terms of people (experts), infrastructure, processes and procedures, and technology including MedTech, the Centre has carved a niche.

The hospital has in-house multispecialty assistance as well as world-class surgical, post-operative, and ICU care. With the experts and infrastructure support, the hospital takes pride in the fact that thousands of patients with back pain, degenerative spine, deformity, infections, osteoporosis, spinal tumour, and spinal trauma, have been successfully treated and are now enjoying their lives.

ISIC is the first centre outside the USA to have the Mazor X Stealth Edition robotic guidance system supported by O-arm Surgical Imaging System. With features such as customizable implant selection, optimal implant trajectories and 3D analytics, Mazor X Stealth Edition robotic guidance system allows medical professionals to plan treatment while the procedure is on. While the O-arm Surgical Imaging System provides real-time, intra-operative imaging of a patient’s anatomy with high-quality images and a large field of view in both two and three dimensions.

ISIC offers a wide range of high-end spine surgery procedures including Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF), Cervical disc replacement, Cervical laminectomy & laminoplasty, Lumbar microdiscectomy & laminectomy and Lumbar spinal fusion TLIF PLIF.  Under the orthopaedic services, the hospital offers end-to-end treatment facilities, which include hip, knee, and shoulder replacement besides other medical services such as paediatric orthopaedics, trauma, and upper limb ailments. The outpatient care, inpatient surgical treatment, rehabilitation, and orthotics and prosthetics make ISIC special.

The Centre also houses an exceptional rehabilitation department, which has been developed keeping in mind the importance of post-operative care. With the belief that the healing process after an illness or injury is best done at home, the hospital also provides Rehab Homecare services. The Centre also offers specific comprehensive services based on the needs of the patients such as vehicle modifications, home and workplace modifications, adaptive driving evaluation and training, ergonomic workstation designs, specialized computer equipment and software and much more.

“Our goal is to lessen the patient’s dependence on medication and improve the lives of individuals suffering from spinal or other injuries by offering medical excellence through scientific competence. We also strive to maximise the rehabilitation- patients & self-sufficiency and independence,” added Mrs Bholi Ahluwalia.

The Chairperson further said, “Every member of the team aims and works towards restoring hope and joy in the hearts of every patient with unrelenting attention to clinical excellence, patient safety and an unparalleled dedication to assure exemplary physical, emotional and spiritual care. Moreover, the Centre now propels the country forward in fields of medical education and research.”

Major HPS Ahluwalia understood the pain and hopelessness of persons with disabilities. As a combat veteran injured in the line of duty, he instilled confidence in patients by sharing his experience and conveying that physical incapacity is a farce and that the challenge is to conquer the mind. As a result, ISIC promotes activities that inspire persons with disabilities and make them believe in their skills while demonstrating to the general public that forcing disabled people to the periphery is a waste of potential.

“My father’s spinal cord injury inspired and drove him to envisage establishing a Hi-Tech Holistic Care Centre that offers patients the most cutting-edge medical care possible. Spinal cord injuries in road accidents are very common and according to the WHO, India tops the list of nations with the highest number of road accidents. Our mission is the same as that of our founding Chairman. We aim to improve the lives of thousands of newly injured patients each year by offering medical services. We are carrying forward the legacy of my father Major HPS Ahluwalia. He will continue to be our guiding light as we move forward and expand our services to injured patients throughout the country,” said Ms Sugandh Ahluwalia, Chief Strategy Officer, ISIC.

“His dream was to build a high-tech holistic care centre that would provide patients with the world’s most advanced medical care; he made his dream a reality, and now we are following his footsteps. Carrying forward the legacy of my father, I am extremely proud and feel fortunate to say that we are not driven by business propositions but are driven by the passion of our founding Chairman, which is to serve those who are suffering,” concluded Ms Sugandh Ahluwalia.