10/31/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/31/2024 12:21
By Hart Rapaport
Recently, the EHSS Office of Domestic and International Health Studies (EHSS-13) successfully conducted the 2024 Fall Medical Mission to the Republic of the Marshall Islands. This trip marks 50 years of care for Marshallese patients for Dr. Ashok Vaswani.
Ashok Vaswani's first trip to the Marshall Islands came about almost by accident. Since 1974, he had provided care to Marshallese patients who traveled to Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York State for thyroid surgery. During lunches with colleagues, he heard about medical trips to the Marshall Islands but never joined them. In 1991, another doctor came to him with an urgent request. Another endocrinologist-a doctor who specializes in hormone-related conditions-had dropped out at the last moment, and Brookhaven's mission to Majuro and Kwajalein was left understaffed. Dr. Vaswani was the perfect replacement. After thinking it over for 10 minutes, he agreed to join.
Since then, Dr. Vaswani has completed nearly 100 trips to the Marshall Islands and conducted thousands of appointments with Marshallese patients. He serves as the Physician in Charge of International Outreach Services, a cooperative partner of the US Department of Energy that administers a US Congress mandated cancer screening and care program for those exposed directly to the Castle Bravo nuclear test.
In an interview to mark the 50th anniversary of his care for Marshallese patients, Dr. Vaswani reflected on his preparation for work in the RMI. His medical training in India and the US equipped him with knowledge about a range of conditions that he would later encounter in the RMI. And, as Assistant Professor of Medicine at Stony Brook University, his research on areas ranging from obesity management to bone growth positioned him at the cutting edge of treatment options and practice.
That background enabled him to maintain connections with the patients as their medical needs evolved over the decades. To provide proper care, Dr. Vaswani said, "you have to adapt to what they are going through in their lives." This guides Dr. Vaswani's and the International Outreach Services team's approach. Each patient receives a standard battery of physical examinations, bloodwork, and imaging along with assessments of specific bodily systems based on their age and other medical conditions. These tests present a comprehensive view of each patient's health.
A favorite part of his work was learning more about his patients, outside of their test results. Some people "will talk about everything," Dr. Vaswani said. "They'll talk about their whole lifespan" and then pick up the conversation at the next appointment.
Dr. Vaswani even received a nickname from his patients. When performing thyroid palpations-a test that uses fingers to check for potential physical abnormalities in the gland-he noticed that people in the waiting room would giggle. He later found out that he had been named "piano fingers," a reference to how he would "play the piano" on each patient's thyroid during the examination.
In addition to working directly with patients, when he is in town, Dr. Vaswani also leads topical medical seminars for the RMI Ministry of Health and Human Services doctors and nurses on Majuro and Ebeye. Sessions focus on different topics that are relevant to the community like hypothyroidism, metabolic syndrome, or high blood pressure. Dr. Vaswani reviews the latest international standards of care, outlines how medical professionals in the RMI might treat the condition, and answers questions on specific patient cases. To Dr. Vaswani, these opportunities are a continuation of his lifelong work as a mentor in the medical field. At Stony Brook, Dr. Vaswani trained almost 400 doctors, even inspiring a few to specialize in endocrinology. "It's the same story" in the RMI, he said. "It's always good" to keep adding to the skills of medical professionals throughout their careers.
After considering what he had learned over his decades of medical practice with Marshallese patients, Dr. Vaswani highlighted the importance of "cooperative care" to maintain health. As he put it, "patients have to take care of themselves" in addition to receiving treatment from doctors. This means, for example, diligently taking prescribed medication while eating and exercising properly. To achieve the best outcomes, doctors and patients must act as one unit. In the coming years, Dr. Vaswani plans to continue his work in the RMI to do just that.