# Sharan Patil

Dr. Sharan Shivraj Patil is an Indian entrepreneur, philanthropist and orthopaedic surgeon. He is the founder of Sparsh Hospitals.

## Early life and education

Dr. Sharan Shivraj Patil is the eldest child of Justice Shivaraj Patil and Smt. Annapoorna Patil. He was born in the district of Raichur in the state of Karnataka, India. His early education took place in Gulbarga at Sharana Basaveshwara Samsthana. In 1979, he moved to Bangalore to complete his 10th standard education at Vidya Vardhaka Sangha. He attended pre-university at the MES College, Bangalore.
Dr. Sharan Patil completed his medical school with an academic distinction from M. R. Medical College, Gulbarga, followed by his internship at St. Martha's Hospital in Bangalore. He then completed his post-graduation degree at Kasturba Medical College Manipal and graduated with a diploma in orthopaedics in 1990. In 1991 he graduated with a Master of Surgery in orthopaedics and was awarded a Gold medal. He also worked as a lecturer at M. S. Ramaiah Medical College for a short while after.
In 1992, Dr. Sharan Patil moved to the United Kingdom for further training in the North West of England. His training included the Tameside Hospital, Alder Hey Children's Hospital, Warrington District General Hospital, Broad Green District Hospital, Victoria Hospital - Blackpool, Hope Hospital, Manchester and in December 1995, he was bestowed with Mch. Ortho from Liverpool University. He was also awarded a Honorary FRCS England in 2010.

## Career

Sharan Patil returned to India in 1996 and joined Manipal Hospitals in Bangalore as an orthopaedic consultant.
In 2006, he founded the SPARSH Hospital for trauma, orthopaedics, plastics and maxillofacial surgery in Health City, which in itself was the fledging venture by Dr. Devi Shetty at the time (this later went on to becoming the NH Group as we know it today).

### As an entrepreneur

Under Patil's leadership, the SPARSH Group of Hospitals, which started as a single speciality hospital in 2006 with 120 beds, grew into 5 super-speciality hospitals with over 1,200 beds spread across the state of Karnataka. The organisation employs over 2,200 healthcare professionals including 250 doctors.
SPARSH Hospital has been counted as one of the top 10 hospitals for orthopaedic surgery by multiple annual surveys.

### As a philanthropist

As an advocate of accessibility and affordability in healthcare for India, he launched his philanthropic arm called the SPARSH Foundation in 2007. The SPARSH Foundation has undertaken various initiatives including:
* Hejje Guruthu - In 2008, through a public-private initiative and with the involvement of SPARSH Foundation, this program was launched to eradicate clubfoot in children. Under this scheme, SPARSH treated over 600 children free of charge for clubfoot (congenital foot anomaly)
* SPARSH Vachana - Through SPARSH Vachana, Patil and his team have operated on over 1,500 children with complex disabilities. Every year in the week of 14 November (Children's Day), approximately 200 children are identified and offered surgical interventions free of cost.
* Guru Namana - Patil and team have performed free of cost joint replacement surgeries for over 100 retired teachers from rural background, every year in the week of 5 September (Teacher's Day).

### As a surgeon

Patil has performed over 15,000 surgeries including 7,500 joint replacements, making him one of the leading orthopaedic surgeons of the country. Over the years, Patil and his team have performed surgical interventions on over 5,000 under-privileged patients. He has also worked closely with the government in multiple private-public healthcare initiatives. During COVID-19 pandemic, Patil worked with the Ministry of Health in policy-making.

#### Lakshmi Tatma surgery

Lakshmi Tatma, an ischiopagus conjoined twin with 8 limbs from a remote village in Araria district of Bihar, had a life-threatening, medically challenging condition that required surgical intervention of the kind that was never done before in India. Under the leadership of Patil, and the support of the SPARSH Foundation, this life transforming surgery was performed successfully. This received accolades from the Prime Minister of India and the medical fraternity across the nation. Patil was invited by several medical universities and media houses both in UK and USA to discuss the accomplishment. This case was broadcast as a full-length documentary by National Geographic.

## Recognition

He was honoured with the Karnataka Rajyotsava Award by the State of Karnataka in 2007 for his contribution in the field of medicine. He was featured in the Forbes magazine in an exclusive interview titled 'Journey from being a surgeon to a medical entrepreneur'. He was also nominated for the 'Indian of the Year 2007'.

## Personal life

Patil is an orator and thought leader. He lives in Bangalore with his parents, wife and two daughters. He strongly believes that "The gift of life and every moment inspires us to reach out and help, one should not consider this as an obligation but as an opportunity to touch the lives of people".