Can you believe that a music reviewer, anchor, drum player, salsa trainer and avid reader would find a perfect balance between these activities and neurodevelopmental paediatrics? But, surprisingly, Dr Samir Dalwai can!
For parents who have a query regarding neurodevelopmental disorders in their children, Dr Dalwai is the best person to answer them. He is the President of Indian Academy of Paediatrics – Mumbai Chapter, consulting child developmental paediatrician and most importantly, the founder of New Horizons Child Development Centre (NHCDC). Although he has a busy work schedule, he never misses out on living life to the fullest, he says.
“I go with the flow in life. I believe that every moment has a joy to offer, and I want to embrace that to the fullest. I love my profession and so, it never gets exhausting for me. Yet, I have always been this person who has varied tastes from dance to music to films, it’s all been a part of my journey,” says a cheerful Dr Dalwai.
His day starts at 7:30 am with a gym trainer coming to train him at his home gym for three days a week. Then he heads for breakfast, during that time he generally reads novels or listens to old classics. “I love to read the works of writers such as M.J. Akbar, Ghalib, Sherlock Holmes are some of my favourites. I read whenever I get time. I also love listening to old songs. I review them,” he said.
He starts his outpatient department (OPD) at 9:30am which goes on till 1:30pm. Which is one of the five centres that he works at, depending on the day of the week. Post which he generally has lunch along with conducting all his meetings and discussions till 3pm.
“My next set of OPDs is at a different centre, it starts at 4pm. So I get an hour of travel, during which I read a little more or I watch something. From 4pm to 8pm, I am at the centre examining kids.”
As he winds up his day, he prefers to meet his group of friends who are musicians, the Medico Music Group (MMG), for a quick chat. “We meet up whenever we can. I play drums and also anchor shows. But I generally do all of this throughout the week. I go to bed at around 1:30 am at night and that’s like my perfect day.”
Dr Dalwai has five degrees- MD (Doctor of Medicine), DCH (post graduate diploma in child health), DNB (Diplomate of National Board), FCPS (Fellow of College of Physicians and Surgeons), LLB (Bachelor in Law) with special interest in Child Development, Child Psychology and Juvenile Jurisprudence (Child Law), and yet he says that learning is a process that can’t get completely over. “My uncle wrote in his autobiography that there is nothing like the end of your journey. When you reach the mountain cliff and think you have achieved the world, you will realize that there is an even bigger cliff to climb. And so, I enjoy everything I do and keep learning.”
Dr Dalwai’s schedule on a regular day
7:30am – Day starts
8:00am to 9:00am – Gym trainer
9:30am to 1:30pm- OPDs
1:30pm to 3:00pm – Lunch and meetings
3.00pm to 4.00pm- Reading time
4:00pm to 8:00pm- OPDs
8:00pm to 1:30am – Meeting friends, winding up from the centre, researching reading.
1:30am – Bedtime