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( continued from page 35 ) Care with the University of Louisville . Her major interest within the specialty is in mechanical circulatory assist devices for failing hearts and “ post operative cognitive dysfunction after surgery .” “ I want my patients to be as alert or more after the procedure as they were before it .”
Over the last few years , she has been Vice President and Secretary of the medical staff of Jewish Hospital .
Her latest interest is in cardiogenic shock . “ The interesting work that my team and I are doing is developing a cardiogenic shock program , a first in Kentucky .”
Having trained across the world gives Dr . Bhatia a unique perspective and insight . India saw vast , varied caseloads often with very sick patients who were seeing a doctor for the first time and were well into their disease progression . “ The training in India was intense and we were reading books cover to cover . England added to that thorough training .” The U . S . provides extensive experience in patient care . She observes that in the U . S ., there is hesitation in offering palliative care when compared to other countries . “ We are influenced by legal liabilities and often offer futile care where palliative care could dignify end of life ,” she said .
Having this global experience positions her as a natural leader . Realizing that potential , Dr . Bhatia decided to pursue an MBA in the Business of Medicine at Indiana University ’ s Kelley School of Business as well as complete the Executive Education program for Physician Leadership offered at the Kellogg Institute from Northwestern University .
“ As physicians , our strengths are definitely in the clinical field , but in order to bring about organizational change in health care , we have to understand the business of medicine and be knowledgeable about the clinical and administrative side of business . Physicians in the “ C suite ” add to job satisfaction amongst employees . I am passionate about my organization ’ s mission and the need to differentiate in this
competitive environment .” As a GLMS Board member , Dr . Bhatia wants to enrich the health and well-being of the local community as well as advocate for her patients and peers .
Dr . Bhatia has immense pride for her family , including her daughters and grandchildren . While her girls didn ’ t go into medicine like their parents , they are both highly respected executives in their fields . Neha graduated in neuroscience from Emory University , has a masters in public health and went on to work in consulting and is now Senior Director of Enterprise Strategy at Anthem . She is pursuing her MBA at Wharton School of Business while raising her two children . Nupur attended Stanford University , and successfully took her company public as Head of Product and is currently VP of Product .
19 years after her husband ’ s demise , Dr . Bhatia remarried . She met her first love from her teenage days after they had parted for over 40 years . A strange coincidence brought them together . Her husband is Venkat Sharma , an engineer by trade , now a business executive . “ He is a man of high intellect and integrity whom I love dearly and am fortunate to share the rest of my life with .”
Dr . Bhatia upholds justice and equality and founded CORE ( Coalition for Racial Equality ) in 2019 . Even as her certifications and training have slowed down , ( maybe – becoming a lawyer is still on the wish list ) she plans to focus more on inner reflection to transform the inner soul within . She is also deep into meditation . Meditation and non-duality have the same philosophy as her faith , Sikhism . Both recognize that being soul conscious and pure in thought and deeds are important . You must not allow the external environment to affect your internal peace . You want to concentrate , reflect and look inside of you , she said . Aiming for true purity of the heart and mind is a process , but she wants to continue that journey to self-discovery . “ I want to make my soul rich , and I hope my family would also want the same ,” she said .
Kathryn Vance is the Communications Specialist at the Greater Louisville Medical Society .
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