Time for Arsenal to show the world what kind of team they are

Great football teams are formed not because they win things but because they win things after overcoming adversity. Bayern Munich’s recent Champions League victory came after they had suffered the humiliation of watching Chelsea lift the European Clubs’ Cup in their own back yard. Manchester United’s title triumph came after witnessing their arch-rivals win the Barclays Premier League title by the slenderest of margins.

And Barcelona’s recent wave of successes came after watching some of the world’s best players in the form of the Galacticos attract all of the sporting world’s attention. Arsenal stand at a similar crossroads, and how they perform against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park could well dictate how the Gunners fare against the rest of their opponents they will take on in the next month or so.

Immediately after their short trip across London, the Gunners play host to Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium, and the sense of foreboding that Arsenal fans will have ahead of that fixture is most definitely merited. That is followed by a home league fixture against Liverpool and two very tricky away trips: the return fixture at Dortmund and a much-anticipated clash against Manchester United at the Theatre of Dreams.

Major tests

Arsene Wenger has already said that it is these games that could decide who has a say in this season’s title race and after what transpired against Dortmund at the Emirates Stadium, everybody is waiting to see what this new-look outfit is capable of achieving. Dortmund was the first major test this Arsenal team faced and they will have to show the same resilience they’ve showed in all their games prior to last Tuesday’s if they are indeed to be considered title contenders this season.

There were several reasons Arsenal failed to claim three points against Dortmund but they are still on top of their UEFA Champions League group and there is absolutely no shame in succumbing to a defeat at the hands of last year’s finalists when you are placed in the so-called Group of Death. 

But what Arsenal should do now – as Arsene Wenger has already said – is learn from this defeat, because they cannot afford to make the same mistakes against the opposition they are scheduled to face. Crystal Palace may not be the most fancied of opponents but they recently lost their manager, Ian Holloway, who has been with them through thick and thin, so the now manager-less players could be determined to produce a good perfomance out of loyalty. This makes Palace a very unpredictable team, and Arsenal cannot afford to be complacent. The biggest test, of course, is Chelsea.

Rivalry and rotation

The rivalry between Mourinho and Wenger is one that the Premier League has eagerly looked forward to since the return of the Special One and the Gunners will have to be firing on all cylinders for that game. The midfield of Frank Lampard, Oscar and the restored Juan Mata and the very skilled wing duo of Andre Schurrle – who scored a hat trick for his country during the international break – and Eden Hazard will be will be sure to test Arsenal’s defence. Liverpool do not feature in Europe this season, and Brendan Rodgers’ players will be all the fresher to face Arsenal on 2 November. 

Given their raft of summer signings and the massive changes that have been rung in via the managerial merry go round this season, the Reds are looking good at this stage of the season and have already been touted for a return to the top four. For the return leg against Dortmund, it will be crucial for Arsenal to play the right players in the right positions.

The team had no width in the first leg, with Jack Wilshere being fielded out wide. It was only when Santi Cazorla came on that they were able to stretch the opposition. Marco Reus and Jakub Blaszczykowski have already displayed their fearsome qualities once to Arsenal and the Gunners will need to field players who are comfortable on the wings if they are to come away with anything at the Signal Iduna Park. It was Reus who was so instrumental in the first goal at the Emirates while the winner came via Kevin Grosskreutz, a winger who was deployed at right-back because of the absence of Lukas Piszczek. 

Neither can they afford to switch off, as they did against Dortmund. Once Henrikh Mkhitaryan had been replaced, it was quite clear that Dortmund were content with a draw but the Gunners displayed a naiveté that is unacceptable at level and they cannot display that at Old Trafford, where they suffered one of their worst defeats just two seasons ago. Wayne Rooney scored three goals during Arsenal’s 8-2 drubbing and he has been joined by the prolific Robin van Persie, who put Hungary to the sword last week.

Any weakness, any opening however brief, will be punished by the striking duo who are arguably one of the best in the world. Each of these game presents Arsenal’s with a different challenge, much like the nine tasks of Hercules. 

What lies ahead

And just like the Greek hero, overcoming these tasks would go some way in elevating the likes of Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey – already adored at Ashburton Grove – to the status of legends in the making. Given the qualities that this Arsenal team has, should they persevere and not repeat their failings against Dortmund, they may come through these games unscathed, but they will not go through them unchanged. 

Bayern Munich became the first ever German team to lift a European treble. Manchester United’s 20th title meant that Sir Alex Ferguson’s last year at Old Trafford will always be fondly remembered. 

Barcelona’s arrival on the world’s stage following the disbanding of Zinedine Zidane, David Beckham, Luis Figo, Ronaldo and Co. brought with it a period of glory that lives on to this day. 

And at Arsenal, through the heat of battle will be forged an indomitable spirit that mean they end their trophyless years.

The Arsenal AGM Part I

Arsenal Football Club majority shareholder Stan Kroenke with Club manager Arsene Wenger
Picture courtesy Arsenal.com

The Annual General Meeting at Arsenal Football Club is an event that takes place every third Thursday of October, where the club's shareholders are allowed to question those who run the club regarding it's on-pitch performances during the previous season, while also posing questions that throw some light on what the top brass have planned for it off the pitch.

The exit of Robin van Persie to Manchester United made for an ominous atmosphere when this meeting took place at the Emirates Stadium last season and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admitted that the departure of the prolific Netherlands striker made for a poor start following the 2012 European Championships.

The Frenchman was also quick to confirm that Arsenal's performances in the Capital One Cup and the FA Cup last season were below par. The Gunners suffered a giant-killing at the hands of League Two trend-setters Bradford City and despite dominating play against Blackburn Rovers, suffered an embarrassing 1-0 defeat to the Championship side at the Emirates Stadium.

Increased spending

The Alsatian, however, has promised that Arsenal's era of frugality, which was self-enforced because of the cost of construction of the Emirates Stadium, is now coming to an end, as shown by the capture of highly-coveted Germany midfielder Mesut Ozil from Spanish giants Real Madrid for £42.5 million. 

"I would say that our policy in the future of the Club," he said. "After a very long, restricted period financially, when we had to be very tight, we have come out of that with good stability in our results. But of course we have a huge ambition to win this league again, that is the target of the season."

That was reflected by the Club's majority shareholder Stanley Kroenke. Often known as 'Silent Stan' for the manner in which he takes a step back and lets those who run his holdings manage them efficiently, the American was present at the meeting.

"We have come a long way, with the debts of the Club being paid down, the commercial revenues are increasing in a nice way. Certainly you guys are aware of the Emirates deal," he said. "We have more [deals] coming and are confident. However, nothing works unless we have success on the pitch."

Blurb courtesy The Daily Mirror

Three-point plan

Now the Premier League's longest-serving manager owing to the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson, Wenger used the AGM to lay out his three point plan to bring success back to North London.

"The first level is, of course, to continue to defend our style of play, our philosophy of play and our values. That can only be done by developing our own players, and the core of our team has to come from the development inside our club," he said.

"That is why we make huge investments again in our youth policy. I believe that has to be the core and the strength of our club," continued the 64-year-old. "If you go today through our squad, for example we have completed or partially educated (Wojciech) Szczesny, (Carl) Jenkinson, (Kieran) Gibbs, Jack (Wilshere), (Aaron) Ramsey, (Alex) Chamberlain, (Serge) Gnabry - all these players who have made their debut in the Premier League with us.

"They know how we want to play, they know how we want to behave and they bring their qualities and these values to the team."

"The second level of the development of our club has to be based on the intelligence of our eye," he continued. "That means players who are unknown and who can become big players here, through our connections, the quality of our scouting, through the quality of what we have seen in them and how they could develop."

"For example (Laurent) Koscielny has come here, nobody knew him, today he is an international with France. (Olivier) Giroud has come here, not many people knew him and he has now become an international player with France," he added. "Many people have come here and through the quality of our coaching and our development have become international players. They can complete the part of the players that develop inside from the youth level to the top level."

"Then, the third part of our development and ambition is to scout and buy recognised world-class players," he went on to say. "This season for example we have bought Ozil. You don't need any scout to buy Ozil. You just need money!"

"I am quite happy that we have shown to you that we are not scared to spend money when we think the players have the quality and we have the funds available to do it.

The changing face of global finances

"Nevertheless, I would say our world is quickly changing. Why? Because Europe as a continent is becoming poorer, the rest of the world is becoming richer, especially Asia, for example, and these people invest in football in Europe.

"That means [with] the competition we face financially today, we have to be really aware of the number of countries who now have big investors coming in from different continents other than Europe. The competition you face on an international level, financially, has become bigger than before.

“None of us up here [on the board], fans, players, or Arsène [Wenger] are happy until we have won championships and trophies," added Kroenke. "We have said that over and over again and are committed to that."

“Also, when you try to build towards that, it is very important for the Club to be successful commercially, and we are very pleased with the progress we have made in that area," he finished.

Fans need to give David Moyes a lot more time before rolling the criticism his way

The reason Manchester United were so successful under Sir Alex Ferguson is because everybody at the club were – quite literally – united. 

Sir Alex Ferguson made sure that everybody at the club – be it his hand-picked backroom staff or the extravagantly paid players he put out on the pitch – toed the line with regards to what was expected and shared the same vision that Sir Alex had – to be the best on the pitch. 

And that is the first thing David Moyes will need to manage at Old Trafford, a sentiment that Sir Alex himself has echoed, speaking to the press at the 100th UEFA Coach Education Workshop in Budapest: “You all have to be singing the same tune, no matter how bad the tune is,” he said. “It’s important that your people agree with you and the way that we at United wanted to play, that was very important. “Three things are very important when you are working with them – work ethic, loyalty, philosophy,” he added.

And it is these three elements that David Moyes will need to solve. One of the greatest features of Sir Alex was that his understanding and knowledge of the game constantly kept pace with the times and this was why he will forever be one of the world’s best managers. 

All of the players currently at United (Marouane Fellaini aside) have been brought in by Sir Alex and they would have been looking forward to playing with the man who made Manchester United the side they are today. To them, his retirement would have surely come as a shock. 

United’s world-class clutch of players will therefore at least privately question whether David Moyes can reach the same heights that Sir Alex can. It is a task some of the best in the world will surely struggle with, but given that Moyes has been handpicked by Sir Alex, it would surely mean that given time, he could very well be the man who succeeds the legendary Scotsman.

“I think that the more difficult you make the challenge of being a top coach, well that’s a challenge that any coach should take because if you’re successful that way then you’ll be successful anyway,” said Sir Alex, throwing more light on his philosophy of coaching. 

The United Way: Ferguson and Moyes are cut from the same cloth

At United, Sir Alex only brought in players he knew could take the tough love. A quick look at United’s Premier League squad would show a greater number of Britons than their competitors and despite some of these players being very ordinary, the reason they are in the squad is because of their attitude. Players who thought they were bigger than the club were immediately let go of, irrespective of where they came from. 

And despite some results not going the way of the new United boss, he has handled his team admirably off it. The Wayne Rooney saga which resurfaced soon after Sir Alex had announced his decision to retire was dealt with in a very efficient manner by Moyes, who said that Rooney would have to be content with a squad role at United if he was not happy with the way things were run.

At no point in time did Moyes bow to pressure, at no point in time did he show the strain he was under, and at no point in time did he let the overzealous scrutiny of the media get to him. Sir Alex Ferguson’s response to calm him down was to give him a much-improved contract. Moyes went one step better and left the striker with an ultimatum, and that is surely a sign of things to come from a manager who is already extremely well versed with the Premier League. 

'Bouncebackability'

The average British footballer may not have the skills and trickery of his counterpart from South America, but they show a resilience and team spirit that every footballer should aspire to achieve. 

Fergie’s players needed to be mentally strong in order to absorb the full message of his much-publicised halftime hair dryers, which essentially boiled down to one aspect: self-belief.

“My attitude to a game of football — never give in,” said the Scot. 

“At half time in a game of football, if you’re behind, never give in,” he continued. “Sometimes it’s about inspiring to make players better than they are and the best that they could have been. On the football field, it’s generally a player with character who wins the match.” 

Last season, two games that were vital to United’s title tilt saw the Red Devils come back from conceding the lead to winning them in dramatic fashion. Against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium and Newcastle United at Old Trafford, Sir Alex’s team came back on four separate occasions to come away with a result of the spoils when another team might have capitulated early. 

Time is of the essence

And United fans have every reason to be worried about not immediately earning the same results under Moyes because simply put, he currently does not have the charisma that Ferguson has. Give him time, however, and he will learn how to get the best out of his new team.

But that does not mean that the #MoyesOut campaign which began in jest this summer takes a more sinister, more serious turn just because results are not entirely going the way of the new manager, because he has a stellar previous record to go on. 

At Everton, he took over an ailing side that were on the verge of relegation under his predecessor Walter Smith and worked without complaint to make the Toffees one of the Premier League’s most respected outfits. In the last seven seasons Moyes spent at Goodison Park, never were his team below eighth place and on two occasions, his team finish fifth, earned themselves a much sought-after European spot. His crowning glory, surely would be getting his team to the Champions League, an achievement that was lauded as miraculous by Arsene Wenger at Arsenal, writes Phil McNulty of the BBC.

Becoming the first Champions League side to get a point away at Shakhtar Donetsk is no mean feat and that only adds to the excellent way in which United saw off Bayer Leverkusen on what was Moyes’ European debut at Old Trafford. Sir Alex knew that any manager who was to manage United would first have to come to grips with the dogged nature of the Premier League: a quick glance over at Eastlands where the more experienced Manuel Pellegrini has gotten off to a start that more or less mirrors the one at United.

Football is increasingly becoming a results business, and any criticism of Moyes that comes now is extremely early. Give him time to stamp his methodology on the squad: the reason he brought in his own coaching staff and signed Fellaini was for exactly that reason. 

To judge him after only ten games is therefore far too premature. Sir Alex after all did take five years to deliver his first trophy at Old Trafford.

Transcript of Interview with Dr. Zarshis Avari

Gautam Viswanathan

Yes...ready, Doctor?

Zarshis Avari

since I was born, Editor

Gautam Viswanathan

So, why did you want to become a doctor?

Zarshis Avari

that's it?

no intros?

Gautam Viswanathan

You will see that in the final article

Zarshis Avari

Oh okay cool

Gautam Viswanathan

So, once again

Why did you want to become a doctor?

Zarshis Avari

Becoming a doctor was actually never on my agenda.

I always wanted to do research and be on the frontline of Science

Gautam Viswanathan

So what changed?

Zarshis Avari

I pursued that ambition by doing research for my Honours project

However, I soon realised how monotonous research can be.

Every experiment needs three repeats whose results have to match perfectly.

It means days, if not months of performing the same experiment repeatedly

In the middle of my project, I started talking about becoming a doctor with a close friend of mine

Gautam Viswanathan

But what about the lifetime commitment of being a doctor?

Zarshis Avari

You are not letting me finish

Gautam Viswanathan

Go on

Zarshis Avari

Once I had a few talks with her, she told me that being a Doctor is just as hard, and it is just as monotonous in the beginning as an intern.

However, you always have the chance to meet and talk to new people. New people brings new opinions and new information and you tend to grow as a person even while doing the same tasks again and again

I then decided to pursue a career in medicine

Also, the monotony does end once you become a resident. Doctors working in ED face new challenges every other day.

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

So, essentially, being a doctor is like being on the front lines.

Zarshis Avari

It is.

It is the doctors that have to make the final decision that will affect the well being of the patient

And having that kind of responsibility is humbling yet exciting

Gautam Viswanathan

Surely that is not an easy decision to make. What were the thoughts going through your mind when you decided to alter your career?

Zarshis Avari

At the time I knew I was making the right decision. I did not have long sleepless nights trying to make the decision. And I don't regret making it either.

The only thoughts entering my mind were how I would convince my parents, since making that career change required me to take an year off.

Which is a big crime, in brown cultures

Gautam Viswanathan

Haha, I know the feeling. How did you approach them?

Zarshis Avari

I thought about letting my supervisor do the dirty work by telling them I was not cut out for research

But my ego would not let me do that.

So I had to suck it up and tell them I had decided to change my career.

They did not give me a lot of grief though, since they always wanted me to become a doctor.

Gautam Viswanathan

Oh how come?

Zarshis Avari

My dad hated the fact that I had "wasted" two years by doing Honours, but I knew that knowledge gained never goes wasted.

And i was right

My Honours degree will help me gain a part-time spot on a research team once I've finished my degree

Gautam Viswanathan

You've said that there is monotony when you're taking your first steps en route to becoming a doctor. Take us through the monotony

Zarshis Avari

As an intern we are supposed to look after the so called 'menial' tasks of putting in an IV drip, cannulation, administering drugs, taking histories and filling in endless amounts of paperwork.

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay. 

Go on, please

Zarshis Avari

That is in addition to the studies we have to do to pass exams.

Also, most interns do overtime to gain experience and money, and hence you can see how it can very quickly drain your energy and enthusiasm for work.

Gautam Viswanathan

Yeah I do

So, take us through a day in your life

Zarshis Avari

It depends on which day of the week we are talking about. We have lectures on Tuesday and Friday, lab sessions on Wednesday, problem based group learning sessions on Thursday and a clinical day on Monday.

Gautam Viswanathan

I think most people here will be interested in knowing what interns do at the clinic

Zarshis Avari

You mean med students?

Gautam Viswanathan

Yes...my bad

Zarshis Avari

As medical students we are divided into small groups. Each group attends clinic at a different hospital. Every hospital has slightly different methods of teaching. At my hospital, we have tutored sessions where we learn communication skills such as history taking and giving bad news to patients, as well as examination skills where we learn how to perform system exams on patients such as hip exam, knee exam etc.

We also have sessions called SCORPIOS whereby we meet actual patients who come in to our medical education center and the students practice those skills on the patients.

In addition to that we are also taught important procedural skills such as gowning, CPR, taking basic obs, plastering etc.

In between the tutored sessions, students are free to make ward rounds and talk to, take histories, and perfomr exams on patients.

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

You've used quite a bit of technical jargon in there...what are basic obs?

Zarshis Avari

Basic observations such as temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, blood pressure etc.

Gautam Viswanathan

Right...and what is plastering?

Zarshis Avari

Applying casts/plasters or splints on fractures.

Gautam Viswanathan

I thought as much. On that note, what is gowning?

Zarshis Avari

Gowning up is a laborious procedure that we have to follow in order to gain access to operation theaters. It is done in order to maintain the sterility of the theater

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

Zarshis Avari

It mainly involves a lot of scrubbing, followed by more scrubbing

Gautam Viswanathan

On TV shows such as Scrubs and Grey's Anatomy, we see medical students being regarded as the lowest rung in the food chain. How true is this?

Zarshis Avari

Very true

It has its advantages and disadvantages though.

We are not allowed to perform major procedures on patients, however in case we do make a mistake during a minor procedure we are protected against lawsuits

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

Tell us a little bit about the paperwork you are expected to fill in

Zarshis Avari

As med students we do not fill out any perperwork

But as interns we would be expected to fill out forms required for blood transfusions, samples sent to the laboratories, patient medical and drug charts etc.

Every procedure that a patient goes through has a corresponding form/s that needs filling out.

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

Zarshis Avari

Interns also have to do other tasks such as following up with the patients GP, calling his/her friends and relatives if need be

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay. So what sort of work are you expected to do in the clinic?

Zarshis Avari

All we do as med students is take histories and perform simplae examinations on patients such as a cardio exam, respiratory exam, musculoskeletal exams.

It is not work per se

It is still considered study

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

So how do you feel at the end of a day?

Once you've exited the clinic?

Zarshis Avari

I feel drained

And most often the first thing I do upon getting back home is plonking down on the bed and taking a nap.

Followed by a nice long shower/gym/football training.

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay. What else do you do to unwind?

Zarshis Avari

I watch this comedy show called Taarak Mehta ka Ultah Chashma :)

It's a daily routine and I'm addicted

Gautam Viswanathan

Hahahaha

Zarshis Avari

The girls like to cook/bake to unwind

They call it procrastibaking

I find it a chore

Gautam Viswanathan

Haha

What about your other friends?

Zarshis Avari

Everyone has a different way of unwinding. Most of my Aussie friends love going to a bar and having a few beers or a bbq on a nice hot day. I prefer going to a sports bar and cheering my team on, but the time difference means that the games are telecast around midnight. Some of my other friends like to go for walks near the harbour bridge if the weather suits them. Some others do things I cannot mention here.

Gautam Viswanathan

Yes...those are best left in the supply closet

Zarshis Avari

Haha..absolutely

Gautam Viswanathan

But I'm sure one of the things that drains you emotionally is giving bad news to people.

Zarshis Avari

Yes it does. I remember this one session we had at clinic during our Haematology block where the clinic hired top notch actors to act out how patients would react upon being told bad news. The emotions they acted out were grief, denial, anger and confusion. That session ended with a lot of people feeling completely drained and a few left with tears in their eyes.

Gautam Viswanathan

Wow

Please continue

Zarshis Avari

That's it..as med students we have not yet been allowed to give bad news to actual patients.

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay...so take us through the process of recording a patient's history

Zarshis Avari

Taking a patients history is a lot like detective work. More often than not we have to tease out pieces of information that we as doctors think are important but may not be so for the patient. It involves asking the patient about his current illness and the symtoms and risk factors assoc. with the illness. We also have to enquire about their surgical history, past medical history, any history of disease that run in the family along with a detailed description of their social life which involves questions on their living status, finances, travel, immunisation, pets, etc.

Gautam Viswanathan

Surely there are some patients who would consider these a little too personal. How do you coax it out of them?

Zarshis Avari

We tell them they have to tell us that if they want to live.

It's pretty easy after that

Gautam Viswanathan

You didn't mince words there!

Zarshis Avari

We put it across to the patients in a different way, but the message is the same

Gautam Viswanathan

How do you normally convey it to them?

Zarshis Avari

We tell them that some of the questions may seem irrelevant or personal but we need to know everything in as much detail as possible to figure out an accurate diagnosis that will affect their management.

Ofcourse, as you get experienced you tailor the questions

You wouldn't ask all of these questions to a 18 year old man with a sniffle,

Gautam Viswanathan

Most definitely

But there are those who would still try to shoo you away and clam up. How do you deal with them?

Zarshis Avari

There will always be patients who will not listen to your advice

In the end, it is their decision and we have to respect it.

Establishing a rapport with the patient is an essential part of taking a history

If you have a good rapport it is very unlikely the patient will be uncooperative

In such cases, we can always ask their spouse, relatives or friends too.

Gautam Viswanathan

What if they refuse to answer you?

Zarshis Avari

If the patient and their relatives still refuse to answer questions then we can only help them in the most basic of ways

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

Zarshis Avari

Almost every procedure requires consent, and without that there is nothing left to do but ensure that the patient does not suffer.

Gautam Viswanathan

So the history is essentially a checklist that ensures you do what is best for the patient

Zarshis Avari

It is much more than a checklist

It will be different for each patient

It helps us figure out the best mode of approach

Gautam Viswanathan

Right

Zarshis Avari

For example a persistent fever can be due to a multitude of causes

With an accurate history, we might uncover that the patient has travelled to a high risk area and treat him for appropriate infections

An accurate history also helps the technicians such as the radiologists and the microbiologists

Gautam Viswanathan

How is dealing with a child different to dealing with an adult?

Zarshis Avari

Very different.

The medicine is different, the ethics are different, the approach is different and so is the history,

Gautam Viswanathan

How so?

Zarshis Avari

We were jokingly told by one of our professors that paediatric and veterinary medicine are quite similar in that the patient can not talk

We have to rely on what the parents and other relatives tell us

Also the some of the organ systems of a newborn child are different to an adult's

For example the bones of an adult are fused at the tips, whereas they are not in very young kids.

This makes it difficult for a doctor not experienced in paediatric x-rays to figure out whether the child has a fracture

Gautam Viswanathan

So what is the ethical conundrum surrounding a child?

Zarshis Avari

With newborn children there is also the issue of genetic diseases, some of which are very serious and have to be dealt with straight away to maximise the quality of life of the child.

A child cannot give consent and hence it is up to the parents.

Gautam Viswanathan

Ah

Zarshis Avari

Sadly, sometimes the parents do not have the baby's best interests at heart

Also there are ethical issues surrounding a 10 eyar old girl who visits you asking for contraceptive pills

Gautam Viswanathan

Ouch

Zarshis Avari

Do you tell the parents or not?

Do you still maintain privacy of the patient?

In most cases, yes

Gautam Viswanathan

Right

Zarshis Avari

Another ethical conundrum that is not limited to kids but is seen in kids quite often is abuse10:02

Be it sexual, physical or emotional.

It is the prerogative of the doctor to report any suspected abuse to the authorities

Gautam Viswanathan

Okay

One last question then, Doctor

At the end of the day, when you hang up your white lab coat and are done for the day, how do you feel, knowing that in your hands lie the keys to life and death?

Zarshis Avari

I feel like it is the biggest responsibility I have ever taken up/ will take up. As doctors, we spend time with some patients who are at their lowest points in life, and if I can ease their pain even a little bit then I will be a happy man.

It is definitely humbling,

Gautam Viswanathan

Thank you for your time, doctor

Zarshis Avari

Call me Zarshis

Gautam Viswanathan

Fair enough, Zarshis

Zarshis Avari

Zarshis Avari

If I ever become a paediatric doc I want to be called Doctor Z