The biggest challenge corporates need to address is ensuring the health and well-being of their employees. One manifestation of a stress-filled lifestyle is diabetes, which occurs as a direct result of work-related stress. Unless we take due care of ourselves, be it as individuals, or corporates, the future will be full of sick employees…
Dr (Col) A Balasubramanian, Editor-in- Chief, Corporate Citizen, was recently given an award in recognition of his exemplary work in the field of social work, at the prestigious ‘The Asia HRD Awards’ function held in Putrajaya, Malaysia . The award was given by Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. Prof. B Parandhaman, Principal Director, Sri Balaji Society is being felicitated in this photograph
Dr Col (A) Balasubramanian, fondly known as Bala Sir, has been living with diabetes since the last 28 years. A go-getter and a person with an extremely positive attitude, he has been countering this lifestyle disease with a regimen of medicine, insulin and simple diet. Having been a soldier of the Indian Army for over two decades, his mental fortitude is as tough as steel. Inwardly, his compassion and sensitivity to life is a rarity. He is the founder of Sri Balaji Society which runs four wellknown MBA colleges, a law college and a commerce college in Pune. His dedication manifests in his residing 24x7 in one of the rooms of the boys’ hostel so that he is available for students and faculty all the time. He travels across India and overseas to meet senior corporate managers and to different metros for admission to his colleges.
Recently, he travelled for a fortnight to Malaysia and Thailand for an award ceremony function and to attend SBS Alumni meets. He was felicitated by the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, for his exemplary work in the field of social work. When Hamidi called him to the stage to receive the award, Bala Sir requested him to present the award to his wife, Thilagavathy (see cover photo).This, he says, was to publicly acknowledge her valuable contribution to his personal and professional life. He stated philosophically, “It is important to give credit to our better halves as they are often the power engines behind our activities and successes.” Therefore, he says, “In both the cities, I did not move out of the room but ensured that my wife did not miss visiting any historical site or famous place of tourist interest. It was for the first time that I took her on a foreign trip and wanted it to be memorable for her. In fact, I would have further travelled to other countries, but my health did not permit me.”
The function, he says, was fantastically organised with the who’s who of Malaysian industry and quite a few ambassadors of various countries including the foreign minister of Malaysia present there.
However, on his return, he had to be hospitalised as, he believes, he faltered on his diet during his recent overseas trip. This led to the spiking of creatinine levels to 9, leading to the necessity of dialysis. Says he, “This sudden jump in creatinine levels from 3 to 9 in a short span puzzled doctors, as ordinarily it doesn’t happen. While the doctors are investigating as to why creatinine should shoot up so much so suddenly, I am also trying to find out; probably only I have the answer.”
All, Role Models: The Asia HRD Awards is a celebration and recognition of virtuosos who contribute to people development - whether it is to the human resource profession, an organisation, the community or society at large. Each award honours individuals and organisations that have demonstrably enriched and made a lasting impact on people development and society. Launched as an independent initiative in 2003 with just five recipients from two countries, the Awards have now become a prestigious annual event with the Asia HRD Awards Hall of Fame honouring a total of 229 Recipients from 21 countriesRewinding his diet schedule, he says, “Actually I haven’t felt like eating since the last four months—I wasn’t feeling hungry. Now, doctors say that was a symptom that creatinine had gone up, but I didn’t know that, neither did I get a check-up done. Earlier, I used to check my creatinine levels very regularly. In Malaysia, I did not like the food, so I survived the entire day on six small idlis that someone brought for me. After that we visited Thailand. There too, I did not like the food so I used to consume two half-fried eggs and half a litre of milk and survived on this for the entire day. In the meanwhile, someone gave me Amway’s protein powder and some vitamin supplements in the form of capsules. Now, I was unaware that if you don’t eat well, creatinine levels rise and that, when you have high creatinine, you should not have too much protein. As you can see, all that I was eating was only protein and so I’m here, undergoing dialysis.’’ Adds he, “Now doctors say you can eat anything, but then the dietician has restricted my protein intake. At the most, I can only have two whites of egg and no other non-vegetarian protein.’’ He further adds, as a caution, to those who do not take their diabetes seriously, “I have now a long list of do’s and don’ts. As a diabetic patient, I’ve stopped eating red meat a long time back. Today, I am on a diet to restrain my uric acid levels (for which no salt can be consumed). I am also banned from eating all white products like milk, curds, sugar, salt, and products made from maida. So, here’s a learning lesson for all those who have contracted this lifestyle disease to change their lifestyles in the nascent stages of diagnosing it.”
About 28 years back, when I was the Rector at Symbiosis. The then Registrar, Dr Palan used to visit me often. One day he asked me to accompany him to the hospital as he was going for a blood test. When we reached there, he suggested that I too do the blood test. I initially hesitated, but then went for it. When my report came, the doctor was shocked that I looked extremely fit, although my blood sugar was 450. He was surprised that I could go about my daily activities despite such high levels of blood sugar. He said I should have been bed-ridden. I too was shocked at what he told me, as I had never imagined that I would get diabetes one day, but still didn’t take it seriously.
That’s because of my daily routine which included a lot of physical exercise. I was very proud of that and thought it would control the blood sugar levels. Every morning, I used to cycle from Symbiosis and go to the expansive Gokhale ground and cycle thrice around it. In fact, I used to cycle everywhere, not because of being health conscious but because of poverty. However, I realised that during my morning cycling, I used to stop at a grocery shop on Prabhat Road and have a Pepsi. This would help me burp and give me relief and renewed energy. In fact, my work was hectic, so whenever I fell short of energy during the day, I used to have soft drinks. I never knew that cold drinks were so dangerous to those with diabetes and particularly those with a fat body constitution. I think that was the trigger. Now, I know so much about diabetes that I can write a book.
‘The biggest challenge to the corporate world is not meeting targets but maintaining the health of its employees. There was a time when trade unions, lockouts and strikes used to be the biggest threats. That’s over now...more or less. Wellness is going to be an important factor for survival’
Recalling a traumatic experience, Bala Sir says, “I had just started my educational institute, Sri Balaji Society and was residing in Vishrantwadi, in a small flat, on the 5th floor. That was sometime in the year 2000. It was Eid that day and one of my colleagues, Captain Khan, brought mutton kaleja for me. I heartily ate it, but after that I thought I was collapsing. I began to feel unstable. Afraid that something had gone wrong with me, I picked up courage and began climbing down the five floors, holding the sides of the staircase. I somehow took a rickshaw and reached Inlaks & Budhrani Hospital, which was about six kilometres away. That is where I not only discovered that I had suffered a heart attack, and that I continued to have diabetes (which I had ignored earlier), but I also discovered Dr Rao, who has been my doctor ever since. He is a leading diabetologist of Pune.’’
Recalling an instance of hospital negligence, Bala Sir says, “Dr Rao was attending to me and I was kept in the ICU. My blood sugar stabilised, but they had put me on an intravenous drip. I was sedated, so was groggy.
However, I felt something wet, and so woke up to find that the intravenous needle had fallen off, and my entire bed was filled with blood oozing out of the area where the needle had been pricked. I raised an alarm. Dr K P V Rao too rushed into the room. I was appalled at the callousness of the nurses but I didn’t say anything as I found out how grossly underpaid they were, despite having done their BSc in Nursing. How could they be motivated?’’
I must confess that the Ruby Hall Clinic’s ICU gets a Perfect 10. I will not hesitate to say that the ICU unit of Ruby Hall Clinic can be a model for other hospitals. You must sit through the night to see how sisters and nurses are on their toes. They are running from one ICU bed to another with nobility and service-mindedness. They are the proverbial Florence Nightingales. They are firm, yet very kind. They will tell you not to delay breakfast as medicines have to be taken at the right time—it is their words, gestures and approach filled with love that makes their work selfless and profound.
‘Most corporate managers are potentially tuned to become diabetic patients. They are so busy, anxious and stressed in the race to achieve their targets, that that in itself has become an occupational hazard. However, like me, they initially do not understand the seriousness. Diabetes occurs purely because of occupational/job-related stress’
To give you an example, one night, I asked my wife to get red chilli chutney as they give bland food out here. However, I choked on the chutney and thought I had passed out for a couple of minutes. However, when I got back my senses I saw my room filled with nurses and doctors with different machines. They had arrived within seconds of my discomfort. I was amazed at their quick action.
The society has refused to give the nursing fraternity its due. All private hospitals have become like the private sector—very money minded. They charge exorbitantly despite the fact that they are charitable trusts. All these hospitals earn so much that they can easily spend on the employees. However, they are interested in expanding their commercial activity, such as starting new branches. This philosophy does not fall in the category of charitable organisations.
Discovering Dr Rao was the best thing that happened to me. For, he is not just a medical practitioner, nor does he chase money. He does a lot of social service through charitable means. He also visits Muktangan, the centre for rehabilitation of alcoholics and drug abuse. Hence, our wavelengths matched and I asked him to also be the official doctor for Sri Balaji Society. Youngsters are generally full of energy and good health but if any student is admitted to any hospital, he is by his/her side, not only for moral support but to ensure that he or she is not over-charged.
‘The society has refused to give the nursing fraternity its due. All private hospitals have become like the private sector – very money minded. They charge exorbitantly despite the fact that they are charitable trusts. All these hospitals earn so much that they can easily spend on the employees. However, they are interested in expanding their commercial activity, such as starting new branches. This philosophy does not fall in the category of charitable organisations’
“I never knew that one could inject oneself. The first time I saw it, I was aghast. That was about 25 years back, when I invited the MD of a big company, S R Jeevarajka for a lecture in our college. When I spent some time at the hotel he was staying in, I saw him injecting himself. When I asked him what it was, he said, insulin injection to control his diabetes. So, when I progressed to taking Insulin, I did not feel that it was a big deal.
Most corporate managers are potentially tuned to become diabetic patients. They are so busy, anxious and stressed in the race to achieve their targets, that that in itself has become an occupational hazard. However, like me, they initially do not understand the seriousness. Diabetes occurs purely because of occupational/job-related stress. No one in the world wants to be a bad guy or an alcoholic or a chronic smoker, be it a man or a woman. Everyone knows that smoking is cancerous; such knowledge comes through classrooms, internet, social media and wellness lectures by the corporates. However, stress levels are so high that they indulge in such vices at the cost of their health.
Envisioning a scenario where corporates will face the challenge of health of their employees, Bala Sir says, “Let me tell you, the biggest challenge to the corporate world is not meeting targets but maintaining the health of its employees. There was a time when trade unions, lockouts and strikes used to be the biggest threats. That’s over now...more or less. Wellness is going to be an important factor for survival. These days people are working continuously for to 12-14 hours and even after they return home, they don’t relax. From top to bottom, everyone is going through job-related stress. The worst part of the tension is when people compare themselves with others and are dissatisfied. Managers require the skill to extract the maximum potential from the human resources system. But as a result, the future will be full of sick employees, yet no one will speak about it because if they speak, they will be out of their job.
They suffer silently. Competitions, pink slips, raises and promotions will be the stress factors, leading to lifestyle diseases.
A Deserving Better Half: When Deputy Prime Minister of Malayasia, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi called him to the stage to receive the award, Col A Balasubramanian requested him to present the award to his wife ThilagavathyThe other issue is of finding contentment—although traditionally our country has produced people who were Buddha-like in nature, now it is all about having more and more materialistic acquisitions. The day you clear the loan of your Maruti car, your eyes are set on acquiring a BMW. That spurs you to work overtime. By hook or crook you have to progress, which arises out of your ambition, your insecurity arising out of your attachment to your family. However, the industry has its limitations. It is not a mall where you can go and pick up any job. They have tailor-made jobs; you have to join the Infosys training centre in Mysore before you begin work in the company. Believe me, now, it is not MBA colleges that provide the training; MBA prepares those who are willing to learn what the company wants to teach them—this is called learnability.
As per a recent news report, the Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) held by the Maharashtra State Council of Examination (MSCE) showed that only two out of every 100 aspirants who want to teach in English medium schools met the minimum qualifying criteria. Of the 1,58,250 candidates, 4.27% cleared Paper I and 2.30% cleared Paper II. With such an abysmal record of competency in the teaching fraternity, can there be a hope of producing efficient corporate leaders?
While we are proud of having so many colleges, the quality in many is disturbing. Under the able leadership of Union HRD Minister, Prakash Javadekar, efforts are being made to bring positive changes in the system. Will he be allowed to succeed? The spirit is there but what we need is not cosmetic surgery but a total revolution in the field of education from nursery to the doctorate level.
‘The Teachers Eligibility Test (TET) held by the Maharashtra State Council of Examination (MSCE) showed that only two out of every 100 aspirants who want to teach in English medium schools met the minimum qualifying criteria. Of the 1,58,250 candidates, 4.27% cleared Paper I and 2.30% cleared Paper II. With such an abysmal record of competency in the teaching fraternity, can there be a hope of producing efficient corporate leaders?’
The colleges, MBA institutes will have to redesign the old curriculum now to match the expectations of skills requirement. The country is now going through the worst crisis of trainers. General skills are no more relevant, so managers cannot have a fixed career life span.
The other solution is to change the long working hours which corporate managers have to indulge in because every company is a commercial entity. The MD is the top most man under pressure; he puts everyone, down to the bottom-most level, under pressure. Thus, everyone has to meet targets. We should take a cue from the Europeans and Americans who work for eight hours, five days a week. Weekends are spent on a getaway, which is like a memorable family get-together. In fact, the Tatas and Birlas had much respect for humanity—they were the first ones to bring in the concept of employee welfare.
We have to also ask ourselves—are we providing a loving or threatening environment or a bossy one? Are we making employees genuinely feel like family members or team members? If we are talking to them as a team, then we are perpetuating a boss era and that should end. We have made a small beginning at the Sri Balaji College of Arts and Commerce. I have given directions to students that every professor should be addressed as ‘Didi’ or ‘Bhaiyya.’ See the flow of oneness when you address thus. That has broken the ice of one-upmanship and fear.
Currently, every corporate leader is a pressure cooker, waiting to burst. Life span is reducing and the only answer is contentment and love.
By Vinita Deshmukh
