FIRST DIRECTOR OF SUPER SPECIALITY HOSPITAL, DR.SAFAYA PASSES AWAY

Om Sairam dearest Sai Family,

With a heavy heart, it is to inform all brothers and sisters of Sai that the first director of Sri Sathya Sai Super Speciality Hospital, Dr.A.N.Safaya has merged in Swami this afternoon ( January 10, 2013) in New Delhi leaving a great legacy of pure dedication and devotion. It is a great loss to the Medical world along with  the devotee world, but it is for sure that he would be welcomed by Swami with open arms as he enters the doors of the heaven.

                           (In this file photo Dr.Safaya is seen waving to the staff of Super Speciality Hospital after his formal retirement in June 2011)

The octogenarian Dr.A.N.Safaya, was the director of the prestigious 2000 bed hospital of India, All India Institute of Medical Scence (AIIMS) in New Delhi before heading Swami's super speciality hospital in Puttaparthi.. Little did Dr.Safaya knew the "divine plan" of becoming the head of Swami's prestigious and world class super specialty hospital. 

When Swami announced the plans of constructing the Super Speciality Hospital, Dr. Safaya was appointed the Chariman of a Committee which was looking into  plans for the hospital project.

On the divine command, he arranged few of Swami's "chosen" students to get them trained in Hospital management in AIIMS for four months giving them a professional training before absorbing them into the hospital..

Here is a re-production of a Radio Sai Interview where Dr.Safaya narrates the intense moments he underwent before the hospital inaugaration.

Still, on 18th Nov, a day before the operating theatres were supposed to be cleaned, fumigated and sealed, it looked as if the whole project would be a non-starter. The monitors were not installed in the Operation Theatres and ICU.There was some problem with the Oxygen and medical gas supply and even the Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) was getting interrupted regularly! Even to this day, Dr.A.N.Safaya, the Director of SSSIHMS, vividly recounts, those days, that tried and tested his competence, resolve and faith!

"The target time and date of commissioning of Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery wings of the hospital was 9:00 AM on November 22nd, 1991. Work was going on at the hospital site at a hectic pace, throughout the day. All the men, the engineers and the newly recruited staff were busy with work, driven by the motive to get the project done, by D-day. I too was working with the crowd, doing my part, unmindful of my time or position. On 18th, midnight, I returned to my room in Prasanthi Nilayam, tired, crestfallen, and slumped down on my bed. Suddenly, tears started rolling down from my eyes and I was sobbing softly, something I had never done before, in my professional life! I was unaware of this breakdown, till my wife shook me back to reality. I just told her that I had failed my Master, my Swami, because there was no earthly way by which we could open the hospital on the 22nd of November, as Swami had declared.

Operation theaters, Catheterization laboratories and the Intensive care area had to be readied before the scheduled date, and more importantly, made sterile. Environmental sterility had to be tested, before the surgeons could operate. Laboratories had to be geared up. We had to have the Blood Bank functional with at least 30 bags of properly grouped and matched blood, ready for use on the 'opening day'. " Nothing is ready, and I have utterly failed!" I told my wife. I appealed to her to pack the bags, so that we could run away to Delhi, rather than lose face. My wife simply chided me, for behaving so, and encouraged me to have total faith in Swami. She told me to pray and then rush back to the hospital, to fight the odds. She reminded me that this was Bhagwan's work, and it would never fail; with His Grace, all will be completed, as per Divine Decree. The next morning, when I rushed back to the hospital site, Col.R greeted me joyously and said that he had already sent the swabs for testing the sterility of the Surgical Theaters! "Wonderful!" I exclaimed, "What had happened during the six hours of the night, when I was away?" A miracle. He informed me that everything went on swiftly and smoothly. All the areas were now in the desired shape, and were completely ready!

A miracle indeed, it was, when, on 22nd November 1991, the surgeon's scalpel touched the skin of the first patient, at 9:00 AM, sharp, as predicted a year ago by Bhagawan, in His public Declaration! On that day, when the Prime Minister of India cut the ribbon and entered the magnificent central dome, accompanied by Bhagawan, several Governors, Chief Ministers and Union Ministers; it turned out to be the best setup, with the state-of-art equipment, most modern fittings and fixtures, and was fully functional. The set-up was one of the finest in the country. Nay. Comparable to the best in the world. Who turned the tides, between the 18th and the 22nd November? Swami did it; our prayers and faith in Him, did it. I, along with thousands who worked and witnessed the Inauguration that day, will testify it!"

His Word had come true! Needless to say, all the four open-heart surgeries performed on that Opening day were a great success.

i had the great fortune of meeting this blessed soul in his house, in the super speciality hospital campus some where in the year 2002 during Diwali. when I was to deliver some sweets sent by his family friend from the ashram.In spite of being a busy man and head of such a presitigious institution, Dr.Safaya was very humble and down to earth. The meeting that i thought would last less than 2 minutes ( as i went just to deliver sweets) went on for 45 minutes and he and his humble wife didn't let me go without partaking dinner..

Apart from speaking about his experiences with Swami, quite informally, he also said, the director's quarters (residence) in the hospital is located in a very secluded place which  almost falls behind the hospital and house facing the compound wall (not sure if it is changed now). Dr.Safaya, said, the "real challenge" started right from the house that is allotted to the director and on a lighter note he said, apart from seeing the divine form of Swami, he also saw different types of His creations from the "reptile family". He also said there is one huge cobra which passes infront of his house at a fixed time in the evening and he either avoided that timing or stayed indoors watching the cobra pass by his door and then head to darshan.. But for a "blessed soul" all these were no hindrance to do His work.

In spite of crossing the retirement age, Swami some how made him "wait" and that wait was bit painful for Dr.Safaya, But only our Lord knew that if it weren't for Dr.Safaya, no body else could have handled such a situation especially when he had to announce that Swami is no more with us physically.

During the course of his 20 long years of association with Swami's Super speciality hospital, Dr.Safaya would definitely have had his share of tense moments, challenges, yet he did his dharma that was given by Swami.After serving Swami and His hospital for so long,  even though he was misquoted in the media that he resigned from the job. Dr.Safaya retired formally in June 2011,

May His Soul rest in peace. Please spare a minute to do a small prayer for the "already" blessed soul to be blessed by Swami. Lets also pass our  heart felt condolences to his family members and also to his colleagues, staff members of Swami's hospitals..

With pranams at the Lotus feet of our beloved Lord,
R.Satish Naik