Humans of ASAR - Shirish Rao

“Ever since my school days, I've been fascinated by the power of research to bring about positive change and create a lasting social impact. As I entered medical school, I eagerly sought out research projects at my college, hoping to make a difference in the world through my work. However, despite my efforts, the projects I worked on didn't seem to have the wide-reaching impact I had always envisioned.

One day, while casually scrolling through social media, a post caught my eye – it was shared by one of my friends, showcasing the work of an organization called ASAR. Intrigued, I decided to check them out, and to my amazement, I felt an instant connection. It was as if I had found my home, a place where my passion for research and my drive to create a social impact could come together in harmony.

Joining ASAR exposed me to a completely new world of research and advocacy methods, expanding my horizons beyond what I had imagined. I started by diving into policy analysis, focusing on the acknowledgement of gender, sex, and sexuality-based differences in mental health needs. Later, my focus shifted towards global surgery, and suddenly, countless opportunities emerged to work on health systems and make a real difference. I undertook a project analyzing India's Surgical Obstetrics and Anaesthesia workforce production capacity, which eventually led to numerous opportunities to present my findings at prestigious conferences, including a Travel Scholarship to present at the renowned Bethune Round Table in Toronto, Canada, in 2023.

Additionally, ASAR's collaboration with the G4 alliance has given me the chance to serve as a SOTA care fellow for the South Asia working group. Alongside international researchers, we work tirelessly to address the urgent need for scaling up SOTA care and crafting effective NSOAP policies.

Alongside my research projects, I also took the lead in organizing Journal Clubs, Awaaz Podcast, and Newsletters at ASAR, aiming to expand our reach and impact even further.

After working at ASAR for 2 years, my typical days have been filled with handling large datasets in Excel, visualizing data on Datawrapper, reading up on policies, writing never-ending manuscripts and then constantly bugging Sid ( Sid Z?déy ), of course.?

ASAR has been the catalyst for my growth and the platform that allowed me to realize my full potential. It has shown me the incredible power of a socially driven youth to bring about meaningful change in the world. As I continue on this remarkable journey, fueled by my passion for research and driven by ASAR's vision, I am determined to make a lasting impact in the field of healthcare and beyond.”?

Shirish Rao is currently an intern at Seth GSMC & KEM Hospital, Mumbai.