Rich tributes paid to UAE-based Dr Bindu Philip who died in Kerala car accident

Dubai: Rich tributes have been pouring in for Dr Bindu Philip, an Indian expat doctor in the UAE who was killed in a car crash back home on Monday.

As reported by Gulf News, Dr Bindu, 51, a gynaecologist with NMC Medical Centre in Buhairah Corniche in Sharjah, tragically lost her life in an accident while she was on the way home from an airport in the south Indian state of Kerala. She was on a short trip in preparation for the housewarming of her home scheduled in May. The car she was travelling in reportedly hit a divider after the driver fell asleep at the wheel, Indian media reports said.

Several community members have paid tributes to the doctor, who was known for her medical service and community volunteering activities.

As a skilled and experienced obstetrician and gynaecologist, Dr Bindu had ensured safe arrival of hundreds of newborns to this world and treated health issues faced by countless women back in India and here in the UAE.

One of her patients, Susmitha Satheesh, said she was shocked to read the news about the doctor’s death. “I was really shocked and sad,” Susmitha, who works in Dubai and lives in Sharjah, told Gulf News.

“I am relatively a new patient of Dr Bindu, but she offered me a lot of relief after I faced a complex health issue,” she recalled.

Sumitha said another doctor at another healthcare facility had told her that she could be suffering from cancer and might require laparoscopic surgery. “That doctor said so even without having proper medical reports. My insurance company also rejected her suggestions citing there were no clear medical reports to prove it. That is when one of my relatives asked me to consult Dr Bindu. She did some tests and cleared all my doubts.”

However, she is saddened that she can no longer consult Dr Bindu as the latter had advised. “She had told me to go for a follow-up in April. I can’t believe she is no longer there. I had referred one of my friends also to consult Dr Bindu. I called her up and broke the sad news yesterday.”

Meanwhile, Praveen Kumar, a community volunteer associated with the medical committee of the Indian Consulate in Dubai, said Dr Bindu was at the forefront of community service during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“She has helped several people, irrespective of their nationalities and background. I myself have referred many people to her during and after COVID also,” he said.

Biju John, an Indian businessman and a relative of Dr Bindu, said her demise was a great loss not just to the family but the whole community around her.

He said Dr Bindu, along with her husband Aji P Varghese, who had passed away two years ago, had helped many people through ‘Helping Hands,’ a WhatsApp group of people helping those in need.

Dr Bindu is survived by her two children, a daughter, who is a university student in the UAE, and a son, who is doing MBBS in Kerala.

Meanwhile, another Indian expat, Manoj, who was a close friend of the family, said the couple had been a big help to several people around them. “They both were very helpful. Dr Bindu had won the hearts of several people in her hometown when she served at the government hospital in her locality,” he recalled.

Dr Bindu will be laid to rest at a funeral ceremony to be held at St. George Orthodox Church at her hometown in Pathanamthitta district on Wednesday morning.