Interview: Dr. Shubhkarman Saini, Next-gen Psychiatrist and Drug addiction Expert

An interview with Dr. ShubhKarman Singh Saini, MD consultant neuropsychiatrist & De addiction expert at Manjeet Saini Hospital, Jalandhar

Meet Dr. ShubhKarman Singh Saini, MD, a distinguished consultant neuropsychiatrist and addiction specialist at Manjeet Saini Hospital, Jalandhar. With a wealth of expertise in treating complex neuropsychiatric conditions and addiction disorders, Dr. Saini combines clinical excellence with compassionate care, helping patients reclaim their lives.

Could you tell us about your journey into becoming a neuropsychiatrist and deaddiction expert? What inspired you to specialize in this field?

Dr. Shubhkarman Saini: For me, it began with an innate curiosity about the human mind and empathy for those struggling with mental health and addiction issues.

My biggest inspiration has been my Dad, Dr. Manjeet Saini. He’s a psychiatrist and a deaddiction expert himself and has been practicing for years now. His way of explaining procedures to his patients and treating them with utmost care was the beginning of my inspiration for choosing the same path.

Driven by this fascination, I pursued my MBBS degree from Himalayan institute of medical sciences, Dehradun.

It was a 5 year graduation degree that taught me the basics of medicine and surgery. During my lectures and hands-on training, I would always relate everything to the mind, as I believed that it’s the brain that regulates all our bodily functions and without which, this body is of no use.

So like we’re always particular about our physical health, mental health plays an equal role is what I believe in. During my holidays from college, I sometimes used to drive my father to the hospital and sit with him while he treated his patients.

Seeing such good results and life changing experiences of patients felt so rewarding even back then. Battling through ups and downs, getting taunts like “you wont be able to clear your degree”, I sometimes used to get demotivated myself but I knew that I would have to think beyond these in order to succeed in whatever line I chose.

There came a point in my life when I had planned to quit medical and start a coffee business of my own. But nature had some other plans !

After completing 5 years of graduation, I worked at Civil Hospital for a year as an intern and was simultaneously preparing for the toughest part of my journey, the NEET exam. I would sulk at times but my mother and sister would make sure that I’m keeping myself sane during that time and boost me up every now and then.

Clearing NEET is a dream for millions of students and it takes their blood and sweat just to sit, concentrate and clear the exam in 3 hours, after years of hard work. I was focused, but choosy.

I told my parents that if I clear my exam, psychiatry is going to be my only choice as I’ve been working hard only to get into this field of medicine. I studied for another 1.5 years.

Finally, the results were out and with the grace of God, I was able to clear my exam, felt extremely confident and lucky !

I joined post-graduation ( MD) the very next month in the field of Neuropsychiatry, Deaddiction of drugs and Sexology. Residency was challenging yet a transformative period for me. Working on patients who had severe mental illnesses and who were addicted to drugs deepened my commitment to this branch.

The residency provided me with the opportunity to learn from the leading expert, Dr. AK Seth and teachers like Dr. Brijesh Saran with years of experience and an abundance of knowledge about this subject.

During this period, I developed a keen interest in neurosis and addiction medicine driven by the urgent need to address disorders like depression, anxiety, OCD , suicides etc., the opioid crisis and other substance use disorders.

Seeing the level of addiction and its devastating effect on the youth of India, specially in the northern region I realised that I was exactly where I wanted to be.

After 3 years of my residency, I pursued additional training in addiction medicine from NIMHANS, Bangalore and a few other training programs from Stanford Medicine, University of Bradford and a few other colleges.

As I continue to evolve in my career, I am dedicated to making a significant difference in the lives of individuals battling mental health challenges and addiction. Each day, I draw inspiration from the courage of my patients, reinforcing my commitment to providing the utmost care to them using my full potential.

What are the most common mental health issues or addictions you encounter in your practice? How do you approach treating these conditions?

Dr. Shubhkarman Saini: Being in Punjab, Substance abuse is the most common issue that we encounter in our daily practice. Apart from that, disorders like Depression, Anxiety, OCD, Epilepsy, Migraine, Headaches, Schizophrenia, Sleep and sexual disorders culture based syndromes, PTSD are very common.

Approaching mental health conditions effectively involves a multifaceted approach tailored to individual needs. Treating such disorders takes a lot of patience and skill, specially when patient’s are not very cooperative.

We, at our hospital have a 100% patient centric approach which starts with making the patient feel comfortable as soon as they step in the campus. Our staff is trained well to help us achieve this. We mostly work on appointments so that each patient gets sufficient consultation time and doesn’t have to wait for their turn.

Our treatment is tailor made for each patient, giving them the best results with minimal side effects according to their age, built, triggers, sleep cycle, any chronic illness and alot of other factors. Out treatment includes therapy sessions, medication management, or a combination of both.

Additionally, we work on lifestyle modifications such as regular exercise, maintaining a balanced diet, and practicing stress-reduction techniques to support overall mental well-being.

Manjeet Saini Hospital is known for its expertise in neuropsychiatry and addiction treatment. Could you describe the specialised services and treatments your team offers?

Dr. Shubhkarman Saini: With God’s grace and blessings of our patients, Manjeet Saini Hospital has completed 25 years of delivering top notch psychiatric and de-addiction services. Our in-house team works with utmost dedication on each and every patient.

For addiction treatment, we have a state of the art technique called SANR which stands for Super Accelerated Neuron Regulation. It’s a 5-6 day rapid detox treatment for deaddiction of almost all kinds of drugs wherein the patient is admitted to our fully furnished private rooms for this duration and is normally discharged on the 6-7th day.

It’s a near-painless treatment, the brain cells are normalised, in one stroke the drug is excreted out of the body and the craving for that particular drug ends as soon as the treatment is completed. Till date, it is one of the fastest and the most effective treatments available for drugs like heroin, smack, opium, cannabis, cocaine, marijuana etc. Till date, we’ve treated around 50K+ patients by various methods.

For cigarette or tobacco consumers, we have a 50 day course of treatment which includes medication, in house counselling sessions and the use of a brain stimulation headset to achieve the best results.

For psychiatric disorders like Depression, Anxiety, PTSD, OCD, Sleep Disorders, Sexual Disorders, Epilepsy, Migraine, Personality disorders, Autism, ADHD etc., we provide tailor made treatments to our patients according to their needs and comfort.

For all the treatments, 100% confidentiality is maintained and patients are treated in both indoor and outdoor basis.

How do you integrate medical and psychological approaches in your treatment plans for patients dealing with both psychiatric disorders and addiction?

Dr. Shubhkarman Saini: Integrating medical and psychological approaches in the treatment of patients requires a comprehensive and a well coordinated strategy. We Conduct a thorough assessment to identify both psychiatric disorders and addiction issues by taking a complete medical & drug history along with psychiatric evaluation of the patient.

Our team of psychiatrists, psychologists, addiction specialists and nurses work closely to develop treatment plans.

While managing psychiatric patients, we consider potential interactions and look closely for adverse effects so the the patient is comfortable. Our in-house counsellors are trained in providing Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) to address both psychiatric symptoms and addiction behaviours.

Educating the patients and their family plays a very important role in treating these disorders and we make sure that it is achieved in every patient.

We encourage patients and their attendants to strictly adhere to the follow up schedule provided by us to prevent relapse and promote long-term recovery wherein we assess progress, adjust treatment plans as needed, and provide ongoing support.

In your opinion, what are some emerging trends or advancements in the field of neuropsychiatry and addiction treatment that excite you the most?

Dr. Shubhkarman Saini: Recently, we have introduced a ground-breaking technology for treating neurotic disorders along with addictions. It’s a compact headset which connects to our server and works by stimulating the Dorsolateral Prefrontal cortex area of the brain.

It is a 30 min session and is recommended 2-3 times a week which helps in accelerating the ongoing treatment and we have been achieving excellent results. Tele-psychiatry is a new concept which is very exciting and at the same time very convenient for the patients.

Now, the patients can get access to a psychiatrist / psychologist by the click of a button from their home or work place via audio/video consultation.

A variety of smartphone apps have been developed, specially for treating anxiety issues and sleep disturbances with the help of virtual reality and Artificial Intelligence.

Virtual Reality to counter situations like Phobias is a new advancement helping patients feel the same phobic experience, 1 step at a time via a VR headset which can be adjusted according to the patient’s comfort. Introduction of Support specialist groups like Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous as adjuncts to the ongoing therapy are some of the emerging trends in Psychiatry and Addiction.

How do you ensure a compassionate and patient-centered approach in your interactions with individuals seeking help for mental health issues or addiction?

Dr. Shubhkarman Saini: The first and foremost thing is to establish trust and a good working relationship with the patient. We make sure the patient is comfortable, gets time to talk to us and the counsellors and has a pleasant stay at our hospital.

We provide fully furnished private rooms with best facilities. Our staff is available 24/7 in campus and are trained to cater to any discomfort that the patient might face during their stay.

We recognise that each patient is different, their triggers are different and the way they present their symptoms is different. So the treatment is designed according to the patient’s preferences.

Regular monitoring of the patients by the nurses, counsellors and doctors is done to make sure the patient is comfortably settled in his or her room. Counselling and psychotherapy sessions are conducted every day and patients are taught ways to deal with their problems in present and future. We Promote SELF CARE and coping skills too like mindfulness and relaxation techniques.

What advice would you give to someone considering a career in neuropsychiatry and addiction medicine?

Dr. Shubhkarman Saini: Being a psychiatrist demands passion for this field ! It’s very rewarding, but at times gets on your nerves. You need to learn how to turn that emotional switch, on and off!

Every patient a psychiatrist encounters is different ! It’s something which cannot be measured using quantitative tests, it needs your thoughts and the language to extract the problems out of a patient. Patience is the key and you gotta be a good listener if you’re getting into this field. 24/7 commitment is a must have!

For patients who are into psychosis or are addicted to substances, we as psychiatrist have to be very careful as they can get violent at the blink of an eye. It’s not just the patient, it’s the family which suffers. Empathy towards others and a strong head is essential as there will be days of frustration and heartbreak but also moments of profound joy.

But seeing how your knowledge and skills can change lives, it’s one of the most satisfying and rewarding profession i can ever think of. You can feel the difference when your patient, who on the first day cried during history taking, had tears of joy and a box of sweets when they completed their treatment.

I’m glad to be a part of this profession and I hope to see many more young minds join us. Your role in the patient’s journey is a sacred one and your impact can last for a lifetime . The world needs you.

Dr. Saini’s commitment to advancing mental health and addiction treatment underscores his dedication to patient-centered care. His holistic approach and extensive experience make him a pivotal figure in improving the well-being of individuals and families affected by these challenging conditions.

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