Some transitions are easier to announce than to truly process. As I move on from Manipal Hospitals, I’ve been reflecting on the journey over the past several years – and it’s one filled with gratitude.

My time at Manipal Hospitals has been deeply meaningful. At the main unit, it was a place of growth – professionally enriching, collaborative, and filled with colleagues who made work something to look forward to each day.

But a very special part of this journey has been Manipal Hospital Miller’s Road (earlier Vikram Hospital) – the center that has been home for more than nine years.

Nine years is a long time. Long enough for a workplace to quietly become something more. Long enough for colleagues to become friends, and for routines to become comfort. The corridors, the familiar faces, the small everyday moments — they’ve all left a mark I know I’ll carry with me. It’s where I built lasting friendships, shared countless conversations beyond medicine, and felt a genuine sense of belonging.

It’s these relationships, more than anything else, that I will carry forward.

As I take the next step, I do so with appreciation for everyone who has been part of this phase – for the trust, the teamwork, and the friendships.

The farewell at the main unit of Manipal was warm and simple – a cake cutting, a bouquet, and a thoughtful gift. But what moved me the most didn’t happen there. There were quiet moments over the last month – colleagues and friends walking into my cabin, taking a minute to say a few words. Some of them were unexpected – from the security staff, admin team, and cleaning staff – and those words, simple and sincere, meant more than I can describe. And even more unexpected were the tears from some of them. Those moments are what made it all real.

And at Manipal Hospital Miller’s Road, the goodbyes have been happening on a completely different level.