What if the doctor who brought you into the world also delivered your mother?

For some families in Hyderabad, that is not a hypothetical question. It is part of their family history.

Dr. Suri Srimathi is a veteran gynaecologist whose medical career spans more than six decades. Recent profiles report that she has helped deliver around 2 lakh babies during her career. Even in her 90s, she continues to consult patients.

But the number is only one part of her story.

She began practising in an India where hospitals had limited technology, teenage pregnancies were far more common and women entering medicine could face strong social resistance. Over the decades, she has watched childbirth, women's choices and healthcare change around her.

And she has been part of that change.

The 92 Year Old Doctor & Gynaecologist Who Started When Medicine Had Few Modern Tools

Dr. Srimathi remembers her first independent delivery clearly.

It was 1959 at a district government hospital in Sangareddy, Telangana. A girl of around 15 arrived pregnant and needed a Caesarean section.

The medical setup was very different from today's hospitals. There were fewer specialists, limited equipment and far fewer diagnostic tools.

Dr. Srimathi recalls having to take on several responsibilities herself. She was, in her words, the anaesthesiologist, gynaecologist and paediatrician for the case.

Today, a complicated delivery can involve obstetricians, anaesthetists, paediatricians, nurses and neonatal specialists working together. Her first case offers a glimpse into how dramatically maternity care has changed since the 1950s.

Before Sonography, Clinical Judgement Came First

When she started practising, sonography was not part of routine pregnancy care.

Doctors depended heavily on physical examinations, medical knowledge and conversations with patients. There were far fewer ways to detect problems before they became serious.

Modern prenatal scans have changed that equation. Doctors can now identify many maternal and foetal concerns earlier and make decisions with much more information.

For this 92 year old doctor, that transformation is not something she learnt from a textbook. She lived through it.

Her career stretches from an era of limited diagnostics to one where technology plays a central role in prenatal care.

When Teenage Pregnancy Was Part of Everyday Medical Practice

Some of Dr. Srimathi's strongest memories are not about technology. They are about the women who came to her.

During the 1950s and 1960s, she says she regularly treated adolescent and teenage mothers. Child marriage was widespread, and girls often entered motherhood much earlier than many women do today.

That change was not simply medical. It was social.

According to Dr. Srimathi, women's own convenience and choices were often overlooked when decisions around pregnancy were made. Over the years, greater education, employment and awareness have given many women more say in when they marry and when they start a family.

India's maternal health story, therefore, cannot be separated from women's agency.

A hospital can provide better treatment. But education, social conditions and the ability to make decisions about one's own health matter just as much.

She Chose Medicine Despite Social Resistance

The journey began with a personal experience.

When Dr. Srimathi was young, her brother and sister suffered from smallpox and became seriously ill. Medical treatment helped them recover. The experience influenced her decision to become a doctor.

But her choice was not welcomed by everyone.

According to her account, her family faced criticism and even social boycott because she chose to study medicine. Some relatives objected to women handling cadavers during medical training.

She continued anyway.

There is a telling twist to the story. The same people who once questioned her decision later took pride in telling others that she was a doctor.

For a young woman entering medicine at the time, that was no small achievement.

35 Years in Government Healthcare

Her decision eventually became a career spanning more than six decades.

The Indian gynaecologist worked across several institutions, including Osmania Medical College, Gandhi Medical College, Government Maternity Hospital, Niloufer Hospital, Sagarlal Memorial Hospital and Bapuji Hospital.

She spent around 35 years in government service before retiring.

Yet retirement did not mean stepping away from patients.

In 1999, she started a clinic at home because she wanted to continue caring for pregnant women in her locality. She provides consultations there rather than performing deliveries or surgeries, referring patients who require hospital care to nearby facilities.

Her former student, Dr. Rajani Kumari, remembers her as a meticulous surgeon and compassionate teacher. She recalls Dr. Srimathi spending long hours, sometimes entire nights, caring for patients.

That perspective adds something important to the story. A doctor's legacy is not built only through numbers. It is also remembered by colleagues, students and patients.

The 12-Kilometre Journey She Never Forgot

Among thousands of cases, one remains particularly painful.

A pregnant couple once travelled around 12 kilometres by bullock cart to reach a hospital in Telangana. The delay meant that neither the mother nor her unborn baby could be saved.

Decades later, Dr. Srimathi still remembers the case.

It shows why healthcare access is about more than having hospitals and doctors. If a woman cannot reach medical care in time, even the best treatment may arrive too late.

This is where her story connects with India's wider public-health system.

Dr. Srimathi has highlighted the role of ASHA workers and Auxiliary Nurse Midwives, who connect rural communities with healthcare services, particularly in maternal and child health.

The tragedy is a reminder that roads, transport, affordability, awareness and timely referrals can all influence maternal health outcomes.

How Childbirth Has Changed Over Seven Decades?

Dr. Srimathi has seen major changes in childbirth practices.

She recalls normal deliveries being more common earlier in her career. Today, Caesarean sections are more frequent, although she continues to advocate normal deliveries when they are medically appropriate.

She also points to situations such as trauma, blood loss and infection where a C-section may become necessary.

The difference is not simply about one procedure becoming more common. Modern obstetrics has changed because doctors have better diagnostic tools, greater medical knowledge and more ways to identify risks before they become emergencies.

The Hyderabad doctor has experienced that transition from the inside.

She also remembers performing the 13th delivery of the same couple early in her career, something that reflects how family size and reproductive choices have changed over the decades.

A 92 Year Old Doctor Still Begins Her Day Early

Age has not completely separated Dr. Srimathi from the routine that has defined her life.

She reportedly wakes around 5:30 AM, with yoga forming part of her morning routine. Her father, Suri Raghava Deekshitulu, was also associated with promoting yoga, making it a long-standing part of the family.

Her workday begins around 8:30 AM, when she reviews patient updates and plans her schedule.

It is important to distinguish her current work from the widely reported career figure of around 2 lakh deliveries. She is not performing those 2 lakh deliveries today. The figure refers to her decades-long career, while her current practice primarily involves consultations and patient guidance.

What This 92-Year-Old Doctor's Journey Teaches Us?

Dr. Srimathi's story offers lessons that go beyond longevity.

• a. Healthcare has changed. From limited diagnostics to modern prenatal screening, medical care has transformed dramatically.

b. Women's lives have changed. Education, employment and greater autonomy have altered when and how many women approach motherhood.

c. Access still matters. The bullock-cart tragedy shows how distance and delayed care can have devastating consequences.

d. Experience has value. Dr. Srimathi has witnessed changes that span generations, giving her a perspective that few doctors can match.

And perhaps most importantly, a doctor's legacy is human.

Two lakh deliveries may describe the scale of a career. The families who remember the doctor tell us what that career meant.

A Legacy Measured in Generations

Dr. Suri Srimathi’s legacy is more than the reported 2 lakh babies she has helped deliver. Some grew up to become parents and returned with the next generation. Across six decades, this 92 year old doctor has witnessed India’s maternity care evolve - from limited infrastructure to advanced diagnostics. She has seen teenage pregnancies decline, women gain greater agency and technology reshape childbirth. Her career is, ultimately, a living history of mothers, babies and families.