Ayathan Hospital History
Dr. Gopalan retired from the post as the Superintendent of Kuthiravattom Mental Hospital. He was the first Indian to occupy this post. Later on after his retirement he was appointed as the Professor of Medical School which was functioning near Mananchira.This was a branch of Madras Medical College. He was also appointed as the Registrar of Special Marriage act and as Honorary Magistrate by the British Government. It was a time when allopathic treatment were denied amoung the downtrodden sections like Harijans and Dalits. Seeing this atrocities Dr. Ayathan Gopalan established a Clinic and Dispensary next to his residence were allopathic treatment and medicine were provided free for the underprivileged section's of the society. He had provided free medical treatments and medicines since the time when he got graduated from Madras Medical College and even after joining the Government Medical services. He continued his philanthropic activities even before the establishment of this Clinic. He named this Clinic as the "Ayathan Clinic & Dispensary". He also established the "Ayathan Weaving Mill's" for giving secure jobs for the underprivileged section's of the society. The income from the weaving mill were solely given for the workers and their families and for the charity activities.The Ayathan Clinic and Dispensary and Ayathan Weaving Mill's gained appreciation from the public and functioned for years giving free treatment and medicines for the poor. After the death of Ayathan Gopalan this Clinic and Dispensary draw to a close. Ayathan Weaving Mill's still functioned and it was taken over and managed by Ayathan Devadath 4th child of Dr. Ayathan Gopalan. The Lady Chandhawarkar Elementary School which was established by Dr. Ayathan Gopalan for giving free education for the Harijans and Dalits and also for educating girl child was also taken over by Ayathan Devadath after the demise of Dr. Gopalan. This school ran for decades and was one of the finest and oldest school established at Calicut. This was shut down after the death of Ayathan Devadath.
The Ayathan Clinic which came to a halt for few years was later on re-opened at Nadakkavu as a clinic by Dr. Ayathan Chandramohan first child of Dr. Ayathan Gopalan, where Kozhikode resident's could get inexpensive medical treatment. After the death of Dr.Chandramohan his son Dr. A.V. Subbarao took over this legacy and expanded this Clinic to the level of a Hospital. He constructed a huge building at West hill, Chungam and expanded this Clinic into a full fledged hospital named The Ayathan Clinic Hospital. This hospital too continued the vision and legacy of Dr. Ayathan Gopalan where people could bank on without emptying their pocket, that offers high quality healthcare services to the patient's of all ages. It was shut down after the demise of Dr. A.V. Subbarao and the successor's couldn't handle the repeated undue pressure and unnessasary strikes from the side of staff politics. The legacy and the role once it played in ensuring affordable healthcare still echoes in the hearts of the people of Calicut.
