Three years ago Dubbo said farewell to a very much “loved” man. This week, the world said goodbye to a “very good” doctor.
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Dr Anil Kulkarni passed away on Monday, March 15 of aspiration pneumonia after a prolonged battle with cancer of the tongue.
He served the Dubbo community for 20 years and many of his former Dubbo patients and colleagues attended his funeral service in North Ryde on Thursday.
His friend of 19 years and Dubbo work colleague Dr Vijay Pandya, said Dr Kulkarni was “very much loved by everyone” and had “all the C’s” that would ensure he wouldn’t soon be forgotten.
“He was a charismatic character. He had compassion for his patients, but he was also a very good doctor,” Dr Pandya said.
“The patients loved him and even now they remember him three years after he retired.”
Dr Kulkarni and Dr Pandya were neighbouring solo practitioners for 12 years before they amalgamated in 2002 to form the Bultje Street Medical Centre.
Dr Pandya said there was “a little bit of a generation gap” but he was “very jovial” and they became very good friends over the years.
“He loved jokes (though) he told some very old ones,” Dr Pandya said.
Dr Kulkarni graduated from Grant Medical College in Mumbai in 1970 and migrated to Australia later that year.
He practiced in Gilgandra for about six years before settling in Dubbo, which he described as his “alma-mata”.
He was a well-known visiting medical officer (VMO) at the Dubbo Base Hospital and played cricket for the VMO team against the hospital’s residents, and could also often be found on weekends having a round of golf at the Dubbo Golf Club.
Dr Pandya said Dr Kulkarni was “very gregarious” and always late for work but made up for it with the time and dedication he showed to his patients.
“He loved the job, but he was a law unto himself for time,” he said.
His compassionate nature permeated all facets of his life and he was very much a family man.
Throughout his battle with cancer, Dr Kulkarni lived with and cared for his elderly mother who died one month before he developed aspiration pneumonia.
“I think he was waiting around for her,” Dr Pandya said.
“He always said he would never let her go into a nursing home.”