Doctors are said to be a blessing for the human race by the Gods. “Wherever the art of Medicine is loved, there is also a love of Humanity”, Hippocrates said when he spoke about medicine as a discipline. Hippocrates considered doctors to be the most respected professionals in society. To be able to understand such a noble profession at such a young age, Advika Singh is a visionary.

Born on May 19, 2008, in the city of Lucknow, Advika brought immense happiness to the lives of Dr. Kuldeep Singh and Mrs. Suman Singh. The COVID-19 pandemic changed a lot of things for everyone and one of the major problems was the uncertainty over the virus. Questions like how would the next strain affect the body, or what would be the good practices to avoid falling prey to the virus were doing the rounds with everyone rushing to hospitals and not quite understanding what the doctors were trying to say in all the confusion surrounding the illness. Advika saw this happening around her, people not knowing what to do, what questions to ask the doctors, and the technical terms used in the hospital environment, and she thought to herself that something needed to be done about it.

The journey of the book Advika wrote started with her asking all the right questions and talking to multiple people to understand what the real-time difficulties were. After finishing the first two chapters, her father started helping her with getting reliable information from verified sources and thus the book started taking shape. Her mother was constantly helping her with the back-end work of typing, researching, and editing. Advika’s parents helped her in every way they could and made sure that her efforts did not go to waste.

The primary aim of the book was to educate people about the basics of medical terminology, how to deal with emergencies and to guide them through the difficult times. It also included notes on the 20 most common diseases and what to do as an ordinary person, and how to handle these diseases.
The foreword of the book is written by the former health and welfare minister of India, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, and Dr. Yatin Mehta, the chairman of Medanta Hospitals, Critical Care and Anesthesiology, Gurugram. Sudha Sahay, the principal of Shri Ram School, Aravali, also wrote a foreword for the book, and an award of recognition for innovative creation was presented to Advika. Prof. Dr. Pawan Raj Goyal, a Padmashree awardee and physician of the former President of India, wrote a foreword for the book as well. Many important people recognized this book. It helped countless people in tough times during the pandemic.

When the world was sitting at home and waiting for things to go back to normal, Advika was trying to help us make our lives better. She has always managed to balance all aspects of her life and she continues to do so. Working on the book did not affect her studies and she kept managing her time like a pro.

She also represented India at the Commonwealth Games in Chess and stood 19th internationally. Advika is currently in the 9th grade and is preparing for her board exams. She aspires to become a doctor like her father. She wants to help society with her knowledge and make notable contributions to the field of medical science.

The book took almost two years to complete and these two years were filled with learning and fulfilment for Advika. Her sole purpose for writing this book was to help people. The recognition and appreciation that came with it was the cherry on top. It strengthened her faith in the field of medicine, and pushed her to work harder than ever.