Dr. Rohit Dutta is the clinical instructor for the healthcare department at Campus, formerly MTI Collge, which includes the medical assistant certification program, the medical billing and coding professional diploma program, and the phlebotomy certification program. Dr. Dutta has worked at Campus for one year, and has a total of four years working in higher education overall. Prior to Campus, he was a professor at the Sacramento Ultrasound Institute. Dr. Dutta earned his M.D. degree from Crimea State Medical University in Simferopol, Ukraine, in 2003.
Originally from India, Dr. Dutta credits much of his successful career to his family — a long line of doctors who instilled in him a passion for medicine. For over 100 years, his family in India has operated a medical practice that was initially started by his grandfather and is now run by his father. After completing his own medical studies in Ukraine, Dr. Dutta returned to India to begin his career. There, he began specializing in internal medicine as a physician at Cheema Medical Complex & Hospital, where he worked in the operating room (OR) and assisted in the vaccination program. Dr. Dutta next obtained a position at Tata Nursing Home. In addition to his continued work in an OR setting, he also worked in pediatric care and conducted medical care checkup camps.
Dr. Dutta ultimately left his position at the nursing home to move to the United States to further develop his career and to be with family members who had already immigrated here. He obtained a position at the UC Davis Medical Center as a radiology assistant. Over the five years he spent in this position, Dr. Dutta performed many critical, hands-on medical tasks (including evaluating the need for auxiliary life support, oxygen, and suction, as well as checking the status of IVs, pleurovacs, and vital signs during and after transport) — but his skill set also broadened to include a more cohesive focus on patient care, proper safety protocols, and even processing of patient care paperwork through data entry and substantial research.
It was also during this time that Dr. Dutta started feeling an itch to pass on the knowledge he had accumulated throughout both his educational and professional experiences. “Sharing knowledge and helping students is something I truly like. It is something you feel good about when you share your knowledge and skills with somebody so they can succeed in their life.” With that notion in mind, Dr. Dutta obtained a position as an instructor at the Sacramento Ultrasound Institute. For three years, Dr. Dutta taught various courses in anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, pharmacology, medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, vascular science, and medical terminology.
In 2016, Dr. Dutta chose to come to Campus. “This is a very good place to work. You have independence and freedom to work with the students. The community is really good and enjoyable.” He currently teaches Laboratory Assisting I and II. These courses cover the administration of various clinical procedures and tests, such as electrocardiograms (EKGs), spirometry, nebulizer treatments, various types of injections, and blood drawing. Dr. Dutta recommends patience to students who want to get through these classes successfully: “Sometimes, the student wants to do the procedures but needs more time and more attention.”
Another thing students should keep in mind is the learning curve they’ll face when they graduate and start their careers. Dr. Dutta finds students tend to struggle initially in their first positions with things like using medical codes, making progress notes and even taking blood pressure. “Basic things are more difficult,” he notes, adding that such challenges are normal and part of the young medical graduate’s professional growth process. And although students should be accepting of these challenges, they should also take them very seriously. For example, Dr. Dutta notes, it is imperative that students starting off in the field immediately learn and strictly comply with rules of medical hygiene, and be always alert and aware of “how to stop the diseases from going one place to another place, and from one patient to another patient.” Other significant foundational skills noted by Dr. Dutta include “how to use proper gloves and how to use proper septic techniques. Also, proper disposal of shots and how to use the garbage cans properly.” These may seem like simple tasks but are vital in keeping everyone safe and healthy.
Aside from skills students learn throughout the program, Dr. Dutta encourages them to develop a personal touch when it comes to interacting with patients. “You need first to clear your mind. You have to be willing to help other people. It’s not about the money; it’s about helping people.” Dr. Dutta has always been genuinely concerned for the well-being of his own patients and notes that this makes all the difference. “Always be present and there for patients, if they need any kind of help.” For example, he explains, if a patient becomes anxious or nauseous as a result of having to have blood drawn, it is important that the health care professional not simply focus on drawing the blood, but be supportive to the person in all respects. “Be there, put on the gloves, offer them the trash can or vomit bag, and help them,” explains Dr. Dutta. Small gestures make big differences.
Dr. Dutta has the same depth of passion for teaching his students as he did for treating his patients. His teaching philosophy is to really get to know his students. “Know what they are struggling with,” he explains. Just as is so often the case in practicing medicine, “If you know the problem, then you can solve it. Some people want to do well, and are really good, but need a particular type of support. Maybe someone needs a bit more time, and that’s fine.” Dr. Dutta’s job is to prepare well-equipped professionals for the medical field, and he takes that responsibility very seriously. “This is going to be your profession,” he tells his students. “Sharpen your skills. You want to enjoy your profession, so do things the right way.”
Outside of his career, Dr. Dutta loves time at home with his family. He has enjoyed much travel with his wife, but that interest took a back seat two years ago when the couple happily welcomed triplets! Family time certainly keeps Dr. Dutta busy, but he still makes time for his other hobbies, including cooking, reading, biking, swimming and camping. But of course, he still always has time for his students. When asked what he is most proud of within his career, Dr. Dutta replied, “What I learned my whole life, what I studied … I am using it and giving it to the students. And they are successful. That makes me happy.”
To achieve similar success, Dr. Dutta urges his students to “always be focused in your life, and be open all the time to learning new things. There is no end to education. I still learn things every day. Things in the medical field change overnight. You learn things each and every day, your entire life.”