May 27 :
The New York State Liberty Medal was presented to Dr. Hari Krishna Shukla at a solemn ceremony held on the New York Senate Floor in Albany, NY on May 15, 2024. Shukla has been a practicing physician in Flushing, Queens, New York for nearly four decades, during which time he has helped thousands of youthful patients.
Citizens who have done exceptional work on behalf of their fellow statemen and community members are rewarded with the New York State Liberty Medal, the highest honour bestowed by the Empire State.
The life-saving efforts of Dr. Shukla in the field of neo-natal paediatric care was recognised when New York State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky (11th SD-Queens) presented him with the Liberty Medal. In recognition of Dr. Shukla's contributions to the area of pediatric-neonatal medicine, the New York State Senate previously enacted a resolution (Senate No. 2010) on March 26, 2024.
The work of Dr. Shukla in improving the scientific understanding of how doctors treat premature children has garnered international praise, according to Senator Stavisky's statement in the news release. Dr. Shukla is well-known for his work on a mathematical formula that determines the optimal placement of umbilical catheters in unwell infants. This formula improves the safety of intravenous and umbilical cord delivery of life-sustaining fluids and drugs to preterm children. The name of this formula is "Shukla's."
The life's work of Dr. Shukla in the field of neo-natal paediatric medicine deserves this honour, Senator Stavisky stated.
According to the news announcement, millions of infants throughout the world have benefited from Dr. Shukla's Formula since his 1986 research report was released on the subject. Numerous nations are currently making use of Dr. Shukla's Formula, including the US, Canada, UK, various European nations, AU, IN, JP, CN, RO, S.K., and MENA regions. Roughly fifteen million newborns undergo umbilical catheterization annually.
Dr. Shukla came up with a method to quickly determine how long an infant's endotracheal tube has to be. This formula is included in the basic life support (BLS), advanced cardiac life support (ACLS), and physician assistant (PA) training programmes in the US. It is also given to residents, fellows, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and other healthcare professionals before they start working, as well as in continuing medical education (CME) courses that are necessary to keep their licences current.
Under the auspices of the US Food and Drug Administration's Investigational New Drug (IND) procedure and the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Shukla became the first US physician to administer surfactant to preterm infants in 1986 in New York City. Currently, the global standard of care for premature newborns with pulmonary issues is the surfactant therapy. As the first doctor in New York to prescribe surfactant, Dr. Shukla was honoured by Congress with a citation.
Patients suffering from jaundice have also benefited from his work. He was the first to show that blood brain barriers for bilirubin in his investigative research on the aetiology of Kernicterus, which followed his basic rat work at the NYU School of Medicine. The process by which bilirubin enters brain tissue and damages neurons is better understood thanks to this study.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Shukla's compassion and expertise were on full display as he successfully treated 400 Covid positive children, ranging in age from one day old to eighteen years old, with no deaths.
In recognition of his contributions to the fight against polio in America and India, he has been honoured with the "Pasteur, Merieux and Connaught" (The Makers of Polio Vaccine) Award.
He has been a consultant paediatrician for the Consulate General of India and the Permanent Missions of several nations to the United Nations for more than 38 years. Additionally, since 1990, he has served as the Civil Surgeon for the US Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalisation Service.
Dr. Shukla is a clinical associate professor at NYU School of Medicine and a triple board certified physician (American Board of Paediatrics, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, and Forensic Medicine). He has been teaching medical residents and fellows for nearly 40 years and continues to provide cutting-edge care to Americans and children born prematurely around the world.
As an exchange student from Rotary International, Dr. Hari Shukla travelled from India to the US in 1980. Kirti Shukla is his wife. Both of the couple's sons, Mrugank and Mehool, are doctors in New York City who earned their degrees from American universities.
