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  • Health & Wellness

    Why health writing ?
    You live with your body 24 hours a day – but how well do you really know it ? How much you value your life is a powerful indicator of your physical and mental state of health. Quest for knowledge, once, used to begin with grand theories but today, it is all about massive amounts of data available, making it difficult to separate the good science from the hype. Today it is a sellers market and manufacturers have no qualms about claiming almost anything. What's in the bottle may not conform to what's on the label. People are a confused lot. How does one make a healthy choice ?

    Today people are choosing to take greater responsibility for their own health. The basics of good health are constantly being rewritten, with old approaches fast fading to make room for scientific advances that are continually evolving. Further, there is no dearth of medical myths and misinformation. Science is regularly updating and sifting through this maze is arduous as well as a challenge.

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  • General Features

    Writing profession today
    The writing profession, advent of the web and the fast fading glamour of the print media seems to have defined the writing profession today. It has scaled scary heights and writers are here, there and almost everywhere. They blog, they tweet and are rabid face book users. These bloggers at best can be summed up as tormented souls latched up as hobbyists. Some of them, sure, write pretty well but it is far from a profession.

    A professional writer has a stake in his topic which needs to emerge as a selling product. It requires research, layout and outline which is time consuming and the final presentation is not created in a jiffy.

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  • Heal India

    An honour and privilege to join Via Media Communications where i initiated HEAL INDIA, a health and wellness magazine, as its founding editor. Here i specialized in the whole editorial gamut... from ideation to editing, writing, interviewing, designing and greasing the little nuts and bolts that finally culminated in the final proof for the printer.

    It was a wonderful experience to learn and liaise with everyone in healthcare.
    * As Executive Editor, rolled out almost 40 issues between Jan 2006 and December 2010.
    * Heal India magazine won the prestigious Gold Award presented by the Public Relations Council of India.
    * Received HEAL HONOUR 2008 for distinguished services in the field of health writing.

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  • e-HEALTH

    Associated as Senior Assistant Editor at eHEALTH, a premier print and online, B2B monthly publication. focusing on the latest and most cutting-edge info in healthcare ICTs and medical technologies. It is also the first and only magazine focusing on policy interventions in healthcare, health insurance, medical education, and other such emerging topics. It offers three unique media platforms (viz. monthly print magazine, weekly e-Newsletters and a web portal) for delivering rich, relevant and up-to-date information for its readers and consumers spanning across the entire healthcare industry.

    The content is meticulously balanced to equitably cover providers and consumers of technology, private and public sectors, business and academia, as well as, technical, managerial and administrative aspects of diverse organisations across the healthcare ecosystem. Further, eHEALTH organizes niche events in the healthcare spacer that aim at bringing together key stakeholders on a common pulsating platform for high level deliberations.

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  • Travel Stories

    Traveling is an ideal escape from the rigmarole of everyday life. For a student of history, it is more of practical fun to explore places where thousands of years ago other people lived whose spiritual insights informed the tradition of which we are now a part.
    My take off point was a weekly column, Stories in Stones that sketched the beauty of historic buildings in and around Delhi. Having written for almost all Indian travel publications, I was often commissioned by State Tourism departments to help them in preparing their travel booklets and brochures.
    As the travel editor with yatraindia.com, I explored various states, district by district. The company wanted to showcase the beauty of India in an encyclopaedic way. It required a good deal of fact finding, history digging, getting a whiff of the cuisine, besides the monumental details were to be catalogued and chronicled. A tough and challenging job, but it had a perfect bonding with my writing genes.

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  • Interviews

    Interviews are a standard part of journalism. At times, they may be daunting and no less intimidating but most of the interviews are knowledge gateways. Usually they carry forward in depth info on a particular subject or topic from an expert. It is more of an art that is mastered by practice. One need not be an expert but a reasonable amount of expertise is required to make your interviewee feel comfortable and this reflects best in the quality of questions that you ask.

    Most of my interviews are medical in nature and they talk about blood and bones that keep life going. Some of the doctors take the pain of explaining to your satisfaction, the minutest details and then proceeding to the latest breakthroughs in healthcare. Certainly, these interviews are very enriching experience.

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  • Photography

    Today, a widely debated question is “which camera sells better, Nokia or Nikon ?” Under such circumstances, photography is bound to plummet to an effortless thing of beauty. Unfortunately, I continue to linger in the dark age of photography. I am proud of my Nikon FM2 and Nikkor range of lenses (35mm, 50mm, 85mm, 105mm, 400 mm). I have to yet to graduate to the digital era ! Nikon fans may suggest a digital model parallel to FM2. I have always been particular about my films. The photos catalogued here have been scanned from Kodachrome 64 / 100 along with Provia and Velvia.

    Intend to be a shutterbug once again, just planning which camera would be an ideal take off. Photo graphy is another escape form the restrictions of everyday life. It also encourages travelling and ensures a healthy fit !!

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  • Reading Books

    In the era of omnipresent screens, books have taken a backseat but the bookworms can’t be ignored. There are many and I am one of them ! I have been with the books ever since I can remember. Reading books is akin to a good conversation, knowledge enrichment and now a good many theories ( theory of mind ensures the ability to read the thoughts and feelings of others) and studies to support book reading. Chill yourself if you are stressed !

    Research at Mindlab suggests that it takes not more than six minutes to relax (which was measured by evaluating heart rate and muscle tension) once you start turning pages. Another study from the Journal of Neurology assures a healthy brain by the time you reach old age and slower mental decline !! Some studies will even promise to stave off Alzheimer's disease.

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  • My Little Library

    I started with history books and had to be fair to almost all players in the medieval chessboard. I am particularly fond of research publications by the Asiatic Society and Cunningham's Report. Next to the life of kings and the legacy of kingdoms, I am fond of the growth and evolution of medicine. Food history and symbolism is of particular interest to me.

    My little library is all about the visual display of titles that I have. Anyone interested in a particular title is welcome to requisition for the same, provided he/she is clear about his/her intention to return them.

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WELCOME TO OUR WEBSITE !

Thanks for stopping by, and visiting this website. I already feel so excited to share my passion for healthcare writing with you. This website is an attempt to connect with healthcare enthusiasts/writers/doctors from all over the world and I am very sure that if you are one of them, then you will benefit from the editorials that I have put together, here.

Advent of the web and the fast fading glamour of the print media seem to have defined the writing profession today. A humongous need has risen, however, to organize, collate & publish research based information that is backed by a strong objective.

I firmly believe that a professional writer has a stake in his topic which needs to emerge as the final selling product It requires research, layout and outline which is time consuming and the final writing piece can never be created in a jiffy.

Do drop me a line, if there is anything you want to share with the world, through this website. It will be a great opportunity.
Shahid Akhter Makhfi

OUR WORK

  • Print Interviews

    Interviews are a standard part of journalism. At times, they may be daunting and no less intimidating but most of the interviews are knowledge gateways. Read More

  • Video Interviews

    Interviews are a standard part of journalism. At times, they may be daunting and no less intimidating but most of the interviews are knowledge gateways. Usually they carry forward in depth info on a particular subject or topic from an expert.Read More

  • eHEALTH Articles & Books

    Associated as Senior Assistant Editor at eHEALTH, a premier print and online, B2B monthly publication. focusing on the latest and most cutting-edge info in healthcare ICTs and medical technologies. Read More

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