Healing Currents

Geethanjali Bhas

They lie on a special bed perfectly nourished
Outside the body 

Ready for a security check
And then marching onwards
On their odyssey 
Of one and half millimetres

A failure? 
No, not fail we said
Was learning and growth
For now we have seen that again with fresh eyes

A living spark
Of bioelectricity
That propels them ahead 
Quickly and safely
Those keratinocytes
Manoeuvre their way 
Steadily binding and building
Their vital scaffolding 
For healing and closure 
Of that wound in all its intriguing idiosyncrasies

Somewhere far away 
Perhaps a thousand miles
Keya watches her father
Smiling through pain
Four eyes dart across that gaping wound on his foot 
A legacy of diabetes
That refuses to heal

Their eyes converge again
On rays of hope and research
On the chip of a healing current

The Science

This poem is inspired by recent research and innovation in the field of bioelectric energy for better wound healing. Essentially how innovations in this domain can be utilized to address the global challenge of delayed and improper wound healing such as in diabetic ulcers. Electrotaxis or the movement and orientation of skin cells in response to electrical fields have now been further refined and innovated upon in the form of 'healing on a chip' as in the research paper 'On-chip bioelectric wound closure'.

The Poet

Geethanjali Bhas is a senior medical advisor and professor of pathology/healthcare management. She explores life through creative writing at the interface of health, medicine, science, and philosophy. Her poem ‘A Patient-Centered Journey’ has been published in the Journal Clinical Chemistry. Her awards include the international digital health innovators award, PERINTIS silver medal South Asia, and the International Writers award.

Next poem: heat/changes/everything by S.L. Holm