There’s heart in everything Associate Professor Kushwin Rajamani does – from the name of his practice to the charity work he does and the time he spends with his family.
By Ara Jansen
Whether Dr Kushwin Rajamani is talking about medicine, his family or his extensive philanthropy, there’s one word which keeps coming up – heart.
The cardiologist and dad of two seems to apply it to everything he does, including the name of his practice – Omni Corde which is Latin for “all heart”. On top of that, he seems to have tremendous energy to be enthusiastically engaging in these three significant loves of his life.
Given these passions, perhaps it’s no surprise that Kushwin became a cardiologist – dealing with matters of the heart. His dual interest in cardiac anatomy and physiology ignited the pursuit of cardiology with a sub-specialty in heart rhythm disorders. Rotations during medical school cemented his plan. He also considers the research element dynamic and progressive, for which he has received several national awards.
In 2018, Kushwin established a solo practice called Omni Corde so he could dedicate his practice to caring for patients with heart rhythm conditions. He enjoys the autonomy of running a solo practice and is able to focus primarily on patient outcomes. This also allows him to spend time with his family, plus raise funds and awareness for his charity projects.
Born and raised in Sri Lanka, Kushwin did his medical degree at Ireland’s Royal College of Surgeons and moved to Australia after completing his internship. He completed basic and advanced physician training in cardiology at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in 2011 and has a PhD from the University of Sydney. He also spent two years at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, which has pioneered numerous medical breakthroughs including the first coronary angiogram, maintaining their number one ranking in cardiology for more than 25 years.
Hard work
As a child, Kushwin was a diligent student and gained entrance to a local international school, which opened doors to study medicine in the UK. He did his last year of high school in London and was accepted into the Royal College of Surgeons before they’d even seen his results.
Kushwin’s father has no formal education and can only write numbers, while his mother only went to primary school. Educating their children was a huge priority for them. Their son wanted to make his parents proud by doing really well.
“Seeing my parents struggle was a huge motivation to be successful,” explains Kushwin. “At their social and economic level, getting us educated was a huge challenge.
“I like people and enjoyed science so that made medicine a natural path to pursue. I was quite an introvert and probably was a total nerd at school. I enjoyed reading and was comfortable in my own company, but I also connected well with people who had similar interests and generally had a wide awareness.”
Unlike many of his school friends, he didn’t have the same support systems, so he crafted a strong work ethic, and he figured out what would give him an advantage from an early age. He did this by dedicating extra hours to reading, which eventually set him up perfectly for the long hours of medical school.
At college, he was further challenged by suddenly being in the company of students who were also high performing, once again pushing him to discover techniques which created an edge in an extremely competitive environment.
“Seeing my parents struggle was a huge motivation to be successful.At their social and economic level, getting us educated was a huge challenge.”
“I ended up with an honours degree but, to be honest, I think it had more to do with the hours I put in. What I had learnt was how to be strategic and how to adapt in order to achieve my goal.”
Initially he was going to work in America after graduating but a friend suggested coming to Australia. When Kushwin compared the lifestyle for a doctor, Australia won hands down. He arrived in 2004 and embraced the opportunities, allowing him to live the life he had dreamed of.
When he went to work at the Cleveland Clinic in 2013, it was another big victory because he was pleased to have achieved it on merit and without an introduction.
“It was a huge win for me for many reasons – to look back at my parents to see how far I had come from a small seaside village to the No. 1 cardiac hospital in the United States. My parents could take pride in all the sacrifices they made for me now that their son made it to that level. No one can take that away and money can’t buy that,” he says.
In between work and being with his family – Kushwin is married and has a daughter, five, and a seven-year-old son – he very much enjoys gardening. He spends the other part of his time pursuing his passion for philanthropy which focuses on humanitarian aid and climate change action. Kushwin self-finances projects as well as being an active fundraiser while advocating for numerous causes.
“I want to use my energy in the most constructive way and leverage it for the greater good. My purpose is to make the biggest difference possible for the benefit of the generation to come.”
Highly concerned about the world today’s children will inherit, he has independently built schools across Asia, supported clean water and sanitation projects in Sri Lanka and funded several emergency relief operations in Bangladesh and Africa. He recently raised more than $35,000 for the Foundation of Goodness which feeds the hungry by hosting a Sri Lankan culinary and cultural experience dinner.
Kushwin is actively involved in medical missions and travels to Sri Lanka to implant pacemakers in patients living in remote regions with limited medical facilities. In 2019, Rotary International awarded him the Paul Harris Fellowship in recognition of his contribution towards humanity.
One of his urgent priorities is climate change action and because of this, he has partnered with world renowned orangutan expert Leif Cocks, formerly of Perth Zoo, who founded The Orangutan Project. Kushwin is actively raising money for the not-for-profit which has a target of $1 million to preserve 100,000 hectares of Indonesia’s Leuser ecosystem, the last place on earth where critically endangered orangutans, elephants, rhinos and tigers coexist in the wild.
He has pledged to match every dollar the project raises, up to $500,000.
Raised in a very pious home, Kushwin is now much more interested in spirituality than religion. He partners with people and organisations he feels he can trust on philanthropic and charity projects. Using social media to find and network with them, he often works late into the night. He always strives to partner with groups where funds are most efficiently used.
“Humanitarian work can be time consuming and exhausting but I feel energised by the satisfaction that someone, somewhere has been fed, clothed or educated as a result of these efforts.
“I feel generosity is a fundamental duty. We are in the middle of a global existential crisis and it’s critical we take a world approach rather than living totally in self-interest.”
A fan of simplicity in all areas of life he’s determined to give as many dollars as possible while walking his walk. In case you’re curious, he drives a 10-year-old Holden, which is worth less than $1000.
“My life philosophy is based on compassion and love. We have one life. There is no bucket list for me. What I want to know is that when my time comes, I want to feel that I have given it my all to make this planet a better place.”