Kavita Houthoff Khemlani

Born in Curaçao and raised on the sunny shores of Aruba, Kavita Houthoff Khemlani grew up in a lively mix of Indian & Caribbean traditions.
Today, she works as an anesthesiologist at Máxima Medical Center in Veldhoven, the Netherlands, with a soft spot for regional anesthesia and a mission: helping patients feel safe, comfortable, and cared for during some of their most frightening moments.
Her road to medicine wasn’t straightforward. After being excluded from Dutch medical school three years in a row, she earned a master’s in zoology and medical biology, trained sharks in Rotterdam Zoo and reapplied… because becoming a doctor was never optional.
As a proud board member of Dutch Association for Regional Anesthesia (DARA), she’s passionate about promoting regional anesthesia in the Netherlands. She's also fascinated by new ways to improve patient comfort from VR tools and medical hypnosis for anxiety reduction to small but meaningful ideas like personalized scrub caps to improve communication in the OR.
Outside the OR, Kavita trains for half marathons, practices at the shooting range and spoils her kids, dog and chickens. Coffee fuels her, donuts motivate her and she’ll die on the hill that fruit doesn’t belong on pizza or anywhere else for that matter.
She believes the best ideas start with a good conversation, ideally over coffee, donuts, or spicy chicken wings and is always open to learning from anyone in the regional anesthesia community.