"These are the kind of extreme circumstances under which we perform operations on hearts that have stopped beating," he wrote. "I am not sure if it was a crime or an act of heroism," he added. According to Dr Abdramanov, he is now facing a dilemma - continue saving lives on the operating table hoping that lights do not go out, or halting operations in the hope that patients survive until the moment reliable electricity supplies are restored. "How long do we have to wait before proper conditions are created for our work?" he wonders.