Rajgopal Thirumalai

Dr Rajgopal is a Post Graduate in Preventive Medicine (MD), Public Health (DPH), Occupational Health (DIH) and Health & Hospital Administration (DNB). He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, Ireland (FRCP-I): a Fellow of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, United Kingdom (FFOM and a Fellow of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Ireland (FFOM- I).

Dr Rajgopal is currently on the Board of HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company Ltd. India and is also on their Risk management and CSR committees. He specifically leverages on his heath care expertise to support the Board especially in the domain of health insurance.

Dr Rajgopal served as the Chief Operating Officer with Breach Candy Hospital Trust in Mumbai (from April 2021-March 2022). In this role he was responsible for hospital management including clinical operations, budgeting, managing consultants and residents, supporting legal aspects, medical inputs for hospital expansion project, driving digital health, and leading overall governance in patient care and safety.

He was VP, Global Medical and Occupational Health of Unilever Plc, (Retired effective 1st January 202), responsible for providing strategic inputs and leadership in comprehensive health care including COVID pandemic management, global health insurance, public health guidance, medical and occupational health services (including physical and mental well-being), for over 155,000 employees worldwide. Was in this position for a decade and prior to that headed the health function for various regions for Unilever like Asia, NAMET-RUB (North Africa, Middle East Turkey and Russia), Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, China before being elevated to the global role.. Was also a member of Unilever’s Global Human Resources Leadership Team (HRLT) and Unilever’s Global Safety and Health Leadership Team (SHLT).

He is an experienced health care professional with over 30 years of experience in the space of employee health and wellbeing, public health, community medicine, occupational health and health administration. Has an excellent track record of working effectively with various stakeholders across diverse cultures to enhance employee health and wellbeing.

He is recognized as a thought leader in employee health and under his leadership Unilever won the Global Healthy Workplace Award in 2016. In Unilever he has successfully aligned the internal global health strategy to Unilever's Sustainable Living Plan.

Has effectively demonstrated the impact of heath and well being on overall productivity and has driven the concept of ROI for Health in Unilever. A multiyear study in Unilever has shown a ROI of close to 3$ for every $ invested in health care.

He has represented Unilever as a Leadership Board member of the Workplace Wellness Alliance of the World Economic Forum and as a thought leader in the Global Diabetes Forum. He has been on the steering committee of the Institute of Health and Productivity Management (IHPM), which incorporates the World Economic Forum’s Workplace Wellness Alliance.

Dr Rajgopal served (August 2017 - March 2021)as a Non-Executive Independent Director on the Board of Apollo Hospitals Enterprise India and a member of their Audit as well as their Nominations and Remuneration Committees. In addition, he was a Non-executive Independent Director with Apollo Super Specialty Hospitals Ltd. In these roles he supported the Board in providing strategic inputs in the space of health care and hospital management- particularly related to patient safety, clinical governance and excellence standards. He is Fellow of the Institute Of Directors, India

His expertise in the space of health has seen him occupying several leadership positions like :

•Chairman of Medichem (Association of doctors in the chemical industry worldwide 2007 – 2013)

• Board member of the International Commission on Occupational Health. [ICOH: 2000 – 2003]

• Member Governing Board of the National Safety Council, India. [Current]

He has won many national and international awards, the key ones being:

• In 2014 the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) honored him with the Distinguished Service Award for 2013-2014.
• Dr B C Roy National Award (2016) in the field of Medicine (Socio-Medical Relief). The award was given away by the Honorable President of India.
• In 2017 the Global Institute of Health and Productivity Management (IHPM) estowed on him the President’s Award for Global Leadership in Health and Productivity Management. The IHPM runs the World Economic Forum's Workplace Wellness Alliance.
• In 2019, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) honored him with the IMA Lifetime Achievement Award.

He has around 50 publications including 3 books and 4 chapters in books and is currently on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine .

He is now looking forward to a challenging assignment where his multiple skills across clinical, public health, occupational health, preventive medicine and health administration and his proven track record and leadership in the entire domain of health care can be harnessed effectively to add value to the organization. He is also looking to help strengthen academics in public heath and occupational medicine with his expertise.

Alumnus of the University of California, School of Public Health, Berkeley, having completed their Global Health Leadership Forum program in 2013-2014. (Berkeley and Kings Fund, London);

1. Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians , Ireland (FRCP).

2. Fellow Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FFOM) - London.

3. Fellow Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FFOM)- Ireland.

4. Fellow Indian Association of Public Health.

5. Fellow Indian Association of Occupational Health.

6. Led Unilever to winning the Global Healthy Workplace Award (2016)

7. Awarded by the Honorable President of India - B C Roy National award in the field of socio-medical relief -2016.

8. President’s Award for Global Leadership in Health and Productivity Management bestowed by the global Institute of Health and Productivity Management (IHPM) - 2018. The IHPM manages the World Economic Forum's Workplace Wellness Alliance.

9. American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) - Distinguished Service Award for 2013-2014.

10. Lifetime Achievement award (2022), from the Indian Association of Occupational Health.

List of  Publications (Occupational Health, Public Health, Epidemiology)

1. Digital therapeutics in diabetes: A significant tool to address employees' health and productivity. Arbinder Kumar Singal & Rajgopal Thirumalai.  Editorial. Ind Jr Occup & Env Medicine. 2022  |  Volume : 26  |  Issue : 4  |  Page : 205-206

2. Adult immunization in occupational settings: A consensus of Indian experts Koul, S Swaminathan, T Rajgopal, V Ramsubramanian, B Joseph, ... Indian J Occup Environ Med. 2020 Jan-Apr; 24(1): 3–15

3. COVID-19: Epidemiology and Public Health Aspects. T.Rajgopal Indian J Community Med. 2020 Apr-Jun; 45(2): 111–116.

4. Antibody Testing in the context of COVID-19 and Return to Work. T. Rajgopal. . Indian J Occup Environ Med. 2020 May-Aug; 24(2): 51–54

5. The Role of the Private Sector in Advancing Antimicrobial Stewardship: Recommendations from the Global Chief Medical Officers' Network. Elizabeth D. Hermsen, Richard Jenkins, Ivo Vlaev, ,Steve Iley,   Thirumalai Rajgopal et al. Population Health Management Vol. 24, No. 2 Published Online:9 Apr 2021https://doi.org/10.1089/pop.2020.0027

6. OCCUCON 2020 - Strengthening Occupational Health at the Workplace. T. Rajgopal. Indian J Occup Environ Med. 2020 Jan; 24(Suppl 1): S1–S2

7. Vaccination as a Strategy to Prevent or Mitigate a Potential COVID-19 Third Wave in India.  T.Rajgopal and Bobby Joseph. Indian J Occup Environ Med. 2021 Apr-Jun; 25(2): 55–59.

8. T. Rajgopal. Mental well–being at the workplace. Editorial. Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Volume14 – issue 3, pp 63-65. December 2010. 

9. T. Rajgopal,  H.V. Ravimohan and P. Mascarenhas. Epidemiological surveillance of employees in a mercury thermometer plant: An occupational health study. Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Volume 10, Issue 1, pp11-18, April 2006.

10. T. Rajgopal. Mercury Pollution in India. The Lancet. Vol. 362, No. 9398, pp 1856-1857, November 2003.

11. T. Rajgopal.  Occupational Health in India – Current and Future Perspective. Journal of the Indian Medical Association, Volume 98, Number 8, pp 432 – 433, August 2000.

12.  T. Rajgopal, Cooper John : Editorial : Performance evaluation in Occupational Health. Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Vol.2, No.2, June 1998.

13.  John Cooper, Bernard Luten, Osiris Pinotti and T. Rajgopal . Occupational Health in Unilever – A Strategic Approach.. Journal of the Indian Medical Association, Volume 98, Number 8, , pp 475 –478, August 2000.

14. 14  T. Rajgopal. Occupational Health Status in India – an overview. Industrial Safety Chronicle, pp 41 – 48, National Safety Council, India., July – Sept. 2002

15. T. Rajgopal : Epidemiology in the context of Occupational Health. Ind. Jr. of Occupational Health : Vol.33, No. 1, pp 15 - 16, 1990.

16.  R.S. Durvasula, T. Rajgopal, D.N. Shah & P.V. Kotecha : Changes in Pulmonary Function in subjects exposed to MIC Gas in Bhopal City. Indian Jr. Community Med. XI (2) : 83 - 93, 1986.

17.  T. Rajgopal & L.G. Doshi : A baseline Epidemiological study of the Health Status of Workers in the Boiler Maintenance section of a Thermal Power Plant. Ind. Jr. Indust. Medicine Vol. 34 No. 4 137 – 145 , 1988.

18.   T. Rajgopal : Health Cards help to gain worker’ participation in Occupational Health Surveillance. World Health Forum : Vol.11, Pg. 204 – 205, 1990..

19. . T. Rajgopal, R.S. Durvasula & D.N. Shah : An Epidemiological study of the health status of Flour Mills Workers in Baroda City. Indian Jr. Indust. Med. 33 : 103 - 109, 1987.

20. . R.S. Durvasula, D.N. Shah & T. Rajgopal : An epidemiological study of Air Pollution in Baroda City with specific reference to Respiratory Morbidity - A Multivariate analysis. Ind. Jr. Indust. Med. 32 : 92 - 98, 1986.

21.  T. Rajgopal, P.V. Kotecha, R.S. Durvasula & K.E. Rajulu : A systems approach to the control of Hazards in Chemical Industries. The Chemical Age of India 36(9) : 823 - 825, 1985.

22. T. Rajgopal, R.S. Durvasula & D.N. Shah : Manpower Planning in Occupational health Services : Ind. Jr. Indust. Med. 33:100 - 103, 1987.

23. . N.C. Shah & T. Rajgopal : A comparative study of a few tests of Lung Function in cotton & woolen textile Workers of Baroda. Ind. Jr. Indust. Med. 31: 157 - 160, 1985.

24.  N.C. Shah & T. Rajgopal : A comparative study of a few tests of Lung Function in cotton textile workers of Baroda. The Medicine & Surgery 8 : 13 - 16, 1984.

25. . T. Rajgopal : Editorial: Status of Occupational Health Services in India. Indian Jr. Ind. Medicine: Vol. 37, No.4 pp 143 – 146, December 1991,.

26. . T. Rajgopal : Risk analysis of LPG storage and handling : Indian Journal of Occupational Medicine, , Vol.36. No. 3 pp 79 – 84, Jul - Sept. 1993.

27.  D.V. Lele and T. Rajgopal : Spirometric evaluation of NSD employees handling raw material - an epidemiological study, Indian Journal of Industrial Medicine, Vol. 40 (1), pages 20 – 26, 1994.

28.  T. Rajgopal : Editorial : Technology transfer and Occupational Health, Safety and Environment. Indian Journal of Industrial Medicine., Volume 41, No. 2, page 38, June 1995.

29.  T. Rajgopal : Editorial : Food processing industries. Technology and Safety. Indian Journal of Industrial Medicine, Volume 42,No. 1. pp 2-3, March 1996.

30. . T. Rajgopal : Editorial : The changing profile of occupational medicine. Indian Journal of Industrial Medicine, Volume 43, No. 2. pp 53 - 54, June 1997.

31.  T. Rajgopal, D.C. Vyas : D.N. Shah etal : The Role of Operational Research in Health Administration : Hospital Administration, Silver Jubilee Issue, 1988 pp 291 - 295.

32.  D.N. Shah, R.S. Durvasula, T. Rajgopal : A Study of the present status of Rural Water Supply and Sanitation in Baroda District. Jr.of the Indian Water Works Association 16 (1) 73 - 78, 1985.

33.  T. Rajgopal, Dhopte, R.S. Durvasula & R.K. Baxi : A model for epidemiological Surveillance of Sexually Transmitted Diseases. Ind. Jr. Sexually Transm. Dis. 6 : 63 - 65, 1985.

34.  S.C. Khasgiwala & T. Rajgopal : Case detection by MMR and Sputum Microscopy in T.B. Camps in Baroda District. The Medicine & Surgery 24 (2) : 23 - 25, 1984.

35.  D.N. Shah, P.V. Kotecha, T. Rajgopal etal : Malaria trend as observed in outpatient department of SSG Hospital in Baroda city. The A.P. Jr. Comm. Med. 6 ( 3 & 4 ) 10 - 13.

36.  D.N. Shah & T. Rajgopal : Technical session on Endemic Goitre, in ICMR sponsored regional workshop on dissemination of information on Nutritional Disorders in Gujarat & Maharashtra and Related Intervention Studies (Proceedings).

37.  D.N. Shah, R.K. Baxi, T. Rajgopal etal : Health status of school children in the adopted PHCS of Medical College, Baroda under the Rome scheme. A.P. Jr. of Comm. Med. Vol. VII. Feb. 88 No.1 12 - 17.

38.  D.C. Vyas, T. Rajgopal & B.P. Tamankar : Impact of Medium of instruction in School on the performance of Medical students in 1st  M.B.B. S. Ind. Jr. Med. Education 24 (3) : 81 - 90, 1985.

39.  D.N. Shah & T. Rajgopal : Integrated clinics help Medical students to learn about comprehensive health care. World Health Forum Vol. 8 : 1987, pp 230 - 231.

Special Publications (Safety and Health of Working Children)

Associated with the National Safety Council, India as a member for the Technical Advisory Committee for the “ ILO / IPEC - NSC Action Programme on “ Safety and Health of working children” and the National Safety Council has published seventeen guidance booklets covering gem polishing industry, glass industry, brassware industry and lock industry as a part of the programme.

1 Safety and Health of Working Children. Manual for factory and labour inspectors. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

2 Gem Polishing Industry of Jaipur. Safety and Health of Working Children. Trade Union Intervention. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

3 Gem Polishing Industry of Jaipur. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for social workers and non-formal teachers. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

4. Gem Polishing Industry of Jaipur. Safety and Health of Working Children. Role and responsibilities of employers. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

5 Glass Industry of Ferozabad. Safety and Health of Working Children. Trade Union Intervention. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

6. Glass Industry of Ferozabad. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for social workers and non-formal teachers. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

7. Glass Industry of Ferozabad. Safety and Health of Working Children. Role and responsibilities of employers. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

8. Brassware Industry of Moradabad. Safety and Health of Working Children. Trade Union Intervention. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

9. Brassware Industry of Moradabad. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for social workers and non-formal teachers. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

10. Brassware Industry of Moradabad, Safety and Health of Working Children. Role and responsibilities of employers. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

11. Lock industry in Aligarh. Safety and Health of Working Children. Trade Union Intervention. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

12. Lock industry in Aligarh. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for social workers and non-formal teachers. National Safety Council, India. 1996.

13. Lock industry in Aligarh. Safety and Health of Working Children. Role and responsibilities of employers. National Safety Council, India, 1996.

14. Gem Polishing Industry of Jaipur. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for the child and their parents. National Safety Council, India, 1996. [ Published in Hindi ].

15. Glass Industry of Ferozabad. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for the child and their parents. National Safety Council, India, 1996. [ Published in Hindi ].

16. Brassware Industry of Moradabad. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for the child and their parents. National Safety Council, India, 1996. [Published in Hindi ].

17. Lock industry in Aligarh. Safety and Health of Working Children. A guide for the child and their parents. National Safety Council, India, 1996. [ Published in Hindi ].

Books Published

1. Guidelines on Occupational Health service in Hazardous Industries - Indian Chemical Manufacturers’ Association, 1990.

2. Guide to Pre employment Medical Examination . - Indian Association of Occupational Health, 1998.

3. Human- machine compatibility at the design stage – Occupational Health Aspects. Hindustan Lever Limited, September 1999.

Chapters in Books 

1. Organization and delivery of occupational health services – A multinational perspective from Unilever. Pages 315 – 329, in Occupational and Environmental Health. A practical manual by Wai-On Phoon and Ramnik Parekh., 2007. Bhalani Publishing House. 

2. Common Occupational Lung Diseases. Pages 705 – 722 in Principles of Respiratory Medicine, Editors Farokh Erach Udwadia, Zarir F. Udwadia and Anirudh F. Kohli, 2010, Oxford University Press.

3. Environmental Pollution. Pages 723- 731 in Principles of Respiratory Medicine, Editors Farokh Erach Udwadia, Zarir F. Udwadia and Anirudh F. Kohli, 2010, Oxford University Press.