Sir Sabaratnam Arulkumaran is a

Sri Lankan Tamil Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Pr ...

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, former president of the

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is a professional association based in London, United Kingdom. Its members, including people with and without medical degrees, work in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology, that is ...

and the

International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics The International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, usually just FIGO ("fee'go") as the acronym of its French name Fédération Internationale de Gynécologie et d'Obstétrique, is a worldwide non-governmental organisation representing ob ...

, and president-elect of the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headquar ...

Early life and family

Arulkumaran was born in 1948. He was the son of K. Sabaratnam, a Director of the Jaffna Co-operative Society, and Gnambikai. He was from Kantharmadam in northern

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. He was educated at

Jaffna Central College Jaffna Central College ( ta, யாழ்ப்பாணம் மத்திய கல்லூரி ''Yāḻppāṇam Mattiya Kallūri'', JCC) is a national school in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. Founded in 1816 by British Methodist missionaries, it ...

and

Mahajana College, Tellippalai Mahajana College ( ta, மகாஜனாக் கல்லூரி ''Makājaṉāk Kallūri'') is a provincial school in Tellippalai, Sri Lanka. History The school was founded in October 1910 by scholar and poet T. A. Thuraiyappapillai. Mahaj ...

. After school he joined the

University of Ceylon The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Univer ...

in 1968 and graduated with an honours

MBBS Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

degree in 1972. He then obtained a Diploma in Child Health from the university. He then entered the

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national public research university in Singapore. Founded in 1905 as the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Government Medical School, NUS is the oldest autonomous university in the c ...

from where he obtained MD and

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

degrees. He then became a fellow of the

and the

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The College has seven active faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical practices. Its main campus is located on ...

Career

Arulkumaran joined the

in 1982 as a lecturer. He was

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

of obstetrics and gynaecology (1993-1997) and head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (1995-1997). Whilst working in Singapore, Arulkumaran also carried out research in the United States, Sweden, and France. Arulkumaran moved to the United Kingdom in 1997 to be closer to other family members. Here, he was professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at the

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...

(1997-2001) and non-executive director of the Southern Derbyshire Acute Hospital NHS Trust (1997-2001). Arulkumaran was professor and head of obstetrics and gynaecology at

St George's, University of London St George's, University of London (legally St George's Hospital Medical School, informally St George's or SGUL), is a University located in Tooting in South London and is a constituent college of the University of London. St George's has its o ...

from 2001 to 2013. Arulkumaran was treasurer of the

(1997-2003), its secretary-general (2003-2006) and is its president since 2012. He served as vice-president of the

before serving as its president from 2007 to 2010. In June 2012, he was elected president of the

for 2013-2014. Arulkumaran is an honorary fellow of the

American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) is a professional association of physicians specializing in obstetrics and gynecology in the United States. Several Latin American countries are also represented within Districts of ...

, Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India,

Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG) is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the establishment of high standards of practice in obstetrics and gynaecology and women’s health. The Col ...

Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Pakistan The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Pakistan (SOGP) is a professional medical association formed by practitioners of obstetrics and gynecology in Pakistan. A member of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), ...

, South African Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, and Sri Lanka College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. He is an honorary member of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gynäkilogie und Geurtshilfe, Obstetrical and Gynaecological Society of Malaysia and

Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) is a national medical society in Canada, representing over 4,000 obstetricians/gynaecologists, family physicians, nurses, midwives, and allied health professionals in the field of ...

. He has also received an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

from the

University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...

. Arulkumaran has been

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

of '' Best Practices and Research in Clinical Obstetrics and Gynaecology'' since 1998. He has written or edited 24 books, 240 articles, and more than 150 book chapters. He was appointed

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

in June 2009 for his services to medicine. In November 2012, Arulkumaran was appointed chair of a panel of inquiry into the

death of Savita Halappanavar Savita Halappanavar ( Savita Andanappa Yalagi; 9 September 1981 – 28 October 2012) was a dentist of South Asian people in Ireland, Indian origin, living in Ireland, who died from sepsis after her request for an abortion was denied on legal gro ...

in Ireland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arulkumaran, Sabaratnam 1948 births Academics of the University of Nottingham Alumni of Jaffna Central College Alumni of Mahajana College, Tellippalai Alumni of the University of Ceylon (Peradeniya) British people of Sri Lankan Tamil descent Knights Bachelor Living people National University of Singapore alumni National University of Singapore faculty Academics of St George's, University of London People from Northern Province, Sri Lanka Sri Lankan Tamil physicians Fellows of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh Members of the National Academy of Medicine