• Leading implementation research and technical assistance in maternal and newborn health
• Teaching postgraduates and supervising doctoral students in global maternal and newborn health
• Contributing to leadership and management of the Centre and the School

Prof Mathai also continues to work with international partners at global, regional and national levels in an advisory capacity and in providing inputs into global issues related to maternal and newborn health. For example: 

• Advised Ministry of Health and WHO in Sri Lanka to draft the national maternal and newborn health strategy for 2017-2025
• Supported WHO European Region to introduce the WHO stillbirth and neonatal death review tools in central Asian and in the implementation of these tools in Turkmenistan
• Team Leader for UNICEF’s Long Term Arrangement for Services for technical assistance for Every Newborn Action Plan implementation
• Member of the WHO’s expert advisory panel for maternal immunization 
• Member of the WHO-PATH Technical Expert Panel on Advancing Maternal Immunization
• Chaired WHO consultation on maternal and newborn health guideline derivative
• Member of the Quality Equity Dignity Network’s working groups for implementation and monitoring and evaluation
• Member of national expert groups for estimate burden of disease and knowledge transfer in India
• Member of global Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response technical working group 
• Member of advisory committees for several international research projects.

Before joining CMNH, Prof Mathai was Coordinator of the Epidemiology, Monitoring and Evaluation team and Focal Point in Maternal and Perinatal Health in the Department of Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (MNCAH) at the World Health Organization in Geneva. Here, his role involved coordinating work in epidemiology, monitoring and evaluation related to MNCAH, collaborating with partners on global initiatives related to MNCAH, leading work in maternal and perinatal health and managerial responsibilities. Prior to this, Prof Mathai was Medical Officer in Maternal Health in the Departments of Reproductive Health and Research, and Making Pregnancy Safer at WHO.

Before joining WHO HQ as staff, Prof Mathai did consultancies for WHO HQ and WHO offices in the South East Asia and Western Pacific regions; UNFPA India and South Pacific, UNICEF India, British ODA and JHPIEGO. He has worked in all WHO regions and in over 50 countries on maternal and reproductive health issues.

Between 1992 and 2005, Prof Mathai was Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Christian Medical College, Vellore, India. Here, his responsibilities included:

• Clinical: Obstetrician-Gynaecologist focusing on maternal and perinatal health in a hospital that delivers over 12,000 women per annum
• Teaching & Research: training undergraduate and postgraduate medical and nursing students in maternal and perinatal health, evidence-based practices, public health, research methodology and guiding research
• Administrative: Overall head of the Department, and head of one clinical Obstetrics and Gynaecology unit, Family Welfare services and Perinatal Medicine

Educational Qualifications and Training
Christian Medical College, Vellore, India (University of Madras): 
Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) 1978 
Diploma in Gynaecology and Obstetrics (DGO) 1982 
Doctor of Medicine (MD) (Obstetrics & Gynaecology) 1983

University of Liverpool, UK
Master of Obstetrics & Gynaecology (MObstet) (Subspeciality: Feto-maternal medicine) 1989

Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in International Health 1999