Dr. Karunakaran is a seasoned professional having rich experience of more than 25 years and is working as a Clinical Director in the PAN India role at Medicover Fertility.
He served in the Indian Army Medical Corp as HOD for ART Centre / Obs & Gynae dept at 3 largest hospitals of the Indian Armed Forces, namely, Army Hospital (Research & Referral), Naval Hospital Asvini, Mumbai, and Command Hospital (Air Force), Bangalore. He also worked as Clinical Head and Senior Consultant at Oasis Fertility, Hyderabad. His last stint was with CRAFT Hospital and Research Centre, Kerala as Director of ART Unit.
He is a unique blend of Reproductive medicine specialist who has harnessed equal acumen in both the Clinical & the Embryological aspects of this ever-evolving niche field of medicine.
Dr. Karunakaran performed the first Ovarian transplant in India, wherein he led the team to perform a (freeze-thaw) ovarian transplant into the forearm of a patient who was a cancer survivor after chemotherapy.
He has been bestowed with the Chief of Army Staff Commendation Card on 15 Jan 2013 for exemplary work in the field of Infertility. He is a member of the National Advisory Board of the Journal of Human Reproductive Sciences (JHRS), the premier infertility journal in India.
Dr. Karunakaran has a keen interest in various topics of Infertility, including newer methods of stimulation to make the process more effective both in terms of success as well as patient friendliness. All aspects of Embryology (In-Vitro Fertilization, Micromanipulation, Cryobiology & PGT) are not foreign to him. Also, he has a keen interest in Oncofertility and Stem cell research.
His major objective is to innovate and bridge the gap between the ground-level medical worker and the equipment designing engineer. In the long term, he intends to do original work in the sub-specialty (integration of Artificial Intelligence & other modern technologies into Reproductive medicine) and make this treatment accessible and affordable to all in the country & the world at large. His passion to educate and teach directs him to be a mentor to all those who aspire to become a complete, ethical practitioner of Reproductive medicine.
Trained in Reproductive Medicine at Army Hospital (Research & Referral) (AHRR), New Delhi.
MBM (Master of Business Management), Jan 2021 from Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Bangalore.
PGMLE (Post Graduate Diploma in Medical Law & Ethics), Feb 2020 from NLSIU (National Law School of India University), Bangalore.
PGDHM (Post Graduate Diploma in Hospital Management), Oct 2006, National Institute of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi.
M.S. (Obs & Gynae), Dec 2002, Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, under the University of Pune.
M.B.B.S Dec 1995, Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, under the University of Pune.
PhD scholar, Dept of BioMedical Engineering, IIT Hyderabad (Jul 2021 – till date)
Dr. Karunakaran has publications in various journals and books. He was featured on the front page in the National edition of Indian Express on 16th Dec 2012 for professional excellence in the field of ART.
