Nandu TK

  • Dr Nandu TK
  • Assistant Professor
  • nandu.tk[at] dypatil.edu

Nandu Kannothu Thazha Kuni is an Assistant Professor of Public Health. He holds a Ph.D. and M Phil in Public Health from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, in addition to a Masters in Social Work from SreeSankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, Kerala. Prior to his position at DYPU School of Public Health, he served as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Health at Yenepoya Deemed to be University, Mangalore. Furthermore, he also held the role of Guest Faculty in the Department of Social Work at SreeSankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, Kerala. Guided by an understanding of social science developments in Public health and Social Work, he has been engaged in education and research as a faculty and research scholar for over a decade.
KT Nandu’s doctoral research delved into the intricacies of the Malabar region of Kerala, where he examined the socio-economic and political dynamics that mold health, healthcare services, and their accessibility in marginalized sub-regions. His research findings have been published as articles and book chapters, spanning subjects such as the social determinants of health, healthcare utilization, human resource management in health, and the integration of social work principles within the public health domain. He has been the recipient of UGC’s Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) and Senior Research Fellowship.
His research interests include the social determinants of health, Health inequity, Public health social work, and health care utilization of social groups in India. He has extensive fieldwork experience in Kerala and multiple states across the nation. Currently, he is engaged in a research project examining the experiences of individuals seeking healthcare outside their state of residence. This is a case study of patients from Kerala availing health care from selected private hospitals in the nearby state of Karnataka. Additionally, he is developing a research project focused on unraveling the psychological pathways through which caste influences Dalits’ bodies, health, and labor. His approach to research adopts interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary methodologies, shaping insights from a range of disciplines while remaining firmly rooted in Public Health and Social Work.

Selected Publications  
  1. Nandu, K. T. K. (2023). Human Resource Management in Health: An analysis of community medical camp as short-term medical intervention to deal with shortage of health workers in rural India. In A. K. Mohan & Laxmi (Eds.), Community Development: Evidence Based Indian Approaches. Today and Tomorrow’s Printers and Publishers.
  2. KT Nandu, 2022. “Managing epidemics: the importance of a social work approach in dealing with high impacting disease outbreaks” LISSAH Journal, 3 (1).
  3. KT Nandu, and Sarngadharan, Rajeesh. 2021. “Human Agency, Social Structure and Forming of Health Consciousness and Perception.” European Journal of Molecular & Clinical Medicine 7(7):5910–16.
  4. KT Nandu, Sarngadharan, Rajeesh, and KR Vandana. 2021. “Rising Trend Of Caesarean Section: Review on the Determinants of Cesarean Section Deliveries.” European Journal of Molecular & Clinical Medicine 7(7):5904–9
  5. Nandu, KT, Kirandeep Singh, and Rajeesh C. Sarngadharan. 2019. “Politics of Social Medicine and Community Health: An Analysis of Subjective Experience of Ill Health.”Our Heritage 67(4):214–23.
Paper Presentations
  1. Forthcoming: 25 August 2023, Paper on ‘Defining Bodies, Health, and Work of Dalits: The Decisive Role of Caste in Kerala’s Health System’. Paper presentation at the conference “Intergroup Inequality in Indian Society: Magnitude, Nature, Sources, Policies and the Movement” Organized by Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bengaluru, Indian Institute of Dalit Studies (IIDS), Delhi and Association of Academic for Social Justice (AASJ), Delhi
  2. 28 February 2023, Presented paper on Creativity and Critical Thinking in Field Practicum in Social Work colloquium on “Creativity and Critical Thinking in Social Work”,SreeSankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Regional Centre Tirur, Kerala
  3. 2022, Paper presented on ‘Human Resource Management in Health: An analysis of community medical camp as short-term medical intervention to deal with shortage of health workers in rural India.’ At Central University Kerala as part of National Conference on Indian Approaches to Human Resource and Community Development.
  4. 2020, Presentation on the topic ‘Ending the epidemics: the importance of primary health care approach from a public health perspective in managing disease outbreaks like COVID-19’ organized by Dept of Social Work, SNDPYSS college Perinthalmanna, Kerala
Short Research Projects
  1. 2023 – ongoing, Faculty research project titled ‘Experience and Exposure of going out of state for treatment: A case study of patients from Kerala availing health care from selected private hospitals in Mangalore.’
  2. Forthcoming: Short research project on the topic ‘Inter-state migration for medical care and the facilitatory role of Ayushman Bharat-PMJAY: A policy oriented study of patient movement from Kerala to Karnataka.’
  • Basics of Public Health
  • Basic Epidemiology
  • Social & Behavioural Sciences – Health Promotion & Health Communication
  • Applied Epidemiology & Research Methodology
  • Introduction to Qualitative research methods
  • Demography & Population Health
  • Health Systems, Policy & Management
  • Introduction to Health Economics
  • Global Health

PhD inPublic Health, 2015 – 2021, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi

MPhil in Public Health, 2013 – 2015, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi

MSW (Development Social Work Practice), 2010 – 2012, SreeSankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady.

Bachelor of Arts in Economics, 2007 – 2010, University of Calicut, Kozhikode