Clinical leadership

About Dr Ranka

Consultant Occupational Physician providing clear, balanced and practical advice for workplaces across the UK.

Consultant Occupational Physician

Dr Satish Ranka MD MFOM

Dr Satish Ranka MD MFOM is a Consultant Occupational Physician and an accredited specialist in Occupational Medicine on the GMC Specialist Register.

He has many years of experience in occupational health, with particular expertise in police medicine, safety-critical work, health surveillance, fitness-for-work assessments, ill-health retirement and complex occupational health cases.

A practical approach

Looking beyond fit or unfit

Dr Ranka’s reports aim to be clear, balanced and practical, giving both the organisation and the employee a proper understanding of the medical condition, its likely impact on work and what can reasonably be done to support safe working.

Rather than simply stating whether an employee is fit or unfit, he considers the health condition, the functional limitations arising from it and the actual risks within the person’s job.

Safe working

Structured risk assessment Matrix

An important part of Dr Ranka’s approach is a unique structured occupational health risk-assessment matrix developed through years of clinical work. It follows the principles of the HSE hierarchy of controls—considering whether risk can be eliminated, substituted, reduced through engineering or workplace controls, managed through administrative measures and adjustments, or controlled through personal protective equipment where appropriate.

This moves the medical opinion beyond diagnosis and towards the practical question of how an individual can work safely. Dr Ranka also teaches junior occupational health doctors to use this structured method in fitness-for-work recommendations.

Specialist expertise

Police and safety-critical medicine

Dr Ranka has worked extensively with police organisations and understands the practical challenges of advising on operational policing, firearms roles, driving, frontline work and other safety-critical duties.

As founder and 50% owner of R-Health Ltd, a consultant-led occupational health company, he provides occupational physician services, specialist medical assessments, police pension work and complex fitness-for-duty advice to police organisations across the country.

He is also the Responsible Officer for R-Health and leads its Selected Medical Practitioner work, including complex ill-health retirement and injury-on-duty assessments.

Supporting the profession

Professional leadership and mentoring

Dr Ranka is Deputy Chief Examiner at the Faculty of Occupational Medicine and examines doctors undertaking occupational medicine qualifications, including Diploma and Membership examinations.

He is also a medical appraiser, trainer and Portfolio/CESR Assessor, and has contributed to national guidance for doctors progressing towards specialist registration in Occupational Medicine.

Teaching and mentoring are important parts of his work. He supports junior doctors to develop evidence-based, proportionate opinions that are relevant to the real workplace rather than simply repeating medical diagnoses.

Practical services

Workplace health surveillance

Dr Ranka is an HSE Appointed Doctor for lead and asbestos medical surveillance and undertakes specialist health surveillance including HAVS, audiometry, respiratory surveillance and other occupational health assessments.

His experience spans construction, manufacturing, healthcare, dental services and a range of other industries. Through Ranka Limited, he brings consultant-led occupational health advice to smaller and medium-sized organisations as well as larger employers.

He also provides clinical governance and Consultant Occupational Physician support to nurse-led occupational health organisations, with a strong belief in multidisciplinary working between nurses, technicians and doctors.

Modern delivery

Technology and mobile occupational health

Ranka Limited mobile occupational health services

Dr Ranka has developed a mobile occupational health technician service that brings workplace health assessments directly to an employer’s premises. Mobile clinics can provide services such as audiometry, spirometry and health surveillance while reducing disruption to the working day.

He is also involved in the development of NewGen Occupational Health System, a platform shaped by discussions with occupational health doctors and nurses, HR professionals, police teams and people with operational policing experience. Its purpose is to support the way occupational health teams actually work.

Ranka Limited operates within a strong governance framework and holds five ISO certifications: ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 27001 and ISO 42001.

Academic foundation

Research and evidence

Before specialising in Occupational Medicine, Dr Ranka developed a strong background in surgery and medical research. He completed an MD by research at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, focusing on oesophageal cancer.

His laboratory-based and clinical research has been published and presented at scientific meetings in the UK and internationally, including in the United States. He has also authored and contributed to professional publications covering occupational medicine, workplace health, dentistry and surgery.

That research background continues to inform his practice: medical opinion should be evidence-based, but it must also make sense in the real workplace.

In clients’ words

Trusted for care, detail and clarity

Fair, intelligent and enquiring style and questions during the assessment. A fair, balanced, and insightful report.

Customer feedback

Dr Ranka and his team are very proactive, punctual, and always quick to respond to any queries, resolve issues efficiently, and maintain a high standard of service.

Client feedback

Support for your workplace

Speak with Ranka Limited about occupational health support tailored to your organisation.

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