[3] His father Professor J. L. C. Rodrigo from a famous family of Panadura was a Ryde Gold Medal winner at Trinity College, Kandy, read classics at Oxford University as a contemporary of S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike and was Professor of Western Classics at the University of Ceylon.
[8] Rodrigo is referred to as "the godfather of the quest to reduce maternal mortality and doyen of obstetricians" by Dr MALR Perera Secretary of Health.
[9] Rodrigo was President Sri Lanka College of Obstetricians 1981-83 and served on its council for two decades and was also Editor and its Patron.
He also served as chairman of the Board of Study in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine University of Colombo [10] Rodrigo also served as chairman of the board at Sri Jayawardanapura General Hospital and medical director of Asha Central Hospital,[11][12] During his tenure as chairman between 1988 and 1994 with Dr RC Rajapakse was medical director and Dr. Narme Wikramasinghe as Deputy Medical Director,[13] the hospital developed specialist units such as Renal Disease (Dr Chula Herath) [citation needed] in addition to others where local expertise was lacking like scoliosis surgery through attracting specialists based overseas such as Professor Randunna Corea,[14] which ceased after his demise and Diabetes and Endocrinology through Professor Devaka Fernando,[15][16] who moved the department to the university in 1992.
[citation needed] The Sri Lanka College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists commemorates his work through an annual award of a gold medal for an oration [17] and the postgraduate Institute of Medicine awards a gold medal for best performance at its examination.