Walter McNicholas, MD, FRCPI, FRCPC, FCCP (Sleep Section)

PROFESSOR WALTER MCNICHOLAS MD, FRCPI, FRCPC, FCCP, FERS is Newman Clinical Research Professor at University College Dublin (UCD) and a Principal Clinical Investigator at the UCD Conway Institute. He is also Consultant Respiratory Physician at St. Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin. Walter is current President of the European Sleep Research Society and a former President of the European Respiratory Society. He is a medical graduate of UCD and undertook his postgraduate training in Respiratory and Sleep Medicine at the University of Toronto, Canada. He has a long established track record in high level research and leadership and is an international authority in translational research on the mechanisms and consequences of sleep-related breathing disorders particularly sleep apnoea. He and has held competitive peer-reviewed grants from funding agencies such as the Health Research Board (Ireland) on a continuous basis for the past 30 years.

Prof. McNicholas is part of a multidisciplinary research group based in St. Vincent’s and the UCD Conway Institute and has ongoing collaborations with other research groups within UCD and internationally. Research interests include the pathophysiology, treatment and outcomes of sleep apnoea syndrome, the cardiovascular and metabolic consequences of the disorder, basic cell and molecular mechanisms and consequences of intermittent hypoxia, in addition to sleep disturbances in COPD and other chronic respiratory disorders. He is also closely involved in the evaluation of novel ambulatory monitoring devices for sleep disorders, and has taken a strong leadership role in research and policy matters relating to driving risk in sleep apnoea.

Prof. McNicholas is a past Associate Editor of the European Respiratory Journal, and has published over full 200 papers in International Peer-reviewed Journals (2017 h-index = 60) in addition to more than 30 book chapters, and he has edited 4 textbooks on breathing disorders during sleep. He serves on the Editorial Boards of several International Respiratory and Sleep Journals and has supervised numerous PhD and other postgraduate students in his laboratory over many years.

Prof. McNicholas has held many Leadership positions in National and International organisations, particularly as President of the European Respiratory Society (2003-2004), Vice President of the European Sleep Research Society (2012-2016), and President of the European Board of Accreditation in Pneumology (2010-2014). During his Presidential tenure of ERS, important achievements included the establishment of the Advocacy Committee and the formation of the Forum of European Respiratory Societies, which placed advocacy as a core function of the Society. He Chaired a COST Action (B26) on Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (2005-2010), and recently chaired a Working Group established by the European Commission on Sleep Apnoea and Driving (2012-2014), which led to an official EU Directive on this topic that became mandatory in January 2016.