Reducing the burden of home sleep testing in secondary care

Dr Mandal qualified in medicine at Guy’s, King’s and St Thomas’ Medical School. Following graduation, she specialised in respiratory medicine after completing her medical rotation. She completed her postgraduate training in London. Having undertaken a period of research, Dr Mandal received a PhD from King’s College London for her work in the Lane Fox unit in the investigation and management of ventilatory failure. Dr Mandal presents at international conferences and has published in several international peer-reviewed journals, demonstrating the use of novel diagnostic techniques in ventilatory failure and published the NERO trial demonstrating the respiratory, cardiovascular and exercise capacity benefits of targeted weight loss in obesity hypoventilation syndrome.  She has also been involved in the development on international guidance for bronchoscopy and advanced bronchoscopy with the British Thoracic Society.  She is now the lead Consultant Physician in Sleep and Ventilation at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, focusing on the management of sleep-disordered breathing.

The service covers a large geographical area treating a range of patients with often complex needs including those with progressive neurological disorders and ventilatory failure.  Additionally, she has set up a joint respiratory and palliative advanced respiratory care clinic for patients with chronic respiratory conditions requiring input from both specialties. She is also the clinical lead for lung function services across the trust and has introduced innovative diagnostic pathways. She continues her pursuit of academic interests in sleep and ventilation medicine and is supervising several PhD students as well as actively improving patient care through quality improvement projects. She recently won a BMJ award for an innovative outpatient pathway and was a regional finalist for the Peter-Carr Award.