Dr Mike Grocott - Director and Expedition Leader

Holds degrees in Immunology and Medicine from the University of London. Currently Consultant in Intensive Care Medicine, Southampton General Hospital and Senior Lecturer in Intensive Care Medicine at the Portex Unit, Institute of Child Health, UCL. Honorary Senior Lecturer in high-altitude physiology at UCL. Co-Founder and Director of CASE. Acting Director of Research and Development at the Whittington Hospital NHS Trust. Between 2005 and 2008 Mike was the Deputy-Director of the UCL Institute of Human Health and Performance. Mike's research interests include human responses to hypoxia, measuring and improving outcome following high-risk surgery and fluid therapy. He has co-authored more than 60 peer-reviewed scientific publications.

He has been climbing and mountaineering for more than 25 years, has been on 11 high altitude expeditions to the Himalaya and South American Andes (6 as leader) and has extensive remote environment medical experience as medical officer and co-ordinating high altitude medical research projects. Mike led the 2006 Caudwell Xtreme Everest Cho Oyu expedition and the 2007 Caudwell Xtreme Everest Expedition. He has ascended over 5000m on more than 40 occasions with multiple ascents to, and ski descents from, over 6000m and two ascent of 8000m peaks (Cho Oyu, 8201m, 2006; Everest 8850m, 2007). He is a qualified UK Mountain Leader and is on the faculty of the UK UIAA diploma in Mountain Medicine.

In the autumn of 2004 Mike was one of two resident physicians at the Himalayan Rescue Association Aid Post at Pheriche, Everest Base Camp Trek, Nepal.

Mike has been married since Febuary 2006 to Denny Levett who was the Caudwell Xtreme Everest Expedition Medical Officer and one of two Deputy Research Leaders.