Dr John Chinegwundoh - Consultant Respiratory Physician in Kingston, Chelsea and Ashtead

Dr John Chinegwundoh is a Consultant Respiratory Physician who has been treating patients in London and Surrey since 2004. He sees people with a persistent cough, unexplained breathlessness, asthma, chest infections and disturbed sleep, and takes the time to reach a definite answer rather than a probable one.

Training and qualifications

Born in London, Dr Chinegwundoh completed his secondary education at Dulwich College before winning a place to read Medicine at Cambridge University. He graduated from Emmanuel College with a first class honours degree, winning the highly prestigious Albert Hopkinson Prize for Medicine.

He qualified as a doctor in 1994 and held a variety of posts throughout his training, giving him a wide spectrum of clinical experience. These included the Royal Brompton, Guy's and St Thomas', Hammersmith Hospital, The Royal Free Hospital and University College Hospital.

Dr Chinegwundoh then won a competitive Medical Scholarship and spent three years on an International Fellowship at the world-renowned Columbia University in New York, where he completed his Doctorate degree studying the inflammatory process.

Clinical experience and NHS leadership

In 2004 Dr Chinegwundoh was appointed a Consultant Respiratory Physician at Kingston Hospital, becoming Senior Chest Consultant in 2009. From 2018 to 2022 he served as Clinical Director for Medicine, leading more than 500 staff across cardiology, respiratory medicine, elderly care, diabetes, endocrinology, neurology and the therapy services.

He continues to practise at Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation Trust, where he is also Trust Lead for Health Equity and Co-Chair of the Minority Ethnic Network for Doctors and Dentists.

Covid-19 and Long Covid

Dr Chinegwundoh spent the pandemic on the front line at London hospitals, and led the medical departments at Kingston Hospital as Clinical Director throughout it. That period shaped a large part of his practice today.

He has since assessed and treated hundreds of patients with Long Covid. His approach is to identify precisely what is causing the symptoms rather than treating Long Covid as a single condition. In many patients the problem turns out to be an asthma-type syndrome affecting the bronchial tubes, which responds well to targeted inhaled treatment. In others the immune system continues reacting after the virus has cleared, producing a pattern called organising pneumonia that improves with a course of steroid therapy. Specialist lung function testing is what separates these cases.

His clear message to patients is that they should not accept living with these symptoms indefinitely. With a proper diagnosis and a structured recovery programme, the large majority improve.

Long Covid: what it is and how to manage the symptoms

Covid-19 and COPD

Dr Chinegwundoh has also written extensively on lung health during and after the pandemic. Read his published articles

Research and clinical interests

Following on from his Doctorate research studying the immune system and the lungs, Dr Chinegwundoh holds a particularly strong interest in the diagnosis and treatment of persistent cough, COPD, asthma, interstitial lung disease and respiratory infections. He also sees a large number of patients for unexplained breathlessness, sleep and snoring problems, lung nodules, bronchiectasis and concerns about lung cancer.

He has a particular interest in the effect of air pollution on the lungs, and in respiratory symptoms affecting runners and cyclists.

Leadership beyond the clinic

• Using AI to detect lung cancer earlier. Since 2024, clinical lead on a predictive AI project with Johnson & Johnson and South West London ICB, identifying people at high risk of lung cancer who fall outside standard screening criteria. Read the case study
• President of the Cambridge Medical Graduates' Society, representing over 2,500 Cambridge-trained doctors across the UK. www.cambridgemedgrads.co.uk
• Host of 'Health Meets Tech' at Google London, bringing 200 doctors together with industry leaders in collaboration with YouTube Health. About the event
• Governor, Reed's School, Cobham, since 2023. Governor profile
• Founding Chief Medical Officer, Coherent Healthcare, and Chair of its Medical Advisory Board.

Professional memberships

• Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (London)
• Member of the British Medical Association
• Member of the British Thoracic Society
• Member of the European Respiratory Society
• Member of the American Thoracic Society

Outside the clinic

Dr Chinegwundoh plays tennis twice weekly at club level and trains regularly, which is partly why he takes exercise-related breathing problems seriously in clinic. He is a keen film enthusiast and a former Patron of the British Film Institute.

Why choose me as your specialist

• First class training at Cambridge, with a Doctorate from Columbia University
• NHS consultant since 2004, with over 20 years in private practice alongside
• Fast diagnostic tests, often with results at the same visit
• Early morning and evening clinics across four hospitals
• Care in a clean and friendly private clinic
• On-site secretary for one-stop billing and queries
• Direct links with the NHS if care needs to be transferred