Irshaad Ebrahim obtained his medical degree from the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, South Africa. After completeing a research fellowship in Canada, he trained in Psychiatry at University College, London and Guy's King's and St. Thomas' Hospitals.

He has postgraduate qualifications in Family Therapy, Neuropharmacology and the Neuropsychiatry of Sleep and Memory disorders. He was appointed as a substantive Consultant Neuropsychiatrist in Sleep Disorders in 2002 at St. Thomas' Hospital, London. 

In 2003, he was instrumental in the set up of The London Sleep Centre and in 2005, The Edinburgh Sleep Centre (www.edinburghsleepcentre.com). His Clinical interests include the treatment of patients with Insomnia, Parasomnias (Behaviours in Sleep), Narcolepsy and Memory disorders. 

His research interests include studying the role of the brain peptide Hypocretin (Orexin) in Narcolepsy, Excessive Sleepiness, Memory and Neurological Disorders. In addition ,he leads an active clinical research programme for new treatments for Insomnia, Depression and Anxiety Disorders. 

He has published in a variety of peer-reviewed publications and books. He is a member of the British Medical Association, The British Sleep Society, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, The British Neuropsychiatry Association, the Royal College of Psychiatrists and a committee member of the Royal Society of Medicine section on Sleep Medicine. He has established an international research collaboration in Narcolepsy with Professor Jerome Siegel at The Centre for Neurobiology Research at UCLA, California.

More recently,he has established a Screening Programme for Sleep Disorders in Commercial and other drivers in the UK & Southern Africa.