monica casey

Monica graduated from the College of Mt St Vincent in New York with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Degree and practiced as an Assistant Head Nurse of a Medical/Surgical Unit in Westchester County Medical Centre, Valhalla, New York.

While raising her three daughters in the rural area of the Burren in Co Clare, she forged a new path in business, book-keeping, proofreading and rural project management while utilizing the internet as a tool of choice for research in educational matters, skills updates, travel and other interests. Monica joined the Department of General Practice in 2011 and is currently working as a project developer and research assistant on the international NPP funded ’Implementing Transnational Telemedicine Solutions’ ( http://www.transnational-telemedicine.eu/) with Patrick Hayes and Liam Glynn, Primary Investigator. 

Research Interests

• Bringing technology to rural areas with the goal of improving healthcare

• Project management

Current project

Implementing Transnational Telemedicine Solutions (ITTS), a connected health project, includes the implementation of a selection of ten demonstrator projects utilizing technology in health care across the Northern Periphery. The Western Research and Education Network ( http://westren.nuigalway.ie/), established by the Department of General Practice, NUI Galway, whose  mission is to “support primary care research and education in order to improve the quality of care delivered to patients in the community” is a key collaborator  on the ITTS project with NUI Galway and Scotland, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Northern Ireland. The international ITTS team will be implementing innovative health service solutions in rural areas with the use of the technologies of Smartphones and Videoconferencing Units to improve accessibility of health care, reduce transport costs and carbon footprint, normalise the use of technology into everyday health practice in a sustainable manner and encourage uptake of telemedicine services by other areas and specialities.

Research experience

Implementing Transnational Telemedicine Solutions ( http://www.transnational-telemedicine.eu/). 

’The Effect of Therapeutic Touch on the Elderly’ was a research project Monica conducted during college. The orientation of elderly residents in the Hebrew Home for the Aged in Riverdale, New York, who did not have regular visitors, was assessed using a modified mini-mental test score. The intervention was an hour per week over 8 weeks with each elderly resident holding their hand and conversing during each visit. The final assessment, using the same questionnaire showed that through this simple interaction the orientation of the elderly residents improved from the regular visits and physical contact.

Selected Publications

Hayes PS, Casey M, Glynn LG ITTS your move….! A Smartphone-based intervention to promote physical activity in primary care. Submitted for Forum August 2012.

Hayes PS, Casey M, Glynn LG Managing diabetes, smartphone technology to promote physical activity. Submitted for Diabetes Professional August 2012.