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NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Undergraduate Research in the school of medicine  

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH DAY OCTOBER 19th, 2012                                                                                   Embedded within the School of Medicine’s Strategic Plan (2010-2014) is the overarching objective of supporting and developing undergraduate research activity within the Curriculum. By supporting and developing undergraduate research activity the School of Medicine is developing high calibre doctors with enormous research potential. Furthermore, it may encourage the development of the next generation of physician-scientists.

The Undergraduate Research Meeting took place this year on October 19^th.  The meeting included 63 presentations from students in every year in the medical school, from foundation to final years.  There were 32 oral presentations and 31 poster presentations.  The standard was absolutely outstanding, and practically all disciplines in the medical school were represented.  There was an astonishing array of research, from basic research, through epidemiology and laboratory work, and clinical research.  The adjudicators were hugely impressed with the quality not just of the presentations, but the science underpinning the research work, not least with the dedication of the students involved.

The meeting was bookended by talks from Professors Kathy Murphy and Declan Devane from the School of Nursing on Collaborative Research, the medical grand rounds delivered by Captain John Flanagan, an airline pilot who talked about Safety Issues in Medicine, and by Dr. Ruth Gilmore, Consultant Haematologist GUH who delivered the 17^th annual John D. Kennedy Memorial Lecture. 

The James P. Murray Memorial Gold Medal winner was Fiona Nolan, a third year medical student in the discipline of Paediatrics, whose paper on Glycaemic Control in Adolescent Diabetics was superb.  The winner of the best basic science paper was Aoife Murray coincidentally a granddaughter of James P. Murray.  The best clinical project prize was awarded to Louise Lyons-Mehl.  The programme, and indeed all research matters are overseen by the Undergraduate Research Committee, to whose hardworking members I would like to pay tribute for the help and support throughout the year.

2012 was a very good year for Radiology undergraduates, there were some excellent results.

 Pictured left to right Maria Conneely, Dympna O'Dwyer, Professor Peter McCarthy, Antoinette Flannery

 1)Maria Conneely winner of Fielding medal of Faculty of Radiologists RCSI, (subsequenty her paper on CT scanning in Renal cell carcinoma has been accepted for European society of Radiology, the second largest meeting in the world which will be held in Vienna in March and will have 25,000 attendees as well as a worldwide audience online) 3rd med. Mountbellew Co Galway

 2)Dympna O'Dwyer winner of Watts medal Health Rsearch board for best paper in summer student projects Final med. Her project was overseen by me during the summer and was based on the incidence, prevalence and diagnosis of prostate cancer. Mulliagh Co Clare

 3)Antoinette Flannery winner of 2nd place medal in Henry Hutchinson Stewart scholarship In Clincial radiology at the National University of Ireland now an intern. This was the inaugural exam in this discipline for which Antoinette was qualified by finishing in one of the top places in Radiology in the final medical exams. Castlebar Co Mayo.

Professor Peter McCarthy                                                                                                                                      Chairman of Undergraduate Research Committee

Henry Hutchinson Stewart Medical Scholarships 2012

The competition for the award of the Henry Hutchinson prizes is run annually across the NUI Universities and is a competition across 21 different categories open to students of Medicine, Nursing and related health areas. The profile of NUI Galway health-related degree programmes means that our students can compete in 19 of these categories. It offers an excellent framework to compare student excellence and achievement on a national scale, as it is open to students in most of the Medical Schools and the key Nursing Schools in Ireland.

Top performing students in each discipline in the School of Medicine are selected by the Professors of those Disciplines on the basis of their yearly summative assessment in that discipline.  The HHS are based on written exams in each discipline and these papers are set by extern examiners outside of Ireland in each discipline who are experts in that field. Students from UCD, UCC and RCSI also compete.

This year (2012) of 19 eligible categories, NUI, Galway students were awarded 2 Firsts, 5 Seconds, 8 Thirds and one commendation.  This clearly highlights the high calibre of students studying in NUI Galway programmes and follows previous successes in these annual awards.  I congratulate each of the Award recipients on their achievement, which will add to their academic reputation.  The awards were presented at a ceremony in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Dublin on November 2012.

 

The award recipients were Antoinette Flannery (Clinical Radiology), Cliona Small (Obstetrics & Gynaecology), Larissa Higgins and Teresa O'Dowd (Obstetrics & Gynaecology), Caoilfhionn Connolly (Medical Microbiology), Laura Nestor (Medicine), Elizabeth Howard (Midwifery), Yvonne McDonagh (Nursing), Elaine O'Connell  (Occupational Therapy), Jennifer Scott (Paediatrics),  Sarah Cormican (Pathology),  Conor Fahy (Pharmacology), Sinead Coen  (Physiology) Patricia Ruane and Veronica Smith (Podiatry), Craig Mac Liathain and Darren Kilmartin (Public Health) and Sarah Mahoney (Speech & Language)

In (2011) NUIGalway School of Medicine achieved 16 of a possible 39 award in 19 subject areas, 4 firsts, 6 seconds, 4 thirds and 2 commendations.

In (2010) NUIGalway School of Medicine achieved 14 of a possible 39 awards in 13 subject areas, six firsts, five seconds and three thirds. 

In 2009 Students of the medical school entered 13 disciplines; - Medical Microbiology, Medicine, Pathology, Pharmacology, Psychiatry, Physiology, Public Health, Paediatrics, Surgery, Anatomy, Biochemistry, General Practice and Obstetrics & Gynaecology.  Nursing students competed in the Nursing category.

From these categories students were awarded four 1^st prizes; 2 2^nd; 6 3^rd; and 2 commendations.  These results build on the extraordinary achievements of previous years also, which place the Schools of Medicine and of Nursing and Midwifery to the fore nationally in student performance and student-focussed education, and which signify the dedication and the professional of approach of our students and staff.

The 2008 year was truly exceptional, - of 14 categories entered, NUI Galway was awarded nine 1st prizes; five 2nd prizes; five 3rd prizes and one commendation (highly ranked, already a Scholarship winner). 

Some historical background about the competition and about Henry Hutchinson Stewart can be taken from the website of the National University of Ireland ( http://www.nui.ie/) along with some information on the structure of the NUI federation.

Congratulations to all the Scholarship winners and to their teachers.

Cross Border Partnership on Diabetes Related Research                   

NUI Galway and the University of Ulster have joined forces with HSE West and the Western Health and Social Care Trust to create a collaborative cross-border partnership on diabetes-related research. The “Atlantic - Alliance for Cooperation on Research into Diabetes” (Atlantic - ACORD) initiative brings together clinicians and researchers from the health service, academia and industry, and patients to develop innovative solutions to problems related to the growing problem of diabetes.

Diabetes has been targeted because of its increasing prevalence and the associated health care costs. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is 4-5%, and 1 in 10 pregnancies develop gestational diabetes.

Participants will also include allied health professionals, including dieticians, podiatrists, diabetes specialist nurses, IT specialists and psychologists. Priority research areas for the partnership are health technologies, the use of geographical information systems in database analysis, diabetes in pregnancy, and beta cell engineering. These research themes represent some of the key needs for patients in the region and will form the initial focus of further collaborative research proposals.

Professor Fidelma Dunne, Head of the School of Medicine at NUI Galway, said: “Tackling diabetes has become an international healthcare priority in the western world. This new research alliance, Atlantic -ACORD, is all about joined-up thinking and pooling resources and expertise north and south of the border”.

The ultimate aim of the initiative is to enhance the quality of life for patients with diabetes mellitus, and to focus on prevention, treatment and management of the disease. The participant organisations are enthusiastic about the prospect of a formal cross-border initiative in diabetes research, helping tackle this disease, which is a both a growing problem in society and major healthcare service challenge.

Professor Finbarr O'Harte of the University of Ulster, said: “The Atlantic - ACORD initiative is an exciting opportunity for us all to pool our expertise in the field of diabetes research for the benefit of diabetes sufferers. This cross-border cooperation should help bring real improvements in prevention, treatment and management of diabetes in this catchment area”.

Welcoming the initiative, Dr Maurice O'Kane, Head of Research and Development, Western Trust, and C-TRIC, said: “The establishment of Atlantic-ACORD is another significant step forward in putting in place strong systems for research into prevention and treatment of diabetes. This will help us engage even more widely with experts both in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which will lead to real benefits in how we understand and treat diabetes". It is planned to collaborate with other diabetes centres and work towards an all-island diabetes research network.

Federation of Infection Socities 2009 Award for Student at NUI Galway

Ms Fiona Boyle, a PhD student in the School of Medicine recently presented at the Federation of Infection Societies Meeting in Birmingham and was awarded the MSD award for the best research on ESBL's entitled "Characterisation of plasmids associated with a novel beta-lactamase phenotype (Cefepimase) in Salmonella Typhimurium".

The event was hugely successful and attracted over 700 visitors over the 3 day programme. Speakers at the conference included  Professor Neil Fergusson (MRC Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modeling) and Dr Frank Rijsberman (Google.org) speaking on topics such as H1N1, MRSA and  Epidemics.  The event was broadcast on BBC and ITV channels in the UK.

The School would like to extend its graduations to Michelle on this fine achievement.

NUI Galway Lecturer wins Outstanding Young Person of the Year Award

Thursday, 21 May, 2009: Dr David Finn, Lecturer in Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Science Foundation Ireland Principal Investigator and co-director of the Centre for Pain Research at NUI Galway has received an award from Junior Chamber International (JCI) Ireland as one of Ireland’s outstanding young persons of the year aged 18-40 (TOYP). He was awarded winner of the Scientific Development category on the basis of academic and scientific achievements and community service/civic engagement in his research. David will now represent Ireland in this category in the World JCI TOYP competition.

By recognising the achievements of young people, JCI encourages them and others to seek excellence and serve others. It’s just one way that JCI contributes to preparing better leaders, who will create better societies. Awards are made in ten categories, which also include personal accomplishment; cultural achievement; political, legal and/or governmental achievement; and voluntary leadership.

Dr Finn, originally from Ballycahill, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, was nominated by JCI Galway for his contribution to neuroscience and pain research. Local president, Brenda Gannon says: “we are delighted to nominate a high calibre scientist and researcher from NUI Galway, and we have great hope for Dr Finn to succeed at the international event”.

On receiving the award in Dublin, Dr Finn addressed the audience about his work and gave significant note of thanks to past and present mentors, NUI Galway colleagues and collaborators, and the members of his research team.  Dr Finn also acknowledged research funding received from Science Foundation Ireland, the Health Research Board, the Higher Education Authority, the Irish Research Council for Science Engineering and Technology and the International Association for the Study of Pain.

For further information on Dr David Finn please click on the following link http://www.nuigalway.ie/pharmacology/Dr_David_Finn.html

    

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