Speakers – Irish Global Health Network Conference 2022

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Uncategorized

September 9, 2022

Day 1 Speakers
Dr Enida Friel, IGHN Board Member and Head of Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning, GOAL Dr Enida Friel, trained as a medical doctor in her native Albania. She holds a Master in Public Health, a two Diplomas on Reproductive Health and Tropical Medicine from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. She has over 20 years of experience in humanitarian and development contexts including field experience in Sub-Saharan Africa, South East Asia and the Balkans. She worked for Oxfam for 14 years first as HIV and AIDS Coordinator and then as Programme Quality Manager. She has lectured in Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, Maynooth University and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine along with supervising master research students. Her early research was on quality of maternal health services, whereas more recently she has researched evaluation of public health advocacy, disability inclusiveness, and results-based management in development. Dr Friel currently works at GOAL as Head of Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning.
Michael Gaffey, Director General, Development Cooperation and Africa Division (Irish Aid), DFAD Michael Gaffey has been the Director General, Development Cooperation and Africa Division (Irish Aid), DCAD since August 2022. Before his appointment to DCAD, he was the Permanent Representative of Ireland to the United Nations in Geneva, following terms as Director General for Development, Middle East Director, Director for the Western Balkans and South East Europe. His previous postings with the Department of Foreign Affairs were in Tokyo, London, Cairo, Amman, Baghdad, Belfast and Chicago.
Sarah O'Toole, CEO, CBM Ireland Sarah O'Toole was appointed as CEO of CBM Ireland in 2014, having previously worked with organisations such as Trócaire, Special Olympics International, Concern and Soul of Haiti Foundation with whom she spent two years in Haiti leading the Brand Haiti project. Her career also spans the corporate world with management roles in Colliers International, ACCA Ireland, Coyle Hamilton and Law Library Financial Services.  Sarah is current Chair of Dóchas, the Irish Association of Non-Government Development Organisations, having previously served as Vice Chair and co-chair of the Dóchas Disability in International Development Working Group. She holds a Masters in International Strategic Marketing from DCU Business School, a Professional Diploma in Creativity, Innovation & Leadership from UCD, and is a former board member of Boardmatch Ireland.
Dr Colm Henry, Chief Clinical Officer, HSE Dr Colm Henry was appointed as Chief Clinical Officer of the HSE in April 2018. He previously served as the National Clinical Advisor and Group Lead for Acute Hospitals from 2014 –2018, National Lead for the Clinical Director Programme from 2012 to 2014 and Clinical Director of the Mercy University Hospital Cork from 2009 to 2012. Following medical qualification, he underwent training initially in Ireland and completed higher specialty training in Scotland. He returned to Ireland following his appointment to the Mercy University Hospital as Consultant Geriatrician in 2002. As the HSE’s first Chief Clinical Officer, he is responsible for aligning clinical expertise and leadership across the healthcare system from service and policy design to planning and implementation. A core function of the post is the design and implementation of clinical models of care to respond to and meet the challenges of healthcare in the 21stcentury. His office also is responsible for setting quality and patient safety standards across the health system and ensuring these are met. He is accountable for a number of key national services such as the National Cancer Control Programme and National Screening Service as well as Public Health reform. Dr Henry has lead the clinical response within the HSE to the COVID-19 Pandemic since the first case emerged in February 2019 provided clinical leadership to the HSE Vaccine programme and its rollout to the Irish population. He attended University College Dublin where he obtained his MB BCh BAO in 1988, and the National University of Ireland, Galway, where he received a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in the Irish language 2017.
Siobhan Walsh, CEO, GOAL Siobhan Walsh took up her role as CEO of GOAL, the humanitarian aid agency with headquarters in Ireland, in August 2018. Siobhan joined GOAL with 27 years’ experience in the set-up, development and management of NGOs and has experience in countries across Asia and Africa including Sudan, Chad, Rwanda, DR Congo, Liberia, Malawi, Sierra Leone, India, Ethiopia, Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, Afghanistan and Somalia. Siobhan worked in the US for 17 years where she led the start-up and growth of Concern Worldwide US as Executive Director. During that period, she served as Project Director for a five-year Concern Worldwide research and development project which was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The project titled ‘Innovations for Maternal Newborn and Child Health’ focused on Sierra Leone, India, Malawi and Ghana. Following her departure from Concern Worldwide US, Siobhan spent two years in the private sector in mergers and acquisitions in the US and China. She also worked as Strategy Advisor with the founders of the Rory Staunton Foundation, an NGO which focused on sepsis education and prevention. In addition, Siobhan was Strategy Advisor for CyArk, a cultural heritage recording related NGO with headquarters in San Francisco. Siobhan holds a bachelors’ degree in French and Economics from UCC, and post-graduate diplomas in Social/Economic Policy and Community Development and Marketing. Siobhan was awarded the position of Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum, 2007 – 2012. Other leadership training includes Harvard Executive Management School, Yale University and George Mason University. GOAL works with highly vulnerable communities across the world, to help them respond to and recover from humanitarian crises. GOAL assists these communities to strengthen their local systems and build solutions to lift them out of poverty and vulnerability. GOAL with a staff of 3,500, is currently active in 15 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America and now in Ukraine. For more information, please visit https://www.goalglobal.org/
Priscilla Lynch, Clinical Editor, Medical Independent Priscilla Lynch is an award winning medical and health journalist with over 16 years experience covering the sector. She is Clinical Editor of the Medical Independent, Editor of Update clinical journals, and Editor of the NurseCPD and DoctorCPD websites. She also freelances for a number of national newspapers, Medscape UK, and is a regular contributor on healthcare news to the Last Word on Today FM, RTE 1 Drivetime and many other radio shows. Twitter handle: @priscillalynch
Dr Julian Eaton, Mental Health Director, CBM Global Julian Eaton is the Mental Health Director for CBM Global Disability and Inclusion. He works with a team focused on improving access to care and support, and promoting the voice of people with psychosocial disabilities in low and middle income countries. He is an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Global Mental Health at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, where he is currently leading a number of research projects looking at strengthening community-based mental health care, reform of public mental health systems in Africa, and promoting greater participation in research. He leads the Mental Health Innovations Network at LSHTM, and is Chair of the Bond International NGO Mental Health Group. Julian trained as a psychiatrist in London where he now works, after living and working in West Africa between 2003 and 2017.
Pamela Molina, Executive Director, World Federation of the Deaf Pamela Molina is Chilean and is currently the World Federation of the Deaf Executive Director. She participated in the drafting process of the United Nations Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and has over 15 years of work experience in the international human rights field. She holds a Master's in Disability Studies from the University of Illinois in Chicago. Ms. Molina is a recognized advocate and speaker on disability rights, linguistic rights, and minorized groups' rights. She has also published several articles on these matters.
Dr Ahmed Shadoul, Secretary-General, Sudan Medical Specialization Board Dr. Shadoul is the Secretary-General for Sudan Medical Specialization Board, the only institute responsible for professional medical and allied health post-graduate training in Sudan. Over 12,000 residents are currently enrolled in training in more than 300 accredited training sites mentored by 2000 trainers all over Sudan. He is also the Director of the Arab Health Specialization Board, Sudan Office. Moreover, Dr. Shadoul is a Senior Advisor to the Government of Sudan, Federal Minister of Health, and Minister of Planning and International Cooperation. He played a paramount role during the efforts to manage and control COVID-19 Pandemic in Sudan and supported the Federal and State Ministries of health in dealing with the huge load on the health systems during the peaks, coping, and restoring of health system functionality. He was appointed the Good Will Ambassador for Health Promotion and Protection in Sudan.
Dr Trish Scanlan currently holds 3 posts: 1. Paediatric Oncologist at Muhimbili National Hospital 2. CEO of Tumaini la Maisha Childhood Cancer Charity 3. Interim Director of the Department of Global Health at Children’s Health Ireland. Since 2007 she has been based in Tanzania supporting the development of childhood cancer services and more recently the National Children’s Cancer Network – the NCCN. Over 15 years working in Tanzania Dr Trish has helped establish the following: Today TLM provides support, including all chemotherapy, free of charge, to all paediatric cancer patients at 12 sites across the country. For these children long-term survival rates have improved from less than 10% in 2006 to more than 50% in 2021 and access to treatment has improved 7-fold in 15 years. She has survived breast cancer twice and December 2022 will mark 10 years since her first diagnosis. She was awarded the inaugural alumni award for medicine, by University College Dublin in 2014 and the Kathleen Lynn award for exceptional Service on behalf of children by the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland in 2019. In April she received a special recognition award from Muhimbili University for Health and Allied Sciences, MUHAS, in May 2022 she received an honorary doctorate from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and in Sept she was nominated Doctor of the Year by the Medical Association of Tanzania.
Dr Margaret Fitzgerald, Former National Public Health Lead Social Inclusion and Vulnerable Groups, HSE Dr Margaret Fitzgerald has recently retired from the HSE where she worked in the National Social Inclusion Office. She was the National PH Lead for Social inclusion and Vulnerable groups for over five years. Prior to that she was regional director of PH in the East region. During her career she has worked in diverse settings including Ireland, UK, Sub Saharan Africa where she worked with GOAL, MSF and UN agencies. After early post graduate training in Paediatrics and general practice she retained her interest in topics allied to these themes in broader public health as well as community development as well as humanitarian, infectious disease threats and epidemic responses.
My name is Victoria Lenihan, and I am a registered nurse living in Denver, Colorado, USA. I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Regis University in 2019. During my undergrad, working under Dr. Shane Kanatous, I participated in a Research Experience for the Undergraduate (REU) sponsored by the Colorado State University Molecular Biology Department. We produced cutting-edge findings applicable to cardiovascular health, which ignited my passion for medical research, specifically, the importance of evidence-based practices in healthcare. Before attending Trinity College Dublin in 2022, I worked as an organ transplant nurse at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I was reallocated to COVID surge units. My experience as a frontline worker during the pandemic gave me insight into the lack of public health infrastructure and its inability to meet the needs of Colorado's marginalized communities. Globalization, climate change, and international conflicts are just a few direct threats to human health and well-being while exacerbating existing social inequities. In partial fulfillment of my MSc. in Global Health from Trinity College Dublin, I conducted research within the European Commission-funded REFUGE-ED project. My dissertation, which earned the John Kevany award, investigated the relationship between child-teacher relationships and refugee child well-being to identify post-settlement factors that influence positive mental health outcomes in forcibly displaced children.
Sally Hayden, Journalist and Photographer Sally Hayden is an award-winning journalist and photographer focused on migration, human rights and humanitarian crises. Her book 'My Fourth Time, We Drowned: Seeking Refuge on the World's Deadliest Migration Route' won the 2022 Orwell Prize for Political Writing, and is shortlisted for the Michel Déon Prize and the Moore Prize for Human Rights Writing.  Sally is currently the Africa correspondent for the Irish Times, and has also worked with VICE News, CNN International, the Financial Times, TIME, BBC, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the New York Times, Channel 4 News, Foreign Policy, Al Jazeera and Newsweek, among others.  She has reported from countries including Nigeria, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Burkina Faso, Lebanon, Jordan, the DR Congo, the Gambia, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Somalia and Uganda. In 2019, Sally was included on the Forbes '30 Under 30' list for media in Europe.

Day 2 Speakers
Dr Khalifa Elmusharaf, Associate Professor in Public Health, Director of Public Health Programme, University of Birmingham Dubai Dr Khalifa Elmusharaf, MBBS, PgCert, PgDip, FRSPH, FFPH, IPMA®C, PhD is an Associate Professor and the Director of the Public Health Programme at the University of Birmingham Dubai. Dr Elmusharaf is the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Irish Global Health Network IGHN. He is a fellow of the Faculty of Public Health, Royal College of Physicians UK, an accredited reviewer for the European Agency for Public Health Education Accreditation APHEA, a certified strategic project manager from the International Project Management Association IPMA, and a certified health professional educationalist from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland RCSI. Dr Elmusharaf is an advisor to the WHO on Mother and Newborn Information for Tracking Outcomes and Results and to UNDP on the economics of non-communicable diseases. He is an associate editor at the BMC Public Health, BMC Health Services Research and International Health Journals. Dr Elmusharaf has more than 20 years of experience in academia, ministries of health, and international organizations in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
Dr Mike Ryan, Executive Director, WHO Health Emergencies Programme Dr Mike Ryan has been at the forefront of managing acute risks to global health for nearly 25 years. He served as Assistant Director-General for Emergency Preparedness and Response in WHO's Health Emergencies Programme from 2017 to 2019. Dr Ryan first joined WHO in 1996, with the newly established unit to respond to emerging and epidemic disease threats. He has worked in conflict affected countries and led many responses to high impact epidemics. He is a founding member of the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN), which has aided the response to hundreds of disease outbreaks around the world. He served as Coordinator of Epidemic Response (2000-2003), Operational Coordinator of WHO’s response to the SARS outbreak (2003), and as WHO’s Director of Global Alert and Response (2005-2011), He was a Senior Advisor on Polio Eradication for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative from 2013 to 2017, deploying to countries in the Middle East. He completed medical training at the National University of Ireland, Galway, a Master’s in Public Health at University College Dublin, and specialist training in communicable disease control at the Health Protection Agency in London and the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training.
Robbie Lawlor, Activist and Co-Founder, Access to Medicines Ireland Robbie became active within the HIV community since his diagnosis in 2012. Robbie is a member of the European AIDS Treatment Group and is a co-founder of Access to Medicines Ireland. Robbie is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Dublin City University and has a particular interest in grassroots activism and the access to medicines movement in Eastern Europe. His research is exploring HIV/HEP C treatment activism in Ukraine.
Karyn Morrissey, Professor in Applied Economics, Sustainability Division, Department of Technology, Management, and Economics, Technical University of Denmark Karyn Morrissey in a Professor in Applied Economics under the Sustainability Division of the Department of Technology, Management, and Economics at the Technical University of Denmark. An economist and econometrician by background, but previously working in a Department of Geography (University of Liverpool) and a Medical School (University of Exeter) she situates her work as an inter-disciplinary, methods driven scientist, in the field human health and the environment. Karyn’s research is specifically driven by policy as demonstrated by her work with the Lancet Commission’s ‘The Lancet Countdown: tracking progress on health and climate change’, where she is co-author for Working Group 2 on adaptation, planning, and resilience for health, where she has developed the cities indicator. Completing her PhD in 2009, Karyn’s career highlights include being made a fellow of the prestigious Turing Institute in 2018; contributing to 85+ publications in leading journals including Nature Ecology & Evolution and the Lancet and attracting over £20 million in external funding. Karyn has supervised numerous master students and Ph.D. students
Dr Ina Kelly, Consultant in Public Health Medicine Ina graduated in Medicine in University College Galway, trained in Family Medicine (General Practice) in Perth, Australia, followed by Higher Specialist Training in Public Health Medicine in Faculty of Public Health Medicine/Royal College of Physicians of Ireland and in the WHO, Geneva. She is a Consultant in Public Health Medicine/Medical Officer of Health, working mainly in Health Protection, in Ireland’s Health Services Executive, Area B. Ina is Chair of the national HSE Public Health Medicine Environment and Health Group, which provides the national environment and health functions. She chaired the Adaptation and Resilience subgroup in the development of the HSE Climate Action and Sustainability Strategy. She is a health member on a number of national climate action groups including the Climate Change Advisory Council Adaptation Committee.
Audrey Carville, Broadcaster and Journalist, RTE Audrey Carville is an award winning broadcaster and currently presents Morning Ireland on RTÉ Radio One. Prior to working in RTÉ, Audrey worked for over two decades with the BBC. She presented news programmes for the BBC World Service, BBC Radio 4 & BBC Radio 5Live. Before moving to London, Audrey presented television and radio programmes for BBC Northern Ireland
Dr Mary Keogh, Advocacy Director, CBM Global Dr Mary Keogh is Advocacy Director with CBM Global Disability Inclusion. CBM Global works alongside people with disabilities living in the world’s poorest places to fight poverty and exclusion, to transform lives and build inclusive communities. Mary is responsible for leading on CBM Global Advocacy. CBMG advocacy priorities in partnership with organisations of persons with disabilities, including climate justice, access to health and community based services, inclusive humanitarian access and data for accountability.
Ailbhe Smyth, Feminist and LGBTIQ Activist Ailbhe Smyth is a long-time feminist and LGBTIQ activist and is the former founding head of Women’s Studies at UCD. Ailbhe played a key role in the same-sex marriage campaign and was Co-Director of the Together for Yes repeal campaign. She is currently Chair of Women's Aid, on the board of Age Action and is patron of the Women's Collective Ireland.  In 2019, she was included in Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people list, and was conferred with the freedom of the city of Dublin in 2022.
Dr Frédérique Vallières, Associate Professor of Global Health, and Director of the Trinity Centre for Global Health, Trinity College Dublin Frédérique Vallières, BSc, MSc, PhD is an Associate Professor of Global Health, the Director of the Trinity Centre for Global Health (Trinity College Dublin), and the mother of two young, inexhaustible children. Dr. Vallières’ current research focuses on the application of Psychology to Global Health, with a focus on Global Mental Health, Mental Health System Strengthening, and Human Resources for Health. Concerned with closing the research-to-practice gap prevalent within Global Health, Dr. Vallières prioritises working in close collaboration with civil society organisations and through multidisciplinary consortiums comprising European, sub-Saharan African, Asian, and Middle Eastern partners.
Eunice T Philip, Global Health PhD Scholar, School of Population Health, RCSI and Coordinator of the Student Outreach Team, IGHN Eunice has over ten years of nursing experience in emergency, TB/HIV, childhood immunisation, and several community-level projects, including the WHO ‘Kick Polio program’ in Nigeria. She received her ADN and BScN from the USA and Ireland, respectively. Her MPH dissertation from the University College of Cork titled ‘Household air pollution and anaemia in women and children: a cross-sectional study of six sub-Saharan African countries’ was awarded the Jacqueline Hogan Bronze Medal in Public Health and Epidemiology. Eunice is currently a Global Health PhD scholar and researcher at the School of Population Health, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Her study explores and evaluates community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach and capacity building within ‘The Smokeless Village Project’ in rural Malawi- a holistic intervention project to reduce and bridge the health inequality from lack of access to a cleaner energy source. In addition, she co-coordinates the Irish Global Health Network’ Student Outreach Team’ https://globalhealth.ie/student-outreach/ and sits as a student representative on the RCSI Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion unit. Eunice is passionate about reducing the inequalities, and inequities in health systems, projects, and climate change. The vision is to increase participation to bring the voices of the farthest left behind to the forefront of global health solutions with a touch of humanity.
Peggy Maguire, Director General, European Institute of Women’s Health Peggy Maguire is a Political Scientist and the Director General of the European Institute of Women’s Health (EIWH). In her role as Director General, Ms. Maguire is responsible for directing the strategic planning and policy implementation at the EIWH. Peggy has worked at the international, regional and national level over the last twenty-five years highlighting the need for gender equity in biomedical research, public health and social policy. Prior to her role at the EIWH, Peggy was Director of Development at the National Maternity Hospital, Dublin and Director of the Research and Education Foundation at the Irish College of General Practitioners. As an advocate for a health literate public, Peggy developed a cancer communication and information initiative for and by women to ensure cancer information was women led. As part of her commitment to gender equality, Peggy has been a member of the WHO expert group on gender mainstreaming and contributed to the WHO Women’s Health Strategy for Europe. Peggy is also former President of the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) and board member of the Agency for Public Health Accreditation. Peggy has initiated and contributed to EU funded projects such as Engender-Inventory of good practices in Europe for promoting gender equity in health; Joint Action on Chronic Disease, Chrodis, Engendering Research Ethics Committees (RECs) and EUGenMed, leading the research and the workshop on Sex and Gender in Healthcare Professional Education. In 2019, the Minister for Health in Ireland appointed Peggy co-chair of the Women’s Health Task Force. Ms. Maguire's extensive research and advocacy work supports gender equity, ageing and disability rights as well as the implications of social determinants on health and wellbeing. In October 2021, the WHO Academy Quality Committee announced the appointment of Peggy to its Board.
Ian Hodgson, Associate Editor of the journal Ethnicity and Health, and Academic Supervisor for Global Health-Based Research Studies Ian Hodgson has been involved with the international health sector for over 20 years. Areas of interest include HIV and TB stigma, HIV prevention, sexual and reproductive health and rights, community capacity building, and treatment advocacy. He has worked on projects in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Much of his work involves monitoring and evaluation using a systematic qualitative approach. He also runs workshops on writing and reporting skills for civil society. Ian is an Associate Consultant for Frontline AIDS, and on the board of directors of the European AIDS Treatment Group (EATG). He is also a coordinator of the European HIV Nursing Network, an Associate Editor of the journal Ethnicity and Health, and academic supervisor for global health-based research studies.

Co-Chairs
Jim Clarken, CEO, Oxfam Ireland Jim Clarken is the CEO of Oxfam Ireland and an Executive Director of Oxfam International. He is a Commissioner at the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission and is the Chair of the European Union Fundamental Rights Agency. Jim is a leading commentator on global issues relating to human rights, inequality, sustainable development, the rights of refugees and migrants, and the role of business in protecting and promoting human rights, contributing to political and public debate in a wide range of international fora. A passionate advocate for the rights of women, Jim has driven a gender-focus through Oxfam’s work. He has led Dochas and the Irish Consortium on Gender Based Violence, and was appointed by the Ceann Comhairle to the Forum on Family Friendly and Inclusive Parliament. He was previously involved in managing a Primary Health Care system in South Sudan. Jim is an Adjunct Professor at the School of Business and Law at University College Cork and a regular contributor to academic thought leadership in Ireland and internationally. Prior to joining the international development sector, Jim worked for over 15 years at senior management and board level in a range of industries including energy, pharma, environmental, construction, brewing and start-ups.
Aidan Desjardins, Student Rep, IGHN Student Outreach Team Aidan Desjardins is a final year microbiology student at Trinity College Dublin. He serves as a Student Outreach Team Representative for the Irish Global Health Network and as co-host for the podcast Get Global: Young Professionals Talk Global Health. Further, in the wider Global Health community, he works as a student ambassador for the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene and a Student and Trainee Leadership Group member for the American Committee on Arthropod-borne and Zoonotic Viruses. Aidan’s primary interest is communicable disease epidemiology, with a focus on neglected tropical diseases and emerging zoonoses. He hopes to engage his peers and members of the wider community to learn more about the challenges facing Global Health and to advocate for equitable and sustainable solutions.
Dr Lesley O'Hara, General Manager, St. John of God Research Foundation Dr O’Hara is the General Manager of the Saint John of God Research Foundation clg. Saint John of God provides mental health and intellectual disability services throughout Ireland, the UK, and Malawi. Lesley is responsible for the strategic development of research activities across these services, ensuring that a culture of research and innovation is promoted and supported through a robust governance structure, annual research funding scheme, and the delivery of research education and training. Lesley has a PhD in critical health psychology, with a focus on the lived experience of managing chronic illness. Her subsequent post-doctoral research has explored mental health including eating disorders, and the transition from child to adult mental health services across Europe.
Sophia Egan, Standards Development Officer, HIQA Sophia is a researcher in the field of health and social care. She holds a Master’s degree in Public Health and a Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry from University College Cork. Her research interests are on sexual and reproductive health, migrant health and health inequities. Sophia currently works as a Standards Development Officer for HIQA (Health Information and Quality Authority) where she helps to develop evidence-based standards to improve the quality of health and social care services across Ireland. She also works on developing tools to support staff and service providers in the implementation of these national standards. Sophia is also involved in an initiative to translate and present health information from English to Swahili, her mother tongue. The aim of the initiative called Translate Ireland, is to improve and promote migrant health by providing accessible and culturally appropriate health messaging. As she advances in her career in Global Health, Sophia aspires to work on health and development projects between Tanzania and Ireland. Besides her professional work, Sophia is also a youth mentor at the Cork Migrant Centre and a passionate dancer and performer.
Thora Burgess, General Manager, HSE Global Health Programme Thora Burgess is General Manager and has recently joined the Global Health team in the Health Services Executive. As part of her role. Thora is currently working on collaboration projects with the Ministries of Health in Mozambique and Ethiopia. Thora has over 30 years international healthcare experience ranging from front line clinical to corporate level. She has led high profile, strategic programmes within the Health Service including Programme Manager for the National Clinical Director Programme and National Clinical Governance Development initiative. During this time, she also worked on the development of the Framework for Improving Quality in the Irish Health Services. She holds a BSc in Professional Nursing and Practice, a Diploma in Leadership and Quality in Healthcare and a Diploma in Supervisory Management and has recently completed a Masters in Leadership in Healthcare at the Irish Management Institute
Aoibhinn Collery, Conference Officer and Intern, Irish Global Health Network and ESTHER Ireland Aoibhinn has recently finished a Masters in Global Health at Trinity College Dublin, graduating with a distinction. Her thesis, ‘Understanding social support for a group of refugee and non-refugee primary boys in Ireland’ was completed with the REFUGE-ED project, an international research project aiming to improve educational, mental health and psychosocial outcomes for migrant, refugee and asylum-seeking children in Europe. Aoibhinn has been working with the Irish Global Health Network and ESTHER Ireland as the Conference Officer and as Communications and Grant Management Intern. Previous to this she worked as a Senior Radiation Therapist in St. Luke’s Hospital Rathgar and Galway University Hospital. She has a BSc in Radiation Therapy, awarded from Trinity College Dublin. Aoibhinn is passionate about social justice and equity in the field of healthcare. Her interests lie in sexual and reproductive health, climate action and improving access to healthcare for refugee, asylum-seeking and migrant populations, among many other areas of global health.
Dr Nuha Ibrahim, Lecturer in Public Health, University of Limerick Dr. Nuha Ibrahim is a global health/public health academic and researcher. Nuha did her bachelor's degree in Science from the University of Khartoum, Sudan. Then she did her master's and Ph.D. in Global Health from Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin. Currently working as a lecturer in Public Health and acting course coordinator at the MSc in Public Health at the University of Limerick. Her research interests include health system strengthening, human resources for health, maternal and child health, and mental health.
Sara Dada, PhD Candidate, UCD and IGHN SOT Member Sara Dada is currently a PhD candidate at University College Dublin focusing on maternal health and community engagement. After completing her MSc in One Health at the Royal Veterinary College and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine as a Fulbright Scholar, Sara has conducted and led research projects focusing on communications and community engagement to empower communities and build capacity in Sierra Leone, Kenya, India, and Tanzania. Sara has supported organizations such as the WHO, Women in Global Health, and GOAL on research and advocacy projects relating to communications, community engagement, and participation. She has published a number of peer-reviewed articles on subjects ranging from maternal and child health to vaccine hesitancy to community engagement and has presented her innovative research on communications and community engagement in global health at numerous conferences, panels, and webinars.
Dr Enida Friel, Head of Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning, GOAL Dr Enida Friel, trained as a medical doctor in her native Albania. She holds a Master in Public Health, a two Diplomas on Reproductive Health and Tropical Medicine from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. She has over 20 years of experience in humanitarian and development contexts including field experience in Sub-Saharan Africa, South East Asia and the Balkans. She worked for Oxfam for 14 years first as HIV and AIDS Coordinator and then as Programme Quality Manager. She has lectured in Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, Maynooth University and Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine along with supervising master research students. Her early research was on quality of maternal health services, whereas more recently she has researched evaluation of public health advocacy, disability inclusiveness, and results-based management in development. Dr Friel currently works at GOAL as Head of Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning.
Ben Davison, Master Graduate of Development Practice, TCD With an undergraduate background in International Business Management with French, Ben has recently completed a Masters in Development Practice at Trinity College Dublin. During his Masters studies he worked alongside GOAL's Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) team in order to complete his thesis which was titled "Growth of Beneficiaries Reached in the Non-Profit Sector: A Case Study on GOAL". Ben is a keen traveller and loves playing sports and exploring nature with friends and family.
Dr Frederique Vallieres, Director of the Centre for Global Health, Trinity College Dublin Frédérique Vallières, BSc, MSc, PhD is an Associate Professor of Global Health, the Director of the Trinity Centre for Global Health (Trinity College Dublin), and the mother of two young, inexhaustible children. Dr. Vallières’ current research focuses on the application of Psychology to Global Health, with a focus on Global Mental Health, Mental Health System Strengthening, and Human Resources for Health. Concerned with closing the research-to-practice gap prevalent within Global Health, Dr. Vallières prioritises working in close collaboration with civil society organisations and through multidisciplinary consortiums comprising European, sub-Saharan African, Asian, and Middle Eastern partners.
Jill Pati, Masters of Public Health Student, University of Limerick and Practicum Student, Doras Jill Pati is Nigerian and lives in Limerick Ireland. She is a Master of Public Health graduate from the University of Limerick. She is currently working with the Human and Refugee rights Organization located in Limerick called Doras. Doras assists migrants from all backgrounds as well as provide support to victims of racism, discrimination, abuse etc. Jill also contributes as the content editor for an organization that caters to blind and visually impaired persons in northern Nigeria that teaches them how to make use of assistive technology and software. Jill is passionate about work that focuses on health disparities and health systems within countries, especially in Low- and middle-income countries. When she is not working, she enjoys learning new languages, reading, and writing short stories.
Jacinta Greene, Nutrition and Health Study Group Coordinator, Development Studies Association of Ireland, and Paediatric Dietitian, Children Health Ireland (CHI) Jacinta Greene is a Paediatric Dietitian working at Children Health Ireland (CHI) where she specialises in Cystic Fibrosis and has a particular interest in early growth and development with changes in body composition. She is the CHI Health and social care professional representative in Global Health. In her early Career Jacinta spent 3 years working in Cambodia and was part of a team supported by THET who evaluated the BSc Nutrition and Dietetic course in Zambia. More recently she was part of an external board of advisors for the Safe Water research which was funded by Global Challenges Research Fund UK. This was interdisciplinary research between Ulster University, University of Medellin, the University of Sao Paulo, along with NGO’s in Colombia, and Mexico. She is the current coordinator of the Nutrition and Health Study group in Development Studies Association (DSAI).  Jacinta is passionate about nutrition and research in global health and has provided training to medical; nursing and nutrition students. Her qualifications include Degree and MSc in Nutrition and Dietetics; PgD in Statistics and PgD in Health Care Innovation.
Fatima Mahi, BSc Health and Society Student, Dublin City University Fatima is a final year BSc Health and Society student in Dublin City University. She previously studied at St Mary’s University Twickenham attaining credits in Sport Psychology, Research Methods and critical thinking. Fatima’s passion for health and well-being stemmed from years of playing sport within the community and volunteering with the underage camogie teams, promoting youth healthful movement. Her final year dissertation is Exploring the perspectives of DCU undergraduate students on psychotherapy: a focus group study. Fatima did a summer internship with DCU, advocating for race and mental health. Fatima is been a volunteer with ALONE and aims to continue advocating for vulnerable and/or underrepresented groups. Mental health, gender equality and access to a healthcare support are issues Fatima is highly motivated by.
Dr Debbi Stanistreet, Senior Lecturer, Royal College of Surgeons Ireland Dr Debbi Stanistreet joined RCSI after having been a senior lecturer at University of Liverpool in the UK for over twenty years. In her time at Liverpool, Debbi set up both on-campus and global online MPH programmes. She is an active researcher in the field of Household Air pollution and also in the area of inequalities, much of her research being based in low-income countries. Debbi took over in late 2019 as Interim Head of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at RCSI and has also recently joined the Board of IGHN. She is actively involved in the teaching of public health and is closely involved in the development of the new undergraduate medical curriculum as co-lead of the population health and healthcare delivery theme (Vertical Integration Group).
Anne Holmes, Health Policy Co-Lead, DFA’s Development Cooperation and Africa Division, Irish Aid Anne Holmes is Health Policy Co-Lead in DFA’s Development Cooperation and Africa Division (Irish Aid). With a background in humanitarian action and business process development, Anne has worked with Irish NGOs and DFA for almost three decades. Recent overseas assignments include Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Ireland in Malawi, and Deputy Head of Cooperation at the Embassy of Ireland in Ethiopia. Currently Anne is the lead for health crisis preparedness and response (including COVID-19), SRHR, and domestic partnerships including with the HSE and RCSI.
Dr Ciara Conlan, Co-founder, Access to Medicines Ireland and Doctors for Vaccine Equity Dr Ciara Conlan obtained her bachelor’s degree in medicine at University of Galway, Ireland in 2016. Since then, she has worked mainly in clinical infectious diseases and virology, including 6 months in rural Malawi. She holds a diploma in Tropical Medicine from the London School of Hygiene and Medicine and is currently enrolled in a master’s degree in Public Health at University College Dublin. She is particularly interested in the areas of social exclusion/deprivation and infectious diseases. She is a co-founder of Access to Medicines Ireland and Doctors for Vaccine Equity, who have been leading groups in Ireland calling for equitable global access to medicines and COVID-19 vaccines.
Dr Unarose Hogan, Senior Infection Control Advisor, Americares Foundation, and IGHN Board Member Dr Unarose Hogan has spent the past seventeen years working in global health security, infection control, academia and clinical practice; primarily living in Sub Saharan Africa but also working in Central and South East Asia and Eastern Europe. Presently she is the Senior Infection Control Advisor with Americares Foundation. She worked as hospital readiness for COVID-19 advisor with WHOs health emergency program during the COVID-19 Pandemic. She held several former positions with WHO (Albania/ Geneva), served as Infection Control Advisor for Medical Operations during the Ebola Response with United Nations Mission Emergency Ebola Response (UNMEER, Sierra Leone), PATH- CDC Global Health Security Partnership (Vietnam), GIZ (Malawi), New York University (Rwanda) Irish Aid and University of East Anglia (UK). She has published broadly in operational research in low-income countries. She is an expert member of the Global COVID Perinatal Task Force on Birth Setting.
James Larkin, Health & Vaccine Equity Coordinator, Oxfam Ireland James is health and vaccine equity coordinator at Oxfam Ireland and a PhD student researching health inequalities at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Pamela Molina, Executive Director, World Federation of the Deaf Pamela Molina is Chilean and is currently the World Federation of the Deaf Executive Director. She participated in the drafting process of the United Nations Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and has over 15 years of work experience in the international human rights field. She holds a Master's in Disability Studies from the University of Illinois in Chicago. Ms. Molina is a recognized advocate and speaker on disability rights, linguistic rights, and minorized groups' rights. She has also published several articles on these matters.
Prince Banda, Global Health Social Worker Prince Banda is a Social Worker by profession, currently being trained to build an influential career within the Global Mental Health & Disability-Inclusion community of practice. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Social Work from the University of Zimbabwe and an MSc in Global Health from Trinity College Dublin. Over the last three years, Prince has worked on various community-based development, universal health coverage, gender equality, and social inclusion programmes, addressing the social determinants of health of at-risk and vulnerable populations such as persons with disabilities and adolescent girls and young women. Prince Banda is currently working as a Programme Support Officer on a national mental health stigma reduction programme, See Change. He has worked with CBM Ireland, an international non-governmental organization (NGO) that implements community-based inclusive development (CBID) programs in its partner nations (Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Madagascar). Prince has also worked for SAfAIDS, a regional non-profit advancing Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) in Southern Africa, as well as Zimbabwe's Ministry of Health and Child Care, where he designed and implemented human-centred, right-based, and inclusive HIV prevention nationwide programs.
John Fleming, CEO, Saint John of God Foundation John has over 20 years of Executive Level experience within the not-for-profit sector in UK, USA, UAE, Italy, India, The Netherlands & Ireland. He is the former CEO of Sightsavers Ireland and is currently the CEO of Saint John of God Foundation covering UK, Netherlands, Malawi and Ireland. While with Sightsavers, Ireland John was Vice Chairman of Dochas and led the establishment of the Dochas Disability and Development Working Group. With Saint John of God Foundation John actively supports the development of partnerships that help expand and improve services that support people with intellectual disabilities that those with mental health challenges in Malawi. John also is currently a Trustee of Raising Futures Kenya, a UK NGO that supports vocational education and training in Kenya.
Anne Cronin, Social Care Manager, Homeless Healthlink Team, HSE Anne Cronin - activist, academic and practitioner in inclusion health for over 20 years having managed a large housing NGO delivering housing and health services to marginalised homeless people. Anne currently works in the HSE Social Inclusion in Dublin working with the Homeless Healthlink team as they respond to the needs of homeless people and migrants in emergency accommodation, direct provision and temporary protection. Anne also works as a consultant in public health and housing - including implementing trauma informed practice in the third sector, environmental solutions for better health and as an advisor to the Housing Agency. She is a PhD candidate in the University of Limerick - School of Medicine, working with Prof Anne MacFarlane in the Health Research Institute, researching interpreter support for refugees and migrants who experience social exclusion and disadvantage.
Niamh Caffrey, Health Project Officer, Misean Cara Niamh Caffrey has a Science Degree from University College Cork where she studied International Development and Food Policy. With this degree, Niamh lived and worked in Kolkata India with the Hope Foundation for approximately 5 years, focusing on the provision of emergency care, healthcare, education and protection to vulnerable children and communities living in Kolkata’s streets and slum areas. Niamh eventually returned home but it wasn’t long until she ventured off again, this time to travel Asia for a year, before returning to work with Viatores Christi in Dublin. After 2 years, Niamh moved to England to study a Master’s Degree in Nutrition for Global Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine graduating in 2020, before taking up her current role as the Health Project officer with Misean Cara. Niamh manages and supports the organisations portfolio of health and nutrition projects across the Global South, and has very recently returned from a monitoring trip to Kenya.
Meaghan Higgins-Coyne, Admin Assistant, Misean Cara Meaghan has worked for Misean Cara in their Administrative Team since 2019. As part of the admin team Meaghan works closely with members in a variety of ways as well as provides support to the other teams within Misean Cara. She has extensive experience in member engagement, customer service, event management & logistical support. Meaghan is an intrepid traveler and an avid film and book lover.
Dr Steve MacDonald, Lecturer in Public Health, University of Limerick Steve Macdonald is a Lecturer and Acting Course Director of the MSc Public Health Programme at the University of Limerick School of Medicine. Steve has over 15 years of experience working in academic or NGO settings. His past work has been published internationally in peer-reviewed journals and grey literature, with a focus on global and public health topics including stigma, ageing, and infectious diseases. Steve has also undertaken consultancy work for organisations such as KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, Trócaire, the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and UNAIDS, to inform policy, as well as capacity-building for programme officers and community stakeholders. In addition to mixed-methods research, evidence synthesis, and knowledge dissemination, he has also previously created and managed multimedia communications for NGOs with a national and international audience. Steve holds an MSc in Neuroscience and a PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of Edinburgh, and an MSc in Global Health from Trinity College Dublin.
Tejaswy Swathi, Professional Intern, Beyond Stigma Tejaswy Swathi (She/Her) is a Global Health Masters graduate from Trinity College Dublin and is working as a professional intern for Beyond Stigma. Tejaswy holds a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from India and has 5+ years of experience in working with NGOs focusing on education, children, health and social change.
Dr Ines Peric, Education Programme Officer in the RCSI Institute of Global Surgery Ines Perić is Education Programme Officer at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) Institute of Global Surgery. She has an MA in English Language and Literature and Pedagogy and a PhD in Pedagogy. Her background is in education, teacher training and e-learning in several educational institutions in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Ireland. At the Institute of Global Surgery, Ines is involved in developing e-learning programmes for paediatric surgeons and peri-operative nurses and working on Global Surgical Training Challenge and UN Global Surgery Learning Hub.
Tuba Yavuz, MSc in Global Health Graduate Tuba Yavuz is from Turkey and lived there in different cities recently in Istanbul until coming to Ireland in order to study Global Health MSc programme. She graduated from school of pharmacy in 2010 and after graduation, she started to work in the regulatory/access and scientific fields in pharmaceutical companies which helps her to understand the dynamics of the health systems, and significance of access to healthcare. Her great interest in epidemiology and equal access to healthcare across and within countries led her to a master degree in Public Health in Turkey that she completed in December 2020. Tuba conducted a population based cross-sectional study, and aimed to evaluate cognitive impairment and possible risk factors for elderly people in the city of Istanbul, Turkey. Recently, Tuba completed the Global Health MSc programme in Trinity College Dublin. She investigated antibiotic consumption trends during COVID-19 pandemic within a humanitarian emergency context. Furthermore, she has been involved in the “Vaccine Equity” campaign which promoted the fair distribution of vaccines around the world as she strongly believes everyone irrespective of their status, should receive equal access to healthcare. In addition, Tuba performed voluntary summaries of systematic reviews in the Cochrane Collaboration Evidence Aid project.