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Wellbeing Wednesday Webinars

Page updated 5 November 2024

As part of our Well UCD initiative Culture & Engagement is hosting a series of webinars each Wednesday lunchtime covering financial and health related wellbeing topics. Keep an eye out for topics that you may be interested in and sign up to receive the zoom webinar link.

Please note due to the nature of the topics and speaker requests we are not able to record some of the sessions. 

All webinars run 1-2pm and comprise a presentation followed by a Q&A

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Webinar Schedule

  • Wed. 2 October - Saving Money on your Health Insurance - Dermot Goode, Total Health Cover
  • Wed. 9 October - Heart Health Psychology Webinar - Pauline Bergin, provided by Laya
  • Wed. 16 October - Can you switch your Mortgage Provider to get better Terms? - Trevor Grant, Affinity Advisors
  • Wed. 23 October - The UCD AVC (Additional Voluntary Contribution) Scheme - Ian O’Shea, Cornmarket
  • Wed. 30 October - Buying a new home? How to get the best mortgage terms available to you - Trevor Grant, Affinity Advisors
  • Wed. 6 November - Understanding the Fair Deal Scheme - Brendan De La Harpe, Cornmarket
  • Wed. 13 November - Inheritance Planning - Conor Johnson, Cornmarket
  • Wed. 20 November - UCD Income Protection & Voluntary Life Assurance Plans - Amee Massey, WTW

Wednesday 2 October, 1-2pm

This webinar will NOT be recorded

Private health Insurance costs in Ireland are continuing to rise and members are facing significant rate hikes from their next renewal. To help employees save money and to make informed decisions on the best options in the market, UCD have engaged the services of Dermot Goode to deliver this webinar. Dermot has delivered similar sessions in the past and has helped UCD employees save hundreds on the cost of their health cover.

Dermot set up (opens in a new window)www.totalhealthcover.ie which was acquired by Lockton Insurance Brokers in Ireland. He is an independent expert in this area and can answer any question on the 350 plans that are currently available across Vhi Healthcare, Laya Healthcare (now owned by AXA) and Irish Life Health. If you’re considering joining or cancelling health insurance or if you’re worried about the escalating cost, this webinar is for you.

Why You Should Attend

Dermot Goode is the leading expert on health insurance cover in Ireland and is regularly in the media advising consumers on the best deals.  His talks are informative and engaging, with the sole objective of helping consumers find the best value cover at the lowest cost. 

  • He is completely independent and deals equally with all three insurers.  He can answer any question to do with health insurance in Ireland
  • He will cover all the cost-saving tips to help you save money, without compromising on key benefits
  • For those considering joining, he will explain the pros & cons of having private cover versus the public health system
  • For those traveling abroad, he will explain what’s covered by health insurance and whether additional travel cover is required
  • He will highlight the plans that no longer represent good value for money (members of these schemes could make significant savings by reviewing their cover)
  • He will cover the best corporate deals across the market that most people are unaware of, but yet are available to all consumers
  • He’ll explain the myths associated with health insurance and also how to avoid the numerous pitfalls that could cost you dearly

At the end of the brief presentation, there will be a 45 mins Q&A session, where all attendees can ask questions on any aspect of health insurance in Ireland. For those with existing cover, just have your plan name to hand on the day so specific recommendations can be provided.

Follow-up

UCD employees can get a full-market review for €120 (20% discount). Dermot can be contacted at (opens in a new window)Dermot.Goode@lockton.com. Queries are assessed to make sure that the review will be worthwhile for each customer prior to scheduling same.

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Stress impacts both mental wellbeing and heart health, making it essential to learn how to manage it effectively. With stress-related conditions contributing to cardiovascular issues, this seminar provides practical strategies for reducing stress and supporting both your emotional and physical health.

This seminar is for anyone looking to manage stress, improve mental clarity, and protect their heart health. By attending, you’ll learn: 

  • Understanding Stress and Heart Health: Explore the connection between chronic stress, mental health, and cardiovascular risk. 
  • Stress Management Techniques: Discover effective tools like mindfulness, progressive muscle relaxation, and breathing exercises to reduce stress. 
  • Practical Lifestyle Changes: Learn how to incorporate relaxation, healthy habits, and emotional well-being into your daily routine for long-term heart health. 

This seminar will equip you with practical techniques and knowledge to manage stress effectively and protect both your mind and heart for the long term. 

Pauline Bergin   Dip & MSc Counselling & Psychotherapy, Dip Supervision, SMIACP

Pauline has extensive experience in presenting to various groups around  management of mental health and has presented at the Self Harm conference in Aviva Stadium in Partnership with St. Patrick's Hospital. She has also worked with government groups to support mental health and has  delivered training in Mindfulness.

Pauline previously worked in Pieta House – Centre for the prevention of Self Harm and Suicide as a Senior Psychotherapist/Assistant Manager for over ten years. Her work involved working with Children, Adolescents and Adults, involving initial assessment and follow up treatment, in the area of Suicide & Self Harm. She also worked one to one and group format, facilitating Supervision.  Further, she presented on behalf of Pieta to corporate organisations to support their employees in the area of mental health.

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On Wednesday October 16th  from 1pm – 2pm, Trevor Grant ((opens in a new window)LinkedIn) from Affinity Advisors ((opens in a new window)www.affinityadv.ie), will host a webinar focusing on how you can get the best terms available for your existing mortgage.  Affinity Advisors is a 3-time award winning Mortgage & Protection Advisory firm.   This webinar is suitable for:

  • Mortgage holders who want to know if they can get better terms from an alternative provider
  • Existing mortgage holders whose fixed rate expires within the next 6 months
  • Mortgage holders seeking to consolidate debt, release equity on their property or carry out home improvements

Not all Lenders are the same and whilst your own bank may ultimately offer you the best terms available, it is essential that you understand all market options available to you.   There are now 11 lenders offering over 200 different mortgage products.  Many cover the cost of switching mortgage provider. Affinity Advisors provide fees free Mortgage & Protection advisory services to UCD employees. 

As a multi award-winning Brokerage, they offer market-based advice based on a customer’s unique personal circumstances and requirements. 

Please see (opens in a new window)Why Affinity Advisors?

Post the webinar consultations will be available in person on campus or by video call. 

In advance of the webinar, if you have a query or cannot attend on the day, please feel free to email Trevor directly at  (opens in a new window)trevor@affinityadv.ie

The UCD AVC (Additional Voluntary Contribution) Scheme complements the benefits of the UCD main pension scheme and allows members regardless of age or service to supplement their retirement benefit within Revenue limits. The UCD AVC Scheme Consultants are Cornmarket Group Financial Services Ltd. and Irish Life are the AVC Investment Managers and Administrators. Cornmarket offers UCD members one to one AVC consultations with an experienced Financial Advisor.

As a fully qualified Financial Advisor Ian has worked with Cornmarket for 16 years, he specialises in pensions and retirement and is one of Cornmarket’s experts in Public Sector Pensions.  Ian is the UCD AVC consultant and deals with UCD members on a daily basis and helps them with their pension planning, setting up AVCs and retirement.

More information on AVCs and contact details for Cornmarket can be found on the UCD HR website.

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On Wednesday October 30th from 1pm – 2pm, Trevor Grant ((opens in a new window)LinkedIn) from Affinity Advisors ((opens in a new window)www.affinityadv.ie), will host a webinar focusing on how you can get the best mortgage terms in the market available to you.  Affinity Advisors is a 3-time award winning Mortgage & Protection Advisory firm.   This webinar is suitable for:

  • First time buyers
  • Movers
  • Holiday home buyers
  • Property Investors

Not all Lenders are the same and whilst your own bank may ultimately offer you the best terms available, it is essential that you understand all market options available to you.   There are now 11 lenders offering over 200 different mortgage products. Affinity Advisors provide fees free Mortgage & Protection advisory services to UCD employees. 

As a multi award-winning Brokerage, they offer market-based advice based on a customer’s unique personal circumstances and requirements. 

Please see (opens in a new window)Why Affinity Advisors?

Post the webinar consultations will be available in person on campus or by video call. 

In advance of the webinar, if you have a query or cannot attend on the day, please feel free to email Trevor directly at  (opens in a new window)trevor@affinityadv.ie

In this webinar, Brendan de la Harpe from Cornmarket, will cover the Fair Deal Scheme and other options for funding long term nursing care. Unfortunately, we can’t tell what lies ahead so it’s important to plan when we can. The webinar is designed to give you information and highlight the importance of financial planning. 

Cornmarket is the largest Public Sector financial services broker in Ireland and should you require individual advice, Cornmarket can be contacted via  (opens in a new window)tax@cornmarket.ie or call on 01-4206780.

Brendan de la Harpe is Head of Training & Product Governance at Cornmarket and has over 30 years’ experience ensuring clients understand their finances and the benefits of planning appropriately.

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This webinar, with Conor Johnston from Cornmarket, will look at making a will and estate planning. We spend our lives planning and saving for the next big step, a home, children, college fees etc., but unfortunately many people don’t plan for what to do with everything they’ve achieved when they’ve completed the ‘big stuff’. Passing on your assets to family members and loved ones is a big deal that deserves a proper plan.

Conor is a Qualified Financial Advisor and has worked with Cornmarket for 15 years in many roles across the Life and Pensions division. As the Mortgage and Tax Manager, Conor has a particular interest and expertise in inheritance planning. Conor works to ensure he is at the forefront of this relatively new advice area in Ireland relating to the efficient transfer of assets between generations. Cornmarket is the largest Public Sector financial services broker in Ireland. Cornmarket’s Tax Return Service specialise in ensuring customers are tax compliant. They aim to save you time, hassle and money when it comes to your taxes.

To contact Cornmarket email (opens in a new window)tax@cornmarket.ieor call on 01-4206780

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The UCD Voluntary Life Assurance Plan is designed to give employees the opportunity to make additional financial provision against the possibility of premature death to supplement Death in Service benefits under the UCD Pension Scheme. The objective of the plan is to provide an additional lump sum for the benefit of your dependents and/or estate in the event of your death while in the service of UCD. Willis Towers Watson (WTW) provide this plan for UCD employees.

The UCD Income Protection (IP) Plan is designed to give employees the opportunity to protect their income against the possibility of long term illness. If you are a member of the plan, once your sick pay benefit has been reduced to half pay or you have exhausted your sick pay entitlement, the Plan steps in to pay a portion of your earnings. The aim is to provide you with a maximum income of 75% of your salary (less any Early Retirement Pensions/ Temporary Rehabilitation Remuneration and / or Social Welfare benefit to which you’re entitled) while you are unable to work. Find our more about the Voluntary Income Protection Plan

Further information is available on the HR website https://www.ucd.ie/hr/a-z/incomeprotection/

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Contact Culture & Engagement

Culture & Engagement, UCD HR 3rd Floor, Roebuck Offices University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
E: engage@ucd.ie | Location Map(opens in a new window)