On Professor Bury’s retirement from UCD School of Medicine, we would like to honour his significant contribution to the School, the University and the wider community. He has made an immeasurable impact to the field of Medicine, and below, we mention some of his career highlights. Thank you, Gerry.
Gerry has been Professor of General Practice in UCD since 
1991 and during this time he has worked hard to develop the General Practice curriculum and to expand the UCD GP Tutor network to practices nationwide resulting in a sizable network of over 170 GP Tutor Practices today. Academic General Practice now contributes to most years of the curriculum and includes new intern posts in General Practice.
Prof. Bury has been at the forefront of paramedic education in Ireland since the 1980s and he has been integral in the development of third-level education for the paramedic profession in Ireland. His contribution to the profession is hugely valued and more than 1,000 Paramedics and over 600 Advanced Paramedics nationwide have graduated from UCD during his tenure in the School.
Gerry has worked as a GP in Dubin 8 for almost 40 years. He is passionate about patient and community care and in 1994 he established the UCD Coombe Family Practice, which was originally located on the grounds of the Coombe Women’s Hospital. In 2021 the UCD Coombe Family Practice moved into their new premises in the HSE Rialto Primary Care Centre – their inclusion in the HSE Primary Care Centre is a testament to the importance of the Practice in the local community. Under Gerry’s stewardship the Coombe Family Practice has grown substantially over the years serving a densely populated inner-city area and has around 6000 registered patients.
In 2001, Prof. Bury established the UCD Centre for Emergency Medical Science (CEMS) to provide a national centre of excellence for research, development, education and training in pre-hospital emergency care, and in doing so he cemented long-standing relationships between UCD and the HSE National Ambulance Service, Dublin Fire Brigade, Defence Forces, Dublin Airport Fire & Rescue Service, Civil Defence and a far-reaching network of General Practitioners across Ireland and further afield. In November 2022, colleagues from across the emergency services honoured Gerry with presentations and awards acknowledging his massive contribution to the paramedic profession in Ireland over the years. Prof Bury first developed the UCD CEMS Immediate Care Courses (Cardiac, Trauma and Paediatrics) in 1991 and they remain highly popular to this day.
Under the auspices of UCD CEMS he also worked with colleagues to develop the MERIT (Medical Emergency Responders: Integration & Training) project in 2004, and to secure funding from the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council and the Department of Health. This is a highly successful collaboration between UCD CEMS, the National Ambulance Service, and General Practitioners nationwide who have been trained to provide excellent pre-hospital emergency care for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. To date over 500 GP practices across Ireland participate in the MERIT Project.
In addition to his valued work in patient and community care in Ireland Gerry has also made a very positive impact in training medical professionals internationally. In 2011, Prof Bury led a team to provide Immediate Care training to doctors in Lahore, Pakistan and he ensured the ongoing sharing of this vital education locally via the provision of an Instructor course.
In April 2022 Gerry organised a donation by the UCD Centre for Emergency Medical Science of its ambulance, filled with clinical equipment, to Medical Help Ukraine, and he currently leads a project to train Ukrainian paramedics and medics to treat major haemorrhage in the context of injuries inflicted as a result of wartime activities. The medical training and equipment being provided is hugely appreciated and the demand for this training is increasing.
In addition to his various UCD roles of Academic Head of Section, Professor of General Practice, Director, UCD Centre for Emergency Medical Science, Associate Dean for Medical Education and founder of the Coombe Family Practice Gerry has also held a number of high-level offices at national level which include:
President of Medical Council 1996-2004
Vice-Chair of the Pre-hospital Emergency Care Council 2000-2008
Director of Medical Education and Training, HSE 2009-2012
Vice-Chair, Faculty of Military Medical Care 2015
Chair of the Association of University Departments of General Practice in Ireland 2015