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Tell us a bit about yourself and your background.
I am a registered Nurse and Midwife with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) and a registered Health Psychologist with the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI). My current role as Associate Professor in the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems (SNMHS) is influenced by the experiences gained over the past 35 years within or associated with 3rd level education and the Irish Healthcare System. Psychological health and wellbeing and the factors that may influence this, led me to work with academic and clinical colleagues on intervention and evaluation studies leading to the translation of research outcomes into educational and clinical practice. The approach taken in my research contains a hybrid of themes that have included physical and mental health issues in chronic illness, maternal and infant health, and living with loss and bereavement. From a personal perspective, I am a daughter, sister, mother, and grandmother, and my family is an important influencer in decisions I have made throughout my career.
What are your goals for this year?
I think for this year my main goals are to reconnect with people and though I recognise the benefits of technology and the ease of organising online meetings, I look forward to more face-to-face time and fewer emails. This leads on to my second goal which is to try to better separate my work life from my personal time and search for that utopian balance that people allude to, and others appear to achieve in their work life.
Why do you think it is important to have female role models?
We learn lessons in life through our experiences and vicariously through role models, so in my view, when you identify as a female academic it is important that there are female role models to both learn from and relate to, along all the time points in your career pathway.
Is there a woman during your career that has inspired you?
I have been fortunate to have women in my life who were and still are my role models and who inspire and guide me throughout my life and career. When I started in the SNMHS, Dr. Therese Meehan was one of the senior academics working within the School. Therese, who has since retired, taught me the importance of sharing knowledge and experience, of mentoring the next generation, and the significance of ‘presence’ through the gift of homemade biscuits when someone is going through a difficult time. Therese continues to inspire me through her work in supporting the ‘Careful Nursing Philosophy and Professional Practice Model’ within our Irish health care services today.
If you could wind back the clock, what advice would you give to your younger self?
Be a little less serious, laugh more and remember to breathe.
Why do you think you were asked to participate in this series?
Firstly, I would like to say that I am very honoured by this nomination and feel humbled that my colleagues see me as an inspirational woman in research. I think the reason for my nomination is that over the years working in the School I have been a persistent voice at meetings on the importance of driving a research agenda within the disciplines of nursing and midwifery. I believe that professional confidence gained through research activity supports the development of competence in clinical practice. In the disciplines of nursing and midwifery, clinical practice is increasingly driven by clinical evidence and also influenced by nursing and midwifery knowledge. Therefore, it is particularly important that the evidence that informs the practice environment is created by nurses and midwives in Ireland in unison with the global evidence that is produced and published in the literature.
Do you have any parting words of wisdom for the next generation of female nurses, midwives, and healthcare professionals?
Pace yourself, it is a long race and a winding path to the finish line. Seek out a good mentor to support you from the start. Your mentor does not have to be within your own discipline or School, a mentor from outside your immediate work environment can often offer an objective view and clarity of reflection that is sometimes needed during your career.
Given the theme for IWD this year “Breaking the Bias,” did you experience any particular challenges of this nature in getting to where you are today?
Yes, I have had experiences of bias in my career. One example that stands out for me is the challenges I faced when I put myself forward for promotion. In my view, some of the metrics I was measured by, were unobtainable at the time while working within a School of Nursing and Midwifery and Health Systems. Since 2002, the School has heavily invested in the development and delivery of Nursing and Midwifery undergraduate education. This was done to ensure that the new approach to educating student Nurses and Midwives through the BSc Nursing and Midwifery Degree programmes was an academic and clinical success. The university metrics for promotion have in the main, focused on research outputs, such as large research grants, first authorship, publications in high impact journals, etc. and in doing so limited the opportunities for success for a female academic working in a School that needed time to build its research capacity and profile. With the new focus on Research Integrity and Impact, the introduction of Athena Swan and the pursuit of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion within UCD, I am hopeful that my experiences through the promotion pathway will be less challenging for my colleagues.