Early Career Researcher Forum
View the latest webinar
In 2013, the Early Career Researcher Forum (ECRF) was launched by AIIHPC in collaboration with the Irish Association for Palliative Care (IAPC). The Forum currently has over 90 members and provides members with opportunities to access peer and mentor support, develop links with senior researchers, participate in capacity building workshops and share knowledge across disciplines.
The Forum, which is multidisciplinary in nature, is central to the Institute’s aim of fostering a strategic approach to palliative care research and knowledge development on the island of Ireland. The Institute supports the ECRF by facilitating national and international collaboration, resource sharing, capacity building, and knowledge transfer. We provide regular updates to members on funding and career development opportunities.
The forum is constantly expanding and we want even more researchers to join and benefit from this collaborative community of peers. There are no membership criteria to join the ECRF; members are researchers or clinicians from any discipline who consider themselves in the early- to mid-stages of their research career in palliative and end of life care.
"Research can be a lonely and frightening place when starting off. The ECRF facilitates networking opportunities with both early and experienced researchers carrying out research related to all aspects of palliative care. This offers a platform for collaboration in future research studies to flourish. The ECRF also creates learning opportunities and offers support and guidance through their interactive research webinars, in response to the learning needs of their members"
Chair of the Early Career Researcher Forum
Monika Pilch holds three degrees in the areas of psychology, pedagogy and sociology.. Monika Pilch is completing her PhD at the Centre for Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin. A prestigious SPHeRE scholarship recipient, her focus is on population health and health service research. Supervision and support for her work comes from a worldwide known class of experts in palliative care research.
As a chair of the AIIHPC Early Career Research Forum (ECRF), Monika collaborates with its members to foster a strategy for palliative care research and knowledge development in Ireland. With a strong track record of supporting other researchers in collaborative projects with global partners, Monika helps ECRF members arrange national and international joint efforts, increase access to resources, and foster capacity building activities. Monika uses her clinical research expertise from across various health care settings to support ECRF members in their unique research journeys. Using experience in exploring stakeholder perspectives, while employing collective intelligence and interactive management methodologies, Monika creates opportunities for sharing her knowledge with others. As at high profile educational institutions in the past, Monika uses pedagogical approaches to place top priority on easy access to career development opportunities, mentor support, networking, and peer-learning for ECRF members
The ECRF Steering Committee is responsible for agreeing the overall aims, objectives, and key outcomes for the Forum, alongside developing a research capacity building activities plan. The Committee meets regularly. The current members of the Steering Committee are:
|
Name |
Role |
Affiliation |
| Dr Monika Pilch |
Chair |
Trinity College Dublin |
| Mary Nevin |
Vice-Chair |
Trinity College Dublin |
| Dr Cliona Lorton |
Membership Officer |
Trinity College Dublin and Our Lady's Hospice & Care Services |
| Dr Deborah Muldrew |
Communications and Activities Officers (joint) |
Ulster University |
| Dr Serena Fitzgerald |
Communications and Activities Officers (joint) |
University College Cork |
| Dr Aoibheann Conneely |
General Member |
Our Lady's Hospice & Care Services |
| Yvonne Muldowney |
General Member |
Trinity College Dublin |
| Aidan O'Donoghue |
General Member |
Trinity College Dublin |
| Stacey Power |
General Member |
Cork University Maternity Hospital |
For further information about the Forum, please contact the Chair, Monika Pilch pilchm@tcd.ie or Project Manager, Clodagh O’Donovan, codonovan@aiihpc.org
Join the ECRF
To apply to join the forum please fill out our application form: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TGXBZXX
View the latest webinar
- Within healthcare, there are difficult choices to be made, ones that decide what healthcare is funded, therefore choosing those who benefit and those who do not. It can look like some lives are valued differently.
- In this webinar entitled “Economic Studies in Palliative Care: Opportunities & Challenges”, Dr Peter May (Research Assistant Professor in Health Economics at the Centre for Health Policy and Management, Trinity College Dublin and Palliative Care Research Network member) shows us how economics is a tool to inform harsh choices, measuring treatment effect on costs and outcomes. He demonstrates that health economics is about managing scarcity. Dr May introduces the current state of the literature and highlights the opportunities and challenges in advancing that literature.
- Download the presentation slides - Here
View previous webinars
- Early Career Researcher Forum Webinar - Answering the ‘so what’ question: Tips for writing up qualitative research for publication - Download the presentation