Introduction to Inclusion Health (2026–27)
Prof Clíona Ní Cheallaigh, Course Director
Course Directors
Associate Professor Consultant, Clinical Medicine
CPD Accreditation
This course is CPD Approved by the Royal College of Physicians Ireland.
A total CPD Credits to be confirmed
Overview
People who experience one or more aspects of social exclusion — such as state care in childhood, drug addiction, incarceration, homelessness, forced migration, or belonging to a minoritised ethnic group (e.g. Traveller, Aboriginal, or Roma) — face disproportionately high levels of ill-health and significant barriers to accessing healthcare. Reducing these health inequities requires specialised, tailored interventions that address both the unique mental and physical health needs of people experiencing social exclusion (PESE) and their broader psychosocial and material circumstances.
Inclusion Health (IH) is an interdisciplinary approach to practice, research, and policy that seeks to understand and meet the complex health needs of socially excluded populations. Over the past decade, Ireland has become a leader in developing and implementing IH expertise across both hospital and community settings.
Inclusion Health is now embedded in Irish health policy and supported by the Department of Health and the HSE.
This course offers a practice-based, interdisciplinary introduction to Inclusion Health, with a focus on improving access, equity, and outcomes for marginalised groups. It is designed for professionals in health, social care, and community services who work with — or are interested in working with — people affected by social exclusion.
Through a hybrid format combining in-person and live online sessions, participants will explore core topics such as trauma-informed care, health inequities, system-level responses, and culturally responsive approaches to care.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
- Describe the health inequalities faced by socially excluded groups in Ireland, and how inclusion health services are organised.
- Apply trauma-informed principles in clinical and non-clinical encounters.
- Recognise and address the nutrition, oral health and mental health needs of people experiencing homelessness.
- Describe the specific health needs of Travellers and people in prison, and the services available to them.
- Manage common clinical scenarios in addiction and homelessness, using case-based reasoning.
- Use de-escalation and personal safety strategies in difficult encounters, practised through simulation with a facilitated debrief.
- Work across disciplines and services, and know where to refer and seek support.
- Reflect on their own practice and wellbeing, including the role of supervision and self-care.
Who Should Apply?
The course is open to professionals in health, allied health, social work, youth and community work, housing and support services, and related fields. It is particularly relevant for those supporting people experiencing homelessness, addiction, incarceration, or ethnic and cultural marginalisation.
Fees
Introduction to IH (2 in person + 6 online sessions + access to library of recordings)
Consultant on POCC contract: 2500
All others: 950
Continuing in IH (1 in person + 6 online sessions + access to library of recordings) - ONLY FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE ALREADY DONE THE INTRODUCTORY COURSE
Consultant on POCC contract: 1500
All others: 500
How to Apply
For queries please contact MedCPD@tcd.ie
Dr Niamh Allen, Inclusion Health Consultant, St James's Hospital
Niamh is a Consultant Doctor in infectious diseases and inclusion health in St James’s Hospital Dublin. She previously worked for Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF/ Doctors Without Borders) in Sub-Saharan Africa and the middle East. Her research is focused on global and inclusion health.
Prof Julie Broderick, UCD
Julie is a physiotherapist by training and a researcher and Associate Professor in University College Dublin.
Dr Ciaran Browne, HSE Acute Operations
Ciaran is the National Lead for the HSE’s Inclusion Health Acute Operations
Eibhlín Collins, Inclusion Health ANP, Mercy University Hospital, Cork
Eibhlín is an Advanced Nurse Practitioner with the inclusion health team in the Mercy Hospital in Cork.
Dr Aoibheann Conneely, Palliative Care Consultant, St James's Hospital
Aoibheann is a Consultant Doctor in inclusion palliative care at St James’s Hospital. She is also a researcher and a senior clinical lecturer in Trinity College Dublin.
Mr Joseph Doyle, National Lead Social Inclusion
Joe he is National Lead for the HSE National Social Inclusion Office, Primary Care Division.
Ms Rachael Ferguson, Inclusion Health Senior Medical Social Worker, St James's Hospital
Rachael is the Senior Medical Social Worker on the inclusion health team in St James’s Hospital Dublin and has worked in mental health in community and inpatient settings for over ten years.
Prof Jo-Hanna Ivers, Associate Professor, Trinity College Dublin
Jo-Hanna is an Associate Professor in Addiction in Trinity College Dublin and the Director of the MSc in Addiction Recovery. She is also Associate Dean of Civic Engagement for Societal Impact at Trinity College Dublin. She leads the Neurobehavioural Addiction Research Group at the Department of Public Health & Primary Care.
Dr Tara McGinty, Inclusion Health Consultant, MMUH
Tara is a Consultant Doctor in infectious diseases and the lead of the inclusion health team at the Mater Hospital in Dublin. She is also a researcher and Associate Professor of Medicine at University College Dublin.
Mr Paul Merrigan, Person-centred Care Lead, Inclusion Health Service, St James's Hospital
Paul is the Person Centered Addiction Lead on the Inclusion Health Team at St James’s Hospital Dublin. Paul has a passion for supporting some of the most vulnerable marginalised groups in society, using a trauma informed approach while advocating for equality of care for this cohort. He is currently undertaking an MSc in Health & Social Inclusion.
Prof Siobhan Neville, Paediatric Inclusion Health Consultant and Associate Professor, University of Limerick
Siobhán is a Consultant General Paediatrician with special interest in Inclusion Health at University Hospital Limerick and Associate Professor of Paediatrics at University of Limerick School of Medicine. Her primary clinical and research interests are in the area of Paediatric Inclusion Health.
Prof Clíona Ní Cheallaigh, Inclusion Health Consultant, St James's Hospital and Associate Professor, Trinity College Dublin
Clíona is a researcher and Associate Professor in the Department of Clinical Medicine, Trinity College Dublin and a Consultant in Infectious Diseases and General Medicine in St James’s Hospital Dublin. She is the Clinical Lead of the Inclusion Health Service in St James’s Hospital dedicated to improving access to specialist hospital care for socially excluded individuals.
Dr Austin O’Carroll, Grangegorman Family Practice & North Dublin City GP Training Scheme
Austin is an inner-city GP since 1997. The focus of his career has been improving access for communities affected by marginalisation or deprivation to quality primary healthcare. He was Dublin HSE Covid Lead for the Homeless Population between 2020 and 2022. He completed a Doctorate in ethnographic research into the health service usage behaviours of homeless people.
Prof Patrick O’Donnell, GP and Associate Professor, University of Limerick
Patrick is a GP in Limerick city and a researcher and Associate Professor at the University of Limerick School of Medicine.
Dr Georgia Richard, Neurologist St James’s Hospital and ICAT PhD Scholar, Inclusion Health Research Group, Trinity College Dublin
Georgia is a Specialist Registrar in Neurology and an Irish Academic Clinician Training Programme Fellow. She is currently undertaking a PhD researching cognition in long-term homeless adults.
Ms Jess Sears, Inclusion Health ANP, St James’s Hospital
Jess is an advanced Nurse Practitioner in Inclusion Health and Epilepsy at St James's Hospital Dublin.
Dr Rikke Siersbaek, Research Fellow, Inclusion Health Research Group, Trinity College Dublin
Rikke is Teaching Fellow on the SUSA project (susacampus.eu) and a Research Fellow in the Inclusion Health Research Group in the Trinity School of Medicine.
Dr Eileen Corroon Sweeney, Consultant psychiatrist with the Inclusion Mental Health Service in Dublin South
Eileen is Consultant Psychiatrist with the Inclusion Mental Health Service in Dublin South City and Clinical Lecturer in the Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin. Eileen does research in Inclusion Health, Social Psychiatry and Higher Education.
Ms Angie Wallace
Angie the coordinator of the Private Emergency Accommodation Team and the Social Inclusion Liaison Officer Team Lead for HSE Social Inclusion in North Dublin.
Dr Aoibhinn Walsh, Children’s Health Ireland
Aoibhinn is a Consultant Paediatrician with a special interest in inclusion health with Children’s Health Ireland, where she runs the Lynn Clinic a community outreach clinic for children at risk of social exclusion, based in Dublin’s north inner city. All of Walsh’s small patients and their parents are experiencing significant social adversity.
Mr Jim Walsh, Department of Health
Jim is Principal Officer for the Drugs Policy and Social Inclusion Responsibility unit at the Department of Health.
Delivery: Hybrid – 2 in-person days and 6 live online sessions CPD Credits: [ Dates to be confirmed]
Location: Trinity College Dublin, St James's Hospital Campus & Zoom
The course is structured around key themes including:
- Foundations of inclusion health and inclusion health policy in Ireland
- Trauma-informed care principles and practice
- Health inequalities and systemic exclusion
- Working with Traveller and other marginalised populations
- Nutrition, oral health and mental health
- Housing, addiction and continuity of care
- A trauma-informed approach to difficult encounters, through simulation
- Supervision, self-care and interdisciplinary collaboration
Self-directed learning includes pre-readings, roleplay preparation, and engagement with curated media (e.g. podcasts, videos).
Course dates and topics are provisional and subject to confirmation.
|
Date |
Session |
Theme |
|
[Wed 3 Feb 2027] |
In-person day 1, Trinity College Dublin |
Introduction to inclusion health |
|
[Wed 24 Feb 2027, 6–7.30pm] |
Online, Zoom |
Nutrition |
|
[Wed 10 Mar 2027, 1–2.30pm] |
Online, Zoom |
Traveller health |
|
[Wed 24 Mar 2027, 6–7.30pm] |
Online, Zoom |
Oral health |
|
[Wed 14 Apr 2027, 1–2.30pm] |
Online, Zoom |
Prison health |
|
[Wed 5 May 2027, 6–7.30pm] |
Online, Zoom |
Mental health and homelessness: case-based |
|
[Wed 26 May 2027, 1–2.30pm] |
Online, Zoom |
Addiction and homelessness: case-based |
|
[Wed 16 Jun 2027] |
In-person day 2, Trinity College Dublin |
Personal safety and difficult encounters: simulation |
Continuing in IH participants join from in-person day 2 and all six online sessions. [Add day timetables once speakers confirm.]