Latest News
Dr Geraldine Foley invited speaker at 28th Annual Moving Points in Palliative Care Conference
Congratulations to Dr Geraldine Foley who was invited to speak at the 28th Annual International Moving Points in Palliative Care Conference on the 22nd March 2023. Dr Foley presented research on patient and family caregiver decision-making in palliative care and provided an overview of research possibilities that can advance evidence in the field. The Moving Points in Palliative Care Conference provides an important forum for educators, clinical practitioners, and researchers to examine the developments in palliative care and research from leading experts in the specialities.
29th March, 2023
Dr Geraldine Foley publishes novel research using qualitative methods with colleagues in field of sports medicine
Dr Geraldine Foley (Assistant Professor) has just published novel research using the grounded theory method, with colleagues and TCD PhD student in the fields of physiotherapy and sports medicine. The open-access paper just published in the high-impact and Q1 journal – Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport reports on the experience of tackle injury in women’s rugby and it is the first qualitative study published in this domain. Please click here for full and open access to the work. The research is an excellent example of co-investigation across different disciplines that combine focus on a substantive topic and the methodological expertise to guide and execute the research.
27th February, 2023
Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor receives Dean’s Research Initiative Fund Award (2021/22)

Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor has been successful in obtaining a Dean’s Research Initiative Fund award to fund a preliminary study on patient and family caregiver treatment decision-making in specialist palliative care. Please see link for details.
The Dean's Research Initiatives Fund is specifically designed to support new and innovative research that will enhance Trinity College's and the Faculty of Health Sciences ability to compete for large-scale, interdisciplinary, single- and multi-investigator extramural awards. The fund aims to advance the research priorities of Trinity College's Strategic Plan, to raise the national and international profile of the University and to increase receipt of external and larger-scale funding.
1st November, 2022
Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor (Occupational Therapy), publishes opinion piece in thejournal.ie on family decision-making in palliative care
Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor in Occupational Therapy, has just published an opinion piece in thejournal.ie on family decision-making in palliative care. See link to read. The open communication reports on research led by Dr Foley on patient and family caregiver concordance and discordance between patients and their family caregivers pertaining to their preferences for and decisions about palliative care.
15th September, 2022
Academic staff in the Discipline of Occupational Therapy awarded TCD MED Research awards
Congratulations to Dr Geraldine Foley (Assistant Professor), Dr Michelle Spirtos (Assistant Professor) and Dr Margaret Lawler (Assistant Professor in Psychology) who were each awarded a TCD Research MED award. The focus of these awards is to support early innovative studies and advance research impact. Please see the following links for further details.
https://www.tcd.ie/medicine/research/news/assets/pdf/tcd-mra-geraldine-foley.pdf
https://www.tcd.ie/medicine/research/news/assets/pdf/tcd-mra-margaret-lawler.pdf
https://www.tcd.ie/medicine/research/news/assets/pdf/tcd-mra-michelle-spirtos.pdf

Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor leads publication in BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care
Dr Geraldine Foley has authored a systematic review on patient and family caregiver decision-making in palliative care. The systematic review has been published in BMJ Supportive and Palliative Care, a worldwide leading journal covering all disciplines and specialties in palliative care research. The work was supported by an Irish Research Council New Foundations grant awarded to Dr Foley. Please see link for details on publication. The work has involved collaboration with multiple institutions including St. Francis Hospice Dublin, Our Lady’s Hospice and Care Services Dublin, University College Dublin, Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science Australia, University of Western Australia, University of Bristol, University College Cork, University of Limerick, and the All-Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care.
24 March, 2022

Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor, successful in application to the Aurora Women in Leadership Programme for 2021-22
Congratulations to Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor, on her successful application to the Aurora Women in Leadership Programme for 2021-22. Aurora is higher education's most renowned leadership development initiative for women. Run as a collaboration between Advance HE in conjunction with higher education institutions and advocates - known as Aurora Champions - it addresses the under-representation of women in leadership positions. Trinity College Dublin participate in this programme.
3rd November, 2021
Provost’s PhD Project Scholar presents at the 17th World Congress of the EAPC
Congratulations to PhD scholar Rachel McCauley for presenting at the 17th World Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care. The presentation titled ‘A systematic review with narrative synthesis on mutual support between patients and family caregivers in palliative care’ reports from work undertaken as part of a Provost’s PhD Project Award (Principal investigator - Dr Geraldine, Assistant Professor). The work is conducted in collaboration with St. Francis Hospice Dublin. The full paper has already been published in Palliative Medicine.
11th October, 2021
Disability and the Ethics of Conducting Research in Higher Education
Webinar: 15.30-17.00, Thursday 3 December 2020
International Day of Persons with Disabilities
Disability Research Network, Trinity College Dublin
Article 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities provides that ‘States Parties undertake to collect appropriate information, including statistical and research data, to enable them to formulate and implement policies to give effect to the present Convention.’ This indicates the importance of ensuring that disability is included in the design of research strategies and projects, but also that people with disabilities are able to conduct and participate in research. Article 31 specifies that this must be pursued in compliance with ‘ethical principles’. This international webinar provides an opportunity to explore further the intersection between advancing disability-inclusive research and upholding respect for research ethics.
29th September, 2021
Dr Geraldine Foley and graduates of the BSc Occupational Therapy programme have just published a systematic review on perceptions of fatigue and fatigue management interventions among people with multiple sclerosis. The work published in the International Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation, is an outstanding outcome for early graduates of the undergraduate programme. The published article can be accessed here.
12th July, 2021
Dr Geraldine Foley appointed by Minister of Health to National Research Ethics Committee for Clinical Trials of Investigational Medicinal Products (NREC-CT)
Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly has appointed the membership of Ireland’s first National Research Ethics Committees (NRECs) in the areas of Clinical Trials of Investigational Medicinal Products (NREC-CT) and Clinical Investigations of Medical Devices (NREC-MD).
Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor in the Discipline of Occupational Therapy, has been appointed by the Minister to one of the two National Research Ethics Committee for Clinical Trials of Investigational Medicinal Products (NREC-CT). In total, 18 members have been appointed to each of the three NRECs – two in clinical trials and one in medical devices. These Committees will be responsible for reviewing the ethics underpinning research proposals in these important areas of health research, with the aim of providing single national ethics opinions that are respected nationally. As such, the NRECs will play a key role in protecting the safety, dignity, and well-being of health research participants in Ireland. Further information on this new development can be found here.
18th May, 2021

Dr Geraldine Foley publishes with colleagues in International Journal of Qualitative Methods
Congratulations to Dr Geraldine Foley on publishing with colleagues in the highly ranked International Journal of Qualitative Methods (Impact factor: 3.576; Social Sciences, Interdisciplinary 8 out of 108). The publication, co-authored with Prof Virpi Timonen (Social Policy, TCD), Dr Catherine Conlon (Social Policy, TCD), and Catherine Elliott O’Dare (Social Policy, UCD), outlines and illustrates how interviewing in Grounded Theory facilitates theoretical sampling. The article contains detailed examples of interviewing in projects that cover research topics as diverse as accessing abortion care services, grandparenting, living with motor neurone disease, intergenerational solidarity and friendship, and long-term care service use. Even if you do not use Grounded Theory in your research, the article will be thought-provoking and help to understand contrasts and commonalities between interviewing techniques in different qualitative methods. Last but not least, the article is indispensable reading for anyone who is setting out to conduct a Grounded Theory study that involves interviewing or focus groups.
14th April, 2021

Dr Geraldine Foley awarded Irish Research Council New Foundations award
Congratulations to Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor, on being awarded an IRC New Foundations award to support her research on patient and caregiver decision-making in palliative care. Please see IRC news webpage for details.
7th April, 2021
Dr Geraldine Foley and PhD Scholar publish in top-ranked palliative care journal
Congratulations to Dr Geraldine Foley and PhD Scholar Ms Rachel McCauley on their publication of a systematic review on mutual support between patients and family caregivers in palliative care. The systematic review has been published in the top-ranked journal Palliative Medicine and is co-authored with Prof Karen Ryan and Dr Regina McQuillan at St. Francis Hospice Dublin. This work is funded by a PhD Provost’s Project Award obtained by Dr Geraldine Foley. The publication is Open Access https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0269216321999962
2nd April, 2021
Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor, is recruiting to fill Research Assistant position (temporary)
The post holder will undertake systematic searching of evidence and will support data collection in a research project. The work focuses on decision making among patients and family caregivers in palliative care and involves collaboration with the all-Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care. Specifications for the position and procedures for application are found here. The position is also advertised on jobs.tcd.ie. Deadline for applications is **23rd April 2021**.
16 March, 2021
Dr Geraldine Foley publishes in Palliative Medicine 
Dr Geraldine Foley, Assistant Professor, has just published in the highly reputable journal ‘Palliative Medicine’ [Health Care Sciences & Services 15 out of 102 | Medicine, General & Internal 31 out of 165 | Public, Environmental & Occupational Health (SCIE) 33 out of 193 | Impact factor 3.739]. The ‘Letter to Editor’ publication outlines considerations for using video-based online interviews in palliative care research. Please click on link to see publication.
The link is https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0269216321989571
21 January, 2021
Dr Geraldine Foley publishes research note in Journal of Interprofessional Care’s blog
Dr Geraldine Foley has just published a ‘Research Note’ in the Journal of Interprofessional Care’s blog. The research note outlines briefly the relevance of grounded theory research for practice. This research note can be accessed through the following link.
13 January, 2021