Dr. Michael Barry MB, FRCPI, PhD

Dr. Barry is Senior Lecturer/Consultant Clinical Pharmacologist at the University of Dublin, Trinity College. He is the clinical director of the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics.  He is President (2009-2010) of the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR).  Research areas of interest include economic evaluation and health technology assessment and he is a board member of the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA). Dr. Barry has published widely on the cost-effectiveness of medicines in the Irish healthcare setting.

Email: mbarry@stjames.ie

Roisin Adams, MPharm, MSc.

Roisin Adams is a Chief II Pharmacist at the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics where she is currently undertaking her PhD on the cost effectiveness of biologic agents in inflammatory rheumatolgical disease. She is a graduate of the Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen and trained in Ninewells Hospital, Dundee. In 2003 she was appointed Chief II pharmacist in St. James's Hospital where she specialised in palliative care and rheumatology.  Roisin completed her MSc. in Clinical Pharmacy at Queens University, Belfast.  She is a member of the review group for pharmaceutical technologies at the NCPE since 2008.  Her areas of interests include utility measurement and methodology of indirect comparisons for evidence synthesis.

Email: radams@stjames.ie

Dr. Kathleen Bennett BSc, PhD (Statistics)

Dr. Bennett is employed as an epidemiologist / statistician and has over 15 years experience of undertaking health services research. She has worked as a clinical trials statistician, at Pfizer, Kent and the MRC at Nottingham University and in cancer epidemiology in Manchester, before joining the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics in 2001. Her main area of interest is in cardiovascular epidemiology and pharmacoepidemiology.

Email: bennettk@tcd.ie

Niamh Geraghty

Niamh is a Grade IV Clerical Officer at the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics. She completed a computer/receptionist course in Crumlin College of Business and Technical studies in 1989. Prior to starting in St. James’s Hospital in 1996 Niamh had been working for a private orthodontist for six years. Since joining St. James’s Hospital she has worked in various different departments including the Central Pathology Laboratory and Personnel (Human Resources). She also spent time working with the National Medicines Information Centre before joining the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics (NCPE) in 2000.

Email: barrysec@stjames.ie

Laura McCullagh BSc (Hons) Pharm, P.J.Dip.

Laura McCullagh is a Senior Research Associate at the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics and is a graduate of the Sunderland University School of Pharmacy. She trained in the Liverpool NHS Trust Hospitals and then worked as a resident pharmacist at the Leicester Royal Infirmary. During this time she completed a post graduate diploma in hospital pharmacy from De Monfort University, Leicester. She then worked as a deputy manager of the Medicines Information Department in the Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust. Laura subsequently worked as a senior pharmacist in the Mater Misericordiae Hospital in Dublin, on the intensive care and cardiac surgery unit. She then worked as a Chief II Pharmacist in the GUIDE (Gentiourinary and Infectious Disease) department of St James’s Hospital, Dublin.

Email: lmccullagh@stjames.ie

Dr. Aisling O Leary BSc Pharm, PhD

Dr. O’Leary graduated from the School of Pharmacy, Trinity College in 1986 and was awarded her Ph.D. in pharmaceutical chemistry in 1991. She has worked in a variety of settings pertinent to the practise of pharmacy including industry (Baxter Healthcare), primary care and hospital pharmacy. In 1992, she was appointed as clinical pharmacist to the Genito-urinary Medicine department in St. James’ Hospital with responsibility for patients with HIV. In 1995, she became Course Co-Ordinator of the M.Sc. in Hospital Pharmacy under the auspices TCD, while retaining a clinical commitment at ward level in SJH, a position she held until 2005. Dr. O’Leary appraises new medicinal products for the NCPE and retains a number of teaching commitments at both undergraduate and post-graduate level.

Email: aoleary@stjames.ie

Dr. Lesley Tilson BSc (Hons) Pharm, PhD

Dr. Tilson is Chief I Pharmacist at the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics and is a graduate of the University of Brighton. She trained in the Chelsea and Westminster hospital, London and then worked as a resident pharmacist at the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust. During this time she completed a Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy with Cardiff University. Lesley worked as a senior clinical pharmacist at St James’s Hospital Dublin, on the intensive care unit and cardiac surgery ward. She has a PhD from the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Trinity College Dublin (2002-2005) and a Diploma in Statistics from Trinity College Dublin (2003-2004). She is a lecturer in pharmacoeconomics to undergraduate and postgraduate pharmacy students. Research interests include: Economic evaluation of pharmaceuticals in the Irish setting, pharmaceutical pricing and reimbursement strategies, policies to promote generic markets, international pharmaceutical pricing, analysis of drug utilisation and expenditure trends.

Email: ltilson@stjames.ie

Dr. Cara Usher BSc, PhD

Dr. Usher graduated with a PhD in Pharmacology from University College Dublin in 2002 where the subject of her thesis was “endothelial dysfunction and oxidant stress in diabetes mellitus”. Thereafter she took up a post-doctoral Research Fellowship with Professor J. Feely at the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Trinity College Dublin in Pharmacoepidemiology, and has published on varying aspects of drug utilization in general practice in Ireland. Since joining the NCPE Cara has been actively involved in evaluating submissions concerning new pharmaceuticals and vaccines. Main research interests include examination of rational prescribing in general practice, equity in prescribing, influence of socio-economic status on prescribing practice as well as extraneous influences on prescribing (drug withdrawals, regulatory advice, media). Cara has also spent time working with GSK in the UK in the area of pharmacogenetics.

Email: cusher@stjames.ie

Dr. Cathal Walsh MA, PhD

Cathal has an MA in Mathematics and PhD in Bayesian Statistical Modelling. He has worked as a biostatistician with clinical researchers for over 10 years. He sees statistics as having a vital role in decision making under uncertainty. Specific areas in which he has used his expertise are in the modelling of heterogeneity using latent variable models and in combining evidence from multiple sources. He has held visiting appointments in Bayesian groups internationally, and contributes to the statistical societies in the UK and Ireland. He is Associate Editor for the statistics journal JSCS. He lectures to final year students in Mathematics and Management Science and Information Systems Sciences at Trinity College Dublin.

Email: Cathal.Walsh@tcd.ie

Emer Fogarty BSc Pharm, MSc

Emer Fogarty is a Research Associate at the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics.  She graduated from Trinity College, Dublin in 2004 and completed an MSc in Clinical Pharmacy with University College, Cork.  Formerly employed as a clinical pharmacist in St. James's Hospital, Emer worked in numerous clinical pharmacy specialities including general medicine, oncology and infectious diseases.  She held Senior Pharmacist roles in Acute Medical Admissions and Antimicrobial Stewardship.  Since joining the NCPE in 2010, Emer has contributed to clinical and cost-effectiveness evaluation of health technologies in respiratory illness.

Email: efogarty@stjames.ie