I am a PhD student at Tyndall National Institute and the Department of Chemistry at University College Cork. I graduated from Cork Institute of Technology in 2012 with a Distinction in BSc Biomedical Science, for which I was awarded ‘Best Student’ sponsored by Sigma-Aldrich. Continuing my studies in biomedical science I graduated from a joint BSc (Hons.) degree between University College Cork and Cork Institute of Technology with 1st Class Honours. On achieving the highest marks for my final year project, I was nominated to compete for the presidents prize at The Academy of Medical Laboratory Science annual conference, Biomedica 2014. The presentation of my project was awarded 2nd place and was highly commended. I went on to secure the Government of Ireland Postgraduate Scholarship from the Irish Research Council to fund my PhD studies. I currently reside in Cork City but I am originally from the beautiful West Cork coastal town of Clonakilty. I am passionate about the biomedical field and I am keen to bring feasible solutions to genuine clinical problems.

The aim of my research is to develop a needle integrated with an impedance sensor for use in regional anaesthesia, in particular ultrasound-guided peripheral nerve block (USgPNB). Bioimpedance has already been used to differentiate between different tissue types. By applying this principle it is hoped our SMART needle will differentiate needle position outside the nerve from inside the nerve, providing clinicians with important information on needle position. Thus our solution will improve safety and efficacy of USgPNB as well as enhance training of the technique.