Code of Conduct Information Events-Speaker Biographies

5 February 2020 - Principle 3 - Communicate Effectively

Conor McCrystal

Conor McCrystal is a pharmacy graduate of Queen’s University Belfast (1992). He completed his training in the UK and graduated with a PhD in Pharmaceutics in 1998. Conor worked as a post-doctoral researcher in QUB before moving to Dublin to work in research and development with Elan Pharmaceuticals for a number of years. He became a pharmacy contractor in 2004 and since that time has worked primarily in community pharmacy as part of family run enterprise based in Cavan.

Since 2004, he has gained experience in a number of areas of education including as a Teacher Practitioner in the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, TCD and most recently as a Practice Reviewer in the Irish Institute of Pharmacy (IIOP). He has verifiable audit, accreditation and quality systems evaluation expertise through work completed with the PSI and the IIOP and is an adjunct assistant professor in the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, TCD.

He has a strong interest in Regulatory Affairs within the healthcare sector in Ireland and holds a Diploma in Law from the Law Society of Ireland and a Graduate Diploma in Health Care Management (Risk Analysis & Quality) from the School of Legal Medicine, UCD. He has extensive experience in Fitness to Practise matters with the PSI and is a current PSI expert witness and was previously a member of the PSI Health Committee. He was appointed to the Monitoring Committee of the Medical Council of Ireland in 2019.

4 February 2020 - Principle 2- Work with Others

Dervla Kelly

Dervla Kelly is Lecturer in Medical Education at the University of Limerick and works part time as a community pharmacist. After graduating with a B.Sc. in Pharmacy, she worked as a community pharmacist for five years, followed by the pharmaceutical industry and completed a PhD in Epidemiology in Trinity College Dublin in 2016. She was a postdoctoral research fellow at New York University before moving to Limerick in 2018. Her research interests include safe use of medicines, with particular emphasis on appropriate medicine management in the community and the development of professional identity in health professionals.

9 October 2019 - Principle 3 - Communicate Effectively

Aoife Mellet

Aoife Mellett has been the Manager of Legal Affairs in the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland for the past three years. She is a qualified solicitor and previously worked for the Irish Medical Council and Matheson solicitors.

2 October 2019 - Principle 7- Be Open and Honest

Angela Tysall

Current Position: National Lead for Open Disclosure in the HSE Quality Improvement Team since 2010 and Manager of the National Open Disclosure Office established in 2019.

Background: Background in nursing and midwifery with clinical nurse specialist roles in minor illness and ear care. Extended Independent Nurse Prescriber. 5 years experience as senior sister, team leader and acting manager of a nurse led NHS Walk-in Centre. 6 years service management experience in a GP Out Of Hours service in the North West of Ireland I am committed to the area of patient safety and working together with patients and service users to improve the experience of people accessing our health and social care services. I take part in and contribute to many national workgroups which have a patient safety agenda. I believe in the power of kindness and compassion towards all those accessing and working in our health and social care services.

Bernie O'Reilly

Bernie O’Reilly is Chairperson of Patients for Patient Safety Ireland, a World Health Organisation initiative which gives patients and their families an opportunity to share experiences with health care professionals and policy makers. Every healthcare journey is unique to the person travelling it, and their experience and end result depends on the judgements and skills of many healthcare professionals, the patient is the one constant. Each patient must trust that they will receive care tailored to their best outcome, delivered in a safe, honest professional way. Everything that can be done, must be done, to insure that every patient gets that opportunity. The risk of unintended harm is always present and when it happens, it is tragic for all involved. Capturing the learning and sharing it feeds improvement. Patients for Patient Safety share their personal stories to encourage that learning. Healthcare is about us all.

1 October 2019 - Principle 6- Maintain Competence

Michelle Scott

Michelle Scott recently commenced a new role as Simulation Manager at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI). She previously worked with the Irish Institute of Pharmacy as project lead for the introduction of Practice Review - from pilot to implementation and was lead content developer for the ‘supply and administration of salbutamol in an emergency’ training programme.

Michelle has almost nine years’ experience working in the clinical pharmacy setting. She worked as an Antimicrobial Pharmacist and Senior Clinical Paediatric Pharmacist, at Temple Street Children’s University Hospital and in a range of paediatric specialist centres - Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin, Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Sheffield Children’s Hospital and the Evelina Children’s Hospital at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Foundation Trust, London.

She graduated from the University of Manchester in 2008 and was awarded a Distinction in her postgraduate Clinical Pharmacy diploma before completing her Master’s in Clinical Pharmacy with Queen’s University Belfast. Her thesis aimed to contribute directly to improved patient care and outcomes, through pharmacist-led clinics for education and training interventions on paediatric asthma control.

Michelle has been the recipient of a number of awards in recent years - “Young Hospital Pharmacist of the Year” at the Irish Pharmacy News Awards as well as “Excellence in Hospital Pharmacy” and “Overall Pharmacist of the Year” at the Helix Health Pharmacist Awards. Her collaborative work with Dr Rob Cunney was one of seven finalists at the HSE Healthcare Excellence Awards and was recently published in BMJ Quality. Michelle has a passion for the development of the pharmacy profession and the roles that pharmacists can play in enhancing safe and effective care for patients. She also enjoys exploring, skiing & quality time with family and friends.

26 September 2019 - Principle 2- Act Professionally

Aisling Reast

Aisling Reast registered as a pharmacist in 1999, and obtained her MSc in Community Pharmacy in 2014. Her pharmacy practice experience includes six years as a pharmacy owner, and employment with both independent pharmacies and multiples. She has held several positions in healthcare education, pharmacy practice development, continuing professional development and programme management including at the Irish Centre for Continuing Pharmacy Education, the Irish Pharmacy Union, the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland, the Irish Institute of Pharmacy and most recently as the Director of APPEL. She is a past President of the Pharmacy Benevolent Fund. Aisling has a postgraduate diploma in leadership, a diploma in public relations and certificates in assessment and quality assurance of the assessment process. She recently took up the post of Registrar at Hibernia College. As College Registrar she ensures the effective quality assurance of the College as an accredited academic institution, safeguards the integrity, accuracy, and security of all academic records, facilitates effective and compliant student registration and enrolment, and designs and implements policies and procedures for responsible conduct as an academic institution.