SETU recently launched Foundation Day 2024, a new annual tradition commemorating the Universitys establishment across the region. As part of the celebration, SETU hosted the conference entitled Connecting for Health at our Cork Road campus in Waterford.
The ‘Connecting for Health' conference was the first in a series of Foundation Day events held across the region at SETU. It brought industry experts, healthcare professionals, academics, researchers, and students together to explore the opportunities and challenges facing the health sector in the south east, with a focus on the interconnectivity between human, animal, and planetary health.
‘Connecting for Health’ links with SETU’s strategic plan 2023-2028, ‘Connecting for Impact’, which includes goals of SETU leading the south east as an innovation region, and appointing professors who will ensure academic leadership and impact on areas of opportunity associated with health and more.
A region of excellence
Speaking at the conference, Professor Veronica Campbell, President of SETU, said, “Today we have invited leaders in human, animal, and planetary health to SETU to put the health sector in the south east under the spotlight. SETU intends to support our partners and communities to ensure we put the south east firmly on the map as a location of excellence for health,” Prof. Campbell said, “Over the coming years, we will grow our health research credentials further by expanding our collaborative partnerships with industry and the health sector, bolstering academic expertise in this area and increasing the number of PhD students.”
A key ambition for SETU is to deliver an innovative, research-informed, connected, and applied curriculum in areas of regional need. In 2022, the Higher Education Authority (HEA) invited submissions from HEIs to build capacity in pharmacy, nursing, and veterinary medicine amongst other disciplines. The Government agreed to advance SETU’s proposals to create new programmes in pharmacy and veterinary medicine and to expand the capacity of its existing nursing courses to the next stage.
“This is a real vote of confidence in our newly established university as veterinary medicine and pharmacy are prestigious courses in high demand attracting some of the brightest and best students from across the country. We are also at the planning stage for a new course in optometry. Given the extensive expertise we have in eye health we have the potential to be leaders in this field of study,” she explained.
Acquisition
Late last year, SETU completed the acquisition of the iconic Waterford Crystal site with the intention to transform it into a University and Enterprise Quarter with academic activity co-located with enterprise.
The first academic building on that site will include activities that will relate to ‘One Health’. “Our leadership of this exciting new University and Enterprise Quarter and the opportunities that will arise will be instrumental in driving the regional one health innovation agenda,” Prof. Campbell said.
During the conference, Patsy Carney, Director at Kinetic Labs and former CEO and founder of EirGen Pharma, delivered a keynote address. Mr Carney shared with the audience a story of innovation, ambition, entrepreneurship, and collaboration in the south east that brought him regional and global success.
“Over the coming years, we will grow our health research credentials further by expanding our collaborative partnerships with industry and the health sector, bolstering academic expertise in this area and increasing the number of PhD students.”
Professor Veronica Campbell President of SETU
As part of his speech, Mr Carney commended the life sciences pipeline of talent coming through SETU and the interaction between the University and businesses regarding course design. “We compared other universities around the country and the quality of graduates in terms of readiness for industry was as good as it gets,” he stated.
On the importance of research support ecosystems, Mr Carney highlighted plentiful opportunities for fledgling businesses to flourish in Waterford. “There’s never been a better time to engage in the industry,” he said, encouraging new and existing companies to “go for it”.
Panel discussions
Two panel discussions followed. The first explored how SETU and partners could collaborate to meet the challenges of the health sector in the south east. Chaired by Prof. Michael Harrison, the panel included David Beirne, Senior Vice President UPMC International, Prof. Ríona Mulcahy, Consultant Physician in General and Geriatric Medicine at UHW and Undergraduate Dean, RCSI, Dr Claire Lennon, Pharmaceutical and Molecular Biotechnology Research Centre and Programme Development Lead, SETU, Kira Murphy, SETU PhD student – Exercise for Prostate Cancer Patients and Saoirse Casey Power, SETU PhD student - Ocular Drug Delivery.
The second panel examined the interdisciplinary relationship between animal, planetary, and human health, and its future in the region. Chaired by Eleanor Kent, Head of Department of Land Sciences at SETU, the panel featured Dr Anne Marie Butler, Head of Education, Teagasc, Martin Blake, Chief Veterinary Officer at Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine, Prof. Peter McLoughlin, Head of School of Science and Computing, SETU, Dr Nick McCarthy, Course Leader / Principal Investigator of Eco Innovation Research Centre, SETU, and Dr Mary-Kate Burke, MVB, Veterinary Medicine Programme Development Lead, SETU.
The conference also featured a think-tank session in which staff and students engaged on the topic of ‘Empowering People to Thrive Amidst Change’. These sessions provided feedback and discussion on SETU’s progress, achievements, and future priorities.
For more information on SETU’s strategic plan 2023-2028, tap here.
Main image: Professor Peter McLoughlin, Head of the School of Science and Computing, Dr Mary-Kate Burke, Veterinary Medicine Programme Development Lead, Saoirse-Casey Power, Eleanor Kent, Head of Department of Land Sciences, Dr Nicholas McCarthy, Course Leader of BSc. (Hons) in Land Management in Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry, and Dr Claire Lennon, Lecturer Organic Chemistry.