News

The EU-funded ATHLOS Project aims to achieve a better understanding of ageing by identifying patterns of healthy ageing trajectories, the determinants of those patterns, the critical points in time when changes in trajectories are produced, and to propose timely clinical and public health interventions to optimise healthy ageing. Experts from the areas of demography, sociology, clinical medicine, epidemiology and public health, health statistics, economics, data management, and policy will be involved in this research.

Two thirds of individuals 65 and older who screened positive for cognitive impairment refused subsequent evaluation according to the first study of its kind to examine older adults' willingness to undergo diagnostic assessment. The Indiana University Center for Aging Research, Regenstrief Institute and Eskenazi Health study of approximately 500 older adults found that individuals living alone were the least likely to agree to diagnostic assessment following a positive screening test for dementia.

The Health & Social Care Research and Development Division of the Public Health Agency (HSC R&D Division) recently announced new funding under a Knowledge Exchange Award Scheme to improve the impact of research.

The scheme is intended to support knowledge exchange that delivers practice, policy, social and/or economic benefit in an area relevant to health or social care. It is expected that applications will come from multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral teams who can demonstrate credible arrangements for collaboration.

The Health & Social Care Research and Development Division of the Public Health Agency (HSC R&D Division) offers Doctoral Fellowships to support research training in order to increase the Health and Social Care (HSC) R&D capacity and to build an evaluative evidence-based culture. 

The scheme is intended to enable an individual to develop a research career in the HSC by undertaking research training leading to a PhD.

All Ireland Institute of Hospice & Palliative Care is pleased to announce the launch of four Clinical Research Fellowships in palliative and end of life care. The Fellowships are targeted at health and social care professionals (including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, physiotherapists, etc.), working in clinical practice in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland, with previous experience of and a commitment to palliative and end of life care research.

The Health and Social Care R&D Division (NI) recently announced the opening of a call for applicants for the Enabling Research Awards (ERAs). ERAs are designed to support researchers in their acquisition of funding through National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Evaluation, Trials and Studies (NETS) research programmes.

The aim of this investment is to increase the rate and number of successful applications from Northern Ireland-based lead researchers to NETS research programmes.

€45 million in funding has been made available under a new Horizon 2020 call entitled “Evolving models of patient engagement and access for earlier identification of Alzheimer’s disease: Phased expansion study”.

The Health Research Board and Irish Cancer Society are pleased to announce a joint call for applications for individuals working in Ireland to apply to become an NCI Cancer Prevention Fellow, under the auspices of the Ireland-Northern Ireland – NCI Cancer Consortium. Applications are due on 25 August 2015 for entry into the Programme the following June.

Different cultures have different perceptions of mental illnesses – including dementia. In fact, in the UK, people from the south Asian community are more likely to approach their GPs for physical than mental health symptoms. With south Asian ethnic minority groups one of the largest minority groups in western countries, improving dementia care for south Asians is becoming increasingly more important. Read more here.

With falls by older people living in the community now estimated to cost Scotland’s health and care services more than £471m every year, a new campaign has begun that encourages older people to avoid falling. The City of Edinburgh Council and NHS Lothian have jointly launched Five Small Steps To Stay On Your Feet which gives people simple tips to try and prevent falls and also information about what to do if they do suffer one.