News

European Healthcare Communication Award for DCU Academic

DCU academic, Dr Veronica Lambert, has been awarded the Jozien Bensing Award for talented early career research from the European Association for Communication in Healthcare (EACH). This is the first time this award has been presented to a nurse and recognises Veronica's outstanding research in clinical communication.

Veronica, a lecturer in Children's and General Nursing at DCU School of Nursing and Human Sciences completed her PhD thesis 'Visible-ness', on the nature of communication between children and health professionals in a specialist children's hospital, from the children's perspective.

She is currently principal investigator on a research project, 'Breaking the cycle of invisibility: A mixed methods inquiry of disclosure challenges faced by children living with epilepsy', undertaken in conjunction with Brainwave – The Irish Epilepsy Association, Temple Street and the HSE.

Many children living with epilepsy worry about disclosing their condition to others through fear of public reaction to their epilepsy and how different this will make them feel. These two factors contribute greatly to children's risk of developing anxiety, depression, reduced social competence and exclusion. The aim of the research is to enhance children's social integration, inclusivity and wider participation in society and contribute to creating a society where everyone understands epilepsy and where those living with epilepsy would be able to lead an unlimited life thereby helping the vision of Brainwave-The Irish Epilepsy Association to become a reality.