Report of First Virtual Irish Neurological Association Meeting
Prof. Timothy Lynch
Prof. Stanley Fahn
Dr. Paddy Mallon
Dr. John McHugh
The 56th Annual Irish Neurological Association Meeting, and first virtual INA Meeting, under the Presidency of Prof. Timothy Lynch, took place on October 1 – 2nd.
Prof. Lynch opened the meeting and welcomed IICN Members, presenters, delegates and guests. A temporary difficulty with accessing the online meeting via the website delayed the start of the meeting for a short time and a direct link to the live meeting provided access for delegates. Platform presentation sessions addressed many topics and areas of neurological illness. To view the detailed meeting programme please click here.
Noel Callaghan Guest Lecture
The highlight of the meeting was undoubtedly the Noel Callaghan Guest lecture, which was delivered by Prof. Stanley Fahn, H. Houston Merritt Professor of Neurology and Director Center for PD and Other Movement Disorders. Department of Neurology Columbia University Medical Center, The Neurological Institute. New York, New York. Prof. Fahn took delegates through the scientific discovery of levodopa, the revolutionary therapy which changed the outlook and reality for treatment of Parkinson’s Disease patients. Prof. Fahn’s knowledge and understanding of the key developments and neuroscientists who brought this treatment from bench to bedside over many decades, was inspiring. A number of eminent international and Irish Movement Disorder specialists who attended the meeting have requested to view it again and pending Prof. Fahn’s agreement, the lecture will be posted on the IICN website in the coming weeks.
The Covid-19 and Neurology Symposium was presented in a round table format, with Dr. Paddy Mallon, Professor of Microbial Diseases in the UCD School of Medicine; Dr. Patricia McNamara, Consultant Neurologist, The National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square; and Dr. Maria Gaughan, Aspire MS Clinical and Research Fellow, St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin.
In a very moving session, Prof. Lynch, Mr. Gray, Dr. Hawkins, Prof. Farrell, Dr. Costello and Prof. Hutchinson paid tribute to a number of colleagues who had died during the course of the previous year. Delegates to the meeting were reminded of the huge debt that current neurologists, neurosurgeons and neuroscientists in Ireland and Northern Ireland owe to their hard working, inspirational and ground breaking predecessors in their practice of clinical neuroscience.
Prof. Lynch noted that the standard of presentations at the meeting by NCHDs, both platform and poster presentations, was excellent. Posters were presented via the IICN website and will remain on display for the coming weeks. Delegates who may not have had time to view posters during the meeting are encouraged to log in and view them when they can.
Prof. Lynch announced the award winners at the 2020 INA Meeting.
- Harold Millar Prize for best overall presentation at the meeting was awarded to Dr. Eimer Maloney
Second Prize was awarded to Dr. Olwen Murphy - Mark Gibson Prize for best Movement Disorder related presentation was awarded to Dr. Josephine Hebert
Second Prize was awarded to Ms. Ciara Hunt - The John Kirker Prize for best Epilepsy related presentation was awarded to Dr. Eimer Maloney
Second Prize was awarded to Dr. Maeve Bradley - The Neurosurgical Prize, kindly sponsored by Prof. Jack Phillips, was awarded to Dr. Ping Hei Cheng
- The John Lynch Prize for best poster presentation was awarded to Dr. Ciara Gorman
Second prize was awarded to Dr. Damien Ferguson - The Hugh Staunton Prize for best intern or medical student presentation was awarded to Ms. Ciara Hunt
Second prize was awarded to Dr. Josephine Hebert
At the conclusion of the meeting Prof. Lynch thanked all presenters, mentors, chairpersons and judges for their contributions to the success of the 2020 Irish Neurological Association Meeting. Attendance online at the meeting was in excess of 250 people, far in excess of the usual in person attendance. Although organisation of this, the first virtual meeting, was challenging as are all first endeavours, the rewards more than justified the decision to present the meeting online.
The 2021 Irish Neurological Association Meeting form and President will be decided in January 2021.
