Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Avril Kennan

17, the OG @surfpunk.bsky.social · Jun 28

Viktor Orban: "There will be NO Pride events in Hungary!"

Hungarians: "Challenge accepted"

Tens of thousands of Hungarians celebrating Pride and marching across a bridge over the Danube in Budapest

1 2

Reposted by Avril Kennan

𝑴𝒐𝒏𝒂 𝑯𝒊𝒋𝒂𝒛𝒊 🇵🇸🫒𝑰𝒏 𝑮𝒂𝒛𝒂 @monahijazi.bsky.social · Mar 24

The Last Message of Hossam to be shared after his death:
The will in alt text ⏬️

The Last Message of Hossam — to be shared after his death:

"If you’re reading this, it means I’ve been killed — likely targeted — by Israeli occupation forces.

When this all began, I was only 21 years old — a university student with dreams like anyone else.
For the past 18 months, I’ve dedicated every moment of my life to my people.
I documented the horrors in northern Gaza minute by minute, determined to show the world the truth they tried to bury.

I slept on sidewalks, in schools, in tents — wherever I could.
Every day was a fight to survive.
I endured hunger for months, yet I never left my people.

By God, I did my duty as a journalist.
I risked everything to report the truth.
And now, I’ve finally found rest — something I hadn’t known in the past 18 months.

I did all of this because I believed in the Palestinian cause.
I believe this land is ours, and it was the greatest honor of my life to die defending it — and serving its people.

Now I ask you:
Do not stop talking about Gaza.
Do not let the world look away.
Keep resisting. Keep telling our stories — until Palestine is free.

— One last time,
Hossam Shabat, from northern Gaza.

6 110 190

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · May 15

At the Irish Health Research Forum, we're discussing the vital role of patient registries. We’ve just shown this powerful video on why they matter. @hrci.bsky.social
#HealthData #PatientRegistries #RareDisease #HealthResearchMatters

m.youtube.com/watch?v=1hKH...

3 10

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · May 8

Great to meet Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, yesterday. We talked about the value of embedding research in the health service & the key role of health research charities. Looking forward to staying in touch.
@hrci.bsky.social
@brianmartinlynch.bsky.social
@roinnslainte.bsky.social

4 12

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Apr 10

The lovely people in the @rarediseasectn.bsky.social have done a fantastic job of bringing a diverse range of perspectives together for the #RareResearch25 conference. Researchers, clinicians, industry reps, regulators and many patients and advocates in the room.

An image of 5 speakers and chairs on the podium with a slide behind them showing the conference title.

3 13

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Apr 10

A very insightful piece on the current situation and needs in rare disease research in Ireland. Nicely timed for the @rarediseasectn.bsky.social conference happening in @ucddublin.bsky.social today.

Rare Disease Clinical Trial Network @rarediseasectn.bsky.social · Apr 8

Ahead of the Rare Disease Research Conference, we address the urgent need for collaboration, investment, and innovation in clinical trials.

Read below to see how we support education and training, regulatory frameworks, PPI and industry engagement:

www.medicalindependent.ie/in-the-news/...

Why rare disease research matters - Medical Independent

Ahead of the Rare Disease Research Conference, addressing the urgent need for collaboration, investment, and...

www.medicalindependent.ie

1 5

Reposted by Avril Kennan

Eric Conway @conwayer1.bsky.social · Mar 1

Anyone looking to Europe for research & interested in chromatin biology then we have opportunities in UCD, Ireland. Welcoming & diverse group & we would love to add thanksgiving to our seasonal celebrations!

Postdoc: conwaychromatinlab.com/team

PhD (MSc not required): www.coughlan-lab.com/team

9 9

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Mar 4

At the annual conference of the SPHeRE Network, Roisín Shortall says there’s never been proper public debate about the kind of health service we should be providing in Ireland. Universal healthcare, free at the point of use, is still not a reality.

Why do we tolerate?
@sphereprogramme.bsky.social

3

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Mar 4

This will series will be very interesting. Great to see @dublincityuni.bsky.social driving conversation on big topics.

Pádraig Murphy @padraigmurphy.bsky.social · Mar 3

How prepared is Ireland for the “next big shock” in emergency policy and public engagement ? A panel of experts including Philip Nolan and Cara Augustenborg discuss lessons learned from Covid-19 and climate change @dcu March 13th. All welcome to this free event www.dcu.ie/communicatio...

School of Communications Spring Series 2025 | School of Communications

DCU School of Communications continues its Public Seminars with a new series of presentations and discussions for Spring 2025. Over four weeks in March, staff will introduce new key issues and topics ...

www.dcu.ie

1 2

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Feb 28

Done Áine 😊

1

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Feb 28

Many new accounts added to this starter pack to help you find people who are talking about health research in Ireland. Let me know if you should be included.
#HealthResearchMatters

go.bsky.app/MdNAY9L

1 6 12

Reposted by Avril Kennan

European Reference Network - MetabERN @ernmetabern.bsky.social · Feb 28

🌍 Today is #RareDiseaseDay 2025!

We stand with the 300 million people worldwide living with rare diseases.
By coming together, we can raise awareness, drive change, and work toward a more inclusive and equitable future!

🔗 Read more: metab.ern-net.eu/rare-disease...

#RareDiseaseDay2025

3 15

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Feb 27

After years of advocacy from many groups & the dedicated work of the HSE & @roinnslainte.bsky.social, the HSE Health App has been launched.
It's an early version but marks a significant step forward - finally giving people in Ireland access to their own health data.

www2.hse.ie/health-app/

HSE Health App

The HSE Health App is a new digital health service from the HSE that gives our patients secure personalised access to their health information, hospital appointments, and more.

www2.hse.ie

4

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Feb 26

Good to see a strong focus both on patients and clinical trials at the #IPHAconference2025.
#HealthResearchMatters

1 4

Reposted by Avril Kennan

Cancer Trials Ireland @cancertrialsie.bsky.social · Feb 26

Great news from #iphaconference2025! Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill expresses strong support for clinical trials and plans to meet the National Clinical Trials Oversight Committee next week.

A positive step for #CancerResearch, #ClinicalTrials & patients! 👏💙@roinnslainte.bsky.social

1 4

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Feb 19

Love the puns!

1

Reposted by Avril Kennan

Health Research Charities Ireland @hrci.bsky.social · Feb 11

Happy International Day of Women and Girls in Science!
Today, we celebrate the brilliant women and girls pushing the boundaries of discovery, innovation, and progress. Their contributions shape our world in ways both seen and unseen. #HealthResearchMatters

2 4

Reposted by Avril Kennan

David Shiffman, Ph.D. 🦈 @whysharksmatter.bsky.social · Feb 5

As a Star Trek fan and a scientist, I love this image, because Dr. Jemison is both a hero *AND* one of the few people for whom we can say "here she is doing her space job" in two totally different contexts. 🧪

Image of Dr. Mae Jemison, actual astronaut and Star Trek guest star

15 390 1.7K

Reposted by Avril Kennan

Health Research Charities Ireland @hrci.bsky.social · Feb 4

Our goal, as reflected in our 2025 Position Paper, is to ensure that a supportive & enabling framework exists in Ireland to facilitate impactful health & social care research. With the Dail resuming tomorrow, we're asking elected reps & policy makers to prioritise 3 asks hrci.ie/hrci-positio...

4 10

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Feb 5

At an @ria.ie symposium on improving the prospects for fundamental biomedical research in Ireland. Inputs by David Henshall of @rcsi.bsky.social and others closely align to our call for more State investment in R&D. hrci.ie/hrci-positio...

#FundamentalResearch #HealthResearchMatters

HRCI Position Paper 2025 -

Health Research Charities Ireland (HRCI) Position Paper 2025. Contains 3 asks for elected representatives and policy makers in Ireland.

hrci.ie

2 9

Reposted by Avril Kennan

Killian Hurley @killianhurley.bsky.social · Feb 1

This is a very important moment for patients and #genomics in #Europe and #Ireland.
Kudos to @rcsi.bsky.social and other collaborators.

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Jan 31

This has been a wish for many in the genetics/genomics community in Ireland for a long time. I'm so pleased to see it coming to fruition. #genomics #PersonalisedMedicine #HealthResearchMatters

www.gov.ie/en/press-rel...

Minister for Health announces the establishment of a Genome of Ireland project to advance disease prediction and prevention

www.gov.ie

1 5

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Jan 31

This has been a wish for many in the genetics/genomics community in Ireland for a long time. I'm so pleased to see it coming to fruition. #genomics #PersonalisedMedicine #HealthResearchMatters

www.gov.ie/en/press-rel...

Minister for Health announces the establishment of a Genome of Ireland project to advance disease prediction and prevention

www.gov.ie

1 2 12

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Jan 31

"Here’s where projects like Bluesky come in. Yes, at first glance, it looks like just another Twitter clone. But that’s just there to make users comfortable using it. Beneath that familiar surface lies something revolutionary: actual user control."
www.techdirt.com/2025/01/27/e...

Empowering Users, Not Overlords: Overcoming Digital Helplessness

Disclosure: I’m on the board of Bluesky, so feel free to take as many grains of salt as you want in reading it, though all of it applies equally to other decentralized social media ecosys…

www.techdirt.com

1

Reposted by Avril Kennan

Health Research Charities Ireland @hrci.bsky.social · Jan 21

Our latest HRCI blog post examines the Programme for Government and what it means for health research. Many of the commitments are broad, leaving scope for engagement with the health research community towards practical and innovative approaches. hrci.ie/news/blog-ne... #HealthResearchMatters

2 3

Avril Kennan @avrilkennan.bsky.social · Jan 22

I spent some time going through the new Programme for Government in Ireland and share my thoughts here for anyone interested in health research, clinical trials, life sciences and the importance of it all for improving health and social care.
hrci.ie/news/blog-ne...

HRCI Blog, News & Media - HRCI Blog, News & Media

A round up of HRCI news, media and blog posts written by HRCI CEO Dr Avril Kennan, HRCI staff and invited contributors.

hrci.ie

1 4