Our Impact

At a time of unprecedented challenges to health care provision and a need to recognize widening diversity, this group will take a proactive stance to promote equitable, accessible and sustainable care across the life span. 

Our Aims

Aim:

To conduct research that investigates and promotes the provision of just, universal, ethical, and sustainable healthcare by trusted professionals, providing inclusive care.

Specific Objectives:

1. To collaborate locally, nationally and internationally to share knowledge, build interdisciplinary and global networks, and advance the field of equitable, accessible and sustainable healthcare.
2. To develop and test interventions that support caring, ethical, and inclusive practices in the delivery of healthcare 
3. To support the expansion and translation of research to promote care that is consistent with the values of equity and inclusivity
4. To evidence the impact of climate change on health and healthcare provision and to reduce the impact of health care on planetary health.

Main Research Themes

• Health needs of marginalised and underserved communities
• Equity, Inclusion and Diversity in Research Methods and Design
• Equity, Inclusion and Diversity in Nursing and Midwifery in curricular development and Education
• Partnering with PPI throughout the lifecycle of our research.

Projects and Collaborations

The following are a sample of current research projects and collaborations undertaken by the J.U.S.T.I.C.E research team:

2026  

Community, place, stories and affect; harnessing Cultural Heritage resources in the context of Acquired Brain Injury.  

Dr. Caroline Dalton, contributed to this project, in conjunction with Mr.  Kevin Sheehan Headway Ireland – Brain Injury Services and Support staff and Dr. Clíona O’Carroll and Mr James Fury from Béaloideas/Folklore and Ethnology and the Cork Folklore Project UCC. The following Headway Clients were instrumental in developing the project: Joe Cashman, Eoin Twomey, Ger Ring, Liam Kelleher, Chris Ennis, Mark Canton Dwyer, Jennifer Sweeney 

The project used a co-production approach to engage in cultural exploration and production, to identify how Cultural Heritage resources, i.e., the Cork Memory Map, be mobilized in the context of Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) to promote wellbeing, enjoyment, rehabilitation, and self-representation. The project was deemed to be a “nostalgic adventure” (participant 6), enabling participants to access and articulate personal experiences with greater confidence.  

Funding for this project was provided by the Future Humanities Institute Internal Funding Support Programme at University College Cork. Further information on the project and access to the Memory Map is available here.  

2025  

Dementia Lifeworlds  

Dementia is one of the greatest societal-health challenges of the coming decades. The Dementia Lifeworlds project seeks to examine dementia through a transdisciplinary lifeworld lens, including a biographical, relational, socio-cultural analysis in tandem with bioscientific, legal and design thinking.  Dr Caroline Dalton presented on the topic of Relational Autonomy at the 3rd Dementia Life Worlds Symposium “Conversations towards Death: Making an Advance Care Directive as a Rite of Passage for End-of-Life Transition” held in UCC on the 26th of November 2025.  

Further information on the Dementia Lifeworlds Project is available here.   

Economic Impact of Bereavement 

Dr Caroline Dalton (PI) in conjunction with researchers from the School of Nursing and Midwifery  and the Cork University Business School undertook a study to explore in-depth the economic impact of bereavement on people who have been bereaved, from the perspectives of the bereaved and professionals supporting them. This study was undertaken in conjunction with the Irish Hospice Foundation and was funded by the Dept of Social Protection, Ireland.  

A copy of the report is available here:   https://hospicefoundation.ie/our-supports-services/advocacy-research/research/the-real-financial-impact-of-bereavement/  

Further Publications: A Qualitative Study on the Economic Impact of Experiencing Family Bereavement in Ireland. Murphy, A., Walsh, E., Cornally, N., FitzGerald, S., Hartigan, I., Nuzum, D., McDonnell, J. & Dalton, C., 2025, In: Omega: Journal of Death and Dying. p. 302228251364180. Linked here  

Exploring the Experience of Asylum Seekers and Refugees accessing healthcare in Ireland 

Ciaran Evans is undertaking research in healthcare access for vulnerable populations, specifically those in the international protection process. This ongoing project is exploring the perspectives of asylum seekers and refugees on accessing healthcare in Ireland and the perspectives of healthcare professionals who provide care to asylum seekers and refugees. This study is being undertaken as part of his PhD. Scoping review protocol linked here. 

2024  

Integrating Sustainability into the BSc Undergraduate Nursing programme 

Funded by the SATLE (2024) fund, Dr Angela Flynn and Ann McAuliffe undertook an in-depth quantitative examination of the inclusion of the UNSDGs within our nursing and midwifery undergraduate curricula, in partnership with students, using UCC’s SDG mapping tool (https://www.ucc.ie/en/sdg-toolkit/teaching/tool/). This research sought to capture both student and academic staff perspectives and to analyse both academic staff and students' interpretations of the inclusion of the UNSDGs within the curricula. We have identified gaps or mismatches between what faculty members think is embedded in the curriculum and what students experience and understand. 

Attitudes to Sustainability among Nurses  

Following on from her sabbatical research in 2023, using the validated Sustainability Attitudes in Nursing (SANS2) instrument, Dr Angela Flynn undertook a cross-sectional survey to assess attitudes to sustainability and climate change. A convenience and snowball sample of nurses, midwives, and students was recruited via professional networks and social media across Ireland, the UK, Germany, and other European countries. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance (ANOVA) to explore differences by professional role. Open-ended responses were examined using content analysis to identify recurring themes. Findings reveal strong recognition of sustainability’s relevance but limited translation into practice, particularly among students and early-career staff. Hierarchical structures and lack of confidence inhibited challenges to unsustainable practices. Educational reform embedding sustainability within nursing curricula, aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, is essential to empower nurses and midwives as climate health advocates. 

2023 

Planetary Health and the Sustainable Development Goals in Health Professions Education 

Sustainability was the focus of the research undertaken during Dr Angela Flynn’s Sabbatical in 2023. Against the backdrop of climate change and the biodiversity crisis, evidence abounds regarding the environment’s impact on global disease burdens, the health effects of extreme weather events, climate change’s influence on air pollution, and risks to food and water security. Global health systems are rapidly working towards adaptation and taking urgent mitigation measures. It is therefore critical that frontline health professionals, including nurses and midwives, are well informed on the environmental impact of healthcare, can advance sustainable practices, and are equipped with appropriate knowledge to engage in adaptation. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) provide a useful framework to ensure a holistic approach to societal as well as planetary health. Dr Angela Flynn hosted a pre-conference workshop with nursing and midwifery staff to ascertain views about what aspects of sustainability and climate change knowledge should be included in undergraduate curricula. Informed by these findings, she then designed a final year elective module to align sustainability within the nursing and midwifery curricula. See https://ucc-ie-public.courseleaf.com/modules/?details&srcdb=2025&code=NU4115  This was the first time that issues of sustainability had been explicitly included in the undergraduate nursing and midwifery programmes in UCC.  Lecture titles were mapped against the UNSDGs to indicate the goals being addressed in each lecture.