The HSE's National Women and Infants Health Programme (NWIHP), in collaboration with the Pregnancy Loss Research Group (PLRG), has launched a new resource for clinicians and people needing information about termination of pregnancy for fetal anomaly. Termination of Pregnancy for Fetal Anomaly provides accessible, evidence-informed information on clinical practice, legislation, care pathways and sources of support.

The New Directions in Miscarriage Research: Interdisciplinary, Intersectional and Full-Spectrum Perspectives conference – hosted by the Feminist Miscarriage Project – brought together almost 80 researchers, clinicians and practitioners, artists, activists and campaigners, from across the UK, Europe, Canada and the US.

Congratulations to Dr Brendan Fitzgerald who is one of the 39 new Clinical Professors appointed at the College of Medicine and Health, University College Cork. Dr Fitzgerald is a Consultant Perinatal Pathologist at Cork University Hospital (CUH) and member of the Pregnancy Loss Research Group. 

The Pregnancy Loss Research Group welcomes the approval by Cabinet of a proposal from the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke TD, to draft a Leave for Pregnancy Loss Bill.

A new national information booklet is being launched to explain the legal and clinical realities of Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) in Ireland following the introduction of the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018. Developed as a plain-language guide, it sets out what the law provides for and how services are organised and delivered in real-world care settings.

This week, Transition Year (TY) students at St Angela’s College, Cork completed their final SPRING class, marking the end of a year that has played an important role in preparing the programme for schools across Ireland.

The Annual Women in Medicine in Ireland Network (WiMIN) Conference was held in Galway on 21 March.

Representatives from the Pregnancy Loss Research Group, Féileacáin and the Miscarriage Association of Ireland attended and presented at an Oireachtas Briefing on introducing a Certificate of Pregnancy Loss in Ireland on Wednesday 25 March.

Professor Keelin O’Donoghue and Marita Hennessy PhD attended a meeting of the Joint Committee on Health in Leinster House on 18 February which considered issues relating to the National Maternity Strategy 2016-2026, including progress in its implementation. Féileacáin (represented by Mairie Cregan, co-founder, and Anne-Marie Farrell) and the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (represented by Tony Fitzpatrick, Director of Professional Services, and Aisling Dixon, Advanced Midwife Practitioner) also provided evidence to the Committee during the session.

We are delighted to welcome Dr Barbara Burke and Dr Aoife Corcoran to the team and introduce you to two new projects that they are leading.