Co-Chair of the CRN

Dr Suja Somanadhan is an Associate Professor and head of the discipline of Children’s Nursing at the UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery & Health Systems, University College Dublin, Ireland. Dr Suja Somanadhan is a patient-oriented researcher who conducts research in collaboration with patients (including children, families, and informal caregivers), clinicians, and decision-makers, focusing on service user priorities and outcomes that matter to integrate research into policy and practice to improve healthcare outcomes and experience across the life continuum. Dr Somanadhan is a Fulbright Scholar, and she developed critical and robust clinical and academic relationships with US colleagues at the department of the state, including the National Institutes of Health and the Centre of Rare Diseases Therapy at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and the Rare Disease Institute at Children’s National Hospital, Washington DC.

Dr Somanadhan has several research grants and is leading projects in child and family health and well-being related to rare and complex diseases. Dr Somanadhan’s most recent appointments include being a Co-Chair of the Children’s Research Network of Ireland and Northern Ireland, Co-Lead of the All-Ireland Interdisciplinary Rare Disease Research Network (RAiN) and a Co-Lead of the International Family Nursing Association (IFNA) UK-Ireland Chapter.

Co-Chair of the CRN

Dr Suzanne Egan is currently co-chair of the Children's Research Network, a member of the CRN Advisory Committee, and chair of the Special Interest Group on Outdoor Play, Leisure, Activity and Education 2020-2023. She is a researcher and lecturer in the Department of Psychology, Mary Immaculate College (MIC), Limerick. She graduated with a Ph.D. in Psychology from Trinity College Dublin, and also holds postgraduate qualifications in Cognitive Science and in Statistics. Her research explores the factors that support development in young children and examines the processes involved in imagination, thinking and reasoning. Dr Egan is the director of the Cognition, Development and Learning Research Lab in MIC, which focuses on the impact of various activities on early development, such as reading, screen-time and outdoor play. Recently she has been involved in the evaluation of community based intervention programmes to support language and literacy development in young children through health centres, libraries and preschools. Dr Egan regularly publishes and presents her research at national and international conferences, and her research has been reported by the national and international media.

Research Network Coordinator

Niamh Buckle is the Research Network Coordinator for the CRN. Following graduating with a distinction from University College Dublin as a Children’s and General Nurse in 2020, Niamh went on to study a master’s degree in Global Health and Development at University College London, in which she achieved a distinction. She is currently undertaking a Ph.D. at University College Dublin and works part-time as a research assistant as well as with the CRN. Niamh’s research activities have primarily centred around children and young people’s issues, including child and adolescent health, lived experiences and participation in research.

The CRN Advisory Committee meets quarterly to discuss issues of importance to the network, which can range from event planning to expenditure approvals. The Committee is made up of the CRN Co-Chairs, SIG Chairs and other members with an interest in the network's processes.