RCSI has appointed Professor Suzanne McDonough as its new Head of the School of Physiotherapy.

Prof. McDonough brings with her over a decade of experience as Professor of Health and Rehabilitation at Ulster University. During her time there, she played a lead role in developing research capacity amongst physiotherapists and other allied health professionals, both nationally and internationally; she has successfully supervised 30 PhD students to date.

Welcoming the appointment, Prof. Cathal Kelly, RCSI CEO, said: “I would like to give a warm welcome to Prof. McDonough as she joins RCSI. She brings with her a wealth of experience in both education and research that will serve us well as she starts her new position. I look forward to seeing how Prof. McDonough will build upon the success of the programme.”

The appointment marks the programme’s ambitions to grow both inside and outside of the classroom.

Prof. McDonough is an expert in the development and evaluation of rehabilitation interventions in clinical populations. She is interested in the use of technology to enhance rehabilitation adherence and promote general health and wellbeing. She has published over 100 papers in her area of expertise, and she has obtained funding from a variety of national and international sources.

Commenting on her new role, Prof. McDonough said: “I look forward to joining the ranks of the high-calibre professors, researchers and students in RCSI’s School of Physiotherapy. As an institution, RCSI is focused on making sure that everything they do is for the benefit of patients’ health; and is underpinned by excellent teaching and research. With that in mind, I am excited to continue that mission.

“The programme has presented amazing opportunities to foster vital collaborations between students, clinicians and researchers. By expanding these collaborations, I hope to further strengthen our international reputation for physiotherapy research; and through our teaching translate this into clinical practice for patient benefit.”

RCSI is ranked among the top 250 (top 2%) of universities worldwide in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (2020) and its research is ranked first in Ireland for citations. It is an international not-for-profit health sciences institution, with its headquarters in Dublin, focused on education and research to drive improvements in human health worldwide. RCSI has been awarded Athena Swan Bronze accreditation for positive gender practice in higher education.