Four residents of a Moville disability group home have won the 2024 ‘Journal of Research in Nursing’ poster prize.
Moville Residential Group residents Kevin McLaughlin, James Ruddy, Matthew McLaughlin and Paddy Ruddy crafted a poster documenting their resilience during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Their achievement received a standing ovation at the Annual Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) International Nursing & Midwifery Research & Education Conference in Dublin in February.
The team received a rapturous welcome on stage as they accepted their award in the O’Flanagan Theatre.
Residents display their poster with Dr. Louise McBride – Head of Department of Nursing and Healthcare, ATU Donegal, along with Clinical Nurse Manager (CNM)2, Martin McNamee, and CNM3 Paddy McTeague.
Moville Residential Group Home, a HSE run Disability Services centre, provides full-time residential care for adults with intellectual disabilities with the aim of maximising residents’ potential for independent living and supporting residents to have their physical, psychological and social needs met in line with their wishes and preferences.
The literature in the winning poster describes the effects on mental health and overall wellbeing of the unprecedented physical restrictions imposed by COVID-19. These limitations impacted travel, reduced the options available for regular daily activities, and restricted access to a variety of physical activities. As a result, residential services for people with intellectual disabilities encountered considerable difficulties in maintaining opportunities for physical activity. Consequently, numerous services modified their methods for providing physical activity programmes, involving residents, staff and utilising local amenities within the applicable restrictions.
L-R Matthew McLaughlin, James Ruddy, Professor Mark White – Executive Dean of the Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery RCSI, Paddy Ruddy, Kevin McLaughlin
Paddy McTeague, CNM3 (Quality, Risk & Service User Safety) Donegal Disability Services said “It was a wonderful experience for us all and fitting recognition for the residents’ resilience during COVID-19 which was captured in the photographs in their poster. We are delighted for the residents to have maintained their presence within their local community and would like to take this opportunity to wish them every continued success in the future. We would like to express our sincere appreciation to staff members who support residents in all their endeavours and all community members who have offered their unwavering encouragement and support.”
