Opportunityknocked forlocalscientist
AS a microbiologist, Dundalk woman Christina Kenny frequently found herself answering questions from friends with shops and businesses who were looking for advice as to what they should do to re-open their businesses without endangering the health of their customers and staff.
The PhD student, who also holds a degree in business, had ‘a light bulb moment’ and came up with the idea of setting up a consultancy firm which would help businesses ensure that they are complying with all the new regulations as the COVID-19 restrictions are eased.
Christina, along with her fiance Neil Murphy from Ratoath, Co Meath, and friend Kevin Gallagher, have just set up Consultpure with the aim of giving scientifically based advice.
Both Christina and Kevin have the rather unusual combination of business and science qualifications, while Neil is ‘ the numbers’ guy’, she explains.
A graduate of UCD, Christina is a microbiological scientist who has worked in clinical disease research for a number of years. She also holds a Masters in Business and Biotechnology and it was while doing research work for her PhD at Queens University Belfast that she became friends with Kevin.
Kevin is an experienced pharmacist and microbiologist with years of clinical experience in the laboratory and hospital settings.
They also both share a strong entrepreneurial streak, and Christina has taken part in numerous entrepreneur competitions including ‘Start-up Stars’ in UCD Nova. With Neil on board to look after the financial end of things, they launched their website last week.
Consultpure are now helping businesses in Ireland and further afield to respond to the challenges of operating during a pandemic.
THE volunteers sewing for the Masks for Louth are among the busiest in the country, completing a massive five and a half thousand free masks for frontline workers and vulnerable people in the community in just over month.
Now, with the wearing of masks while shopping and travelling by public transport being recommended, the group is preparing to be busier than ever and is also offering members of the public the opportunity to request masks and to make donations towards the costs of material.
The band of volunteer sewists are affiliated to the Masks 4 All Ireland umbrella group and have been making masks for frontline staff in hospitals, nursing homes, care units.
Tina McDonnell, one of the founders of the group, says they very grateful to all the support they have received to date, from the local shops supplying material to those delivering them to hospitals, and will continue to make masks for as long as they are needed.
‘We are one of the biggest groups outside Dublin and have a real passion for what we are doing,’ she says. ‘We have a
While there are other, mostly American, consultancy companies out there helping businesses to look to the future, Christina points out that they are uniquely placed to advise a wide range of enterprises around the scientific as well as the business steps which they need to take.
‘We have got lots of queries from a variety of businesses, from hairdressers to offices, wanting to know what they should do to keep their customers and their staff safe,’ she says.
‘We can help companies build or develop their on-line presence but others need to be able to open up again,’ she explains. ‘We can advise them whether they need to change work surfaces or air conditioning, and how to comply with social distancing for example.’
She says businesses find it reassuring that their advice has a strong scientific basis.
‘It’s confusing for a lot of businesses to know what to do so that they are implementing best practice and while there are lots of guidelines out there, we can give them a plan to follow.’
Consultpure can help businesses protect staff from COVID-19 in the workplace through protective measures such as social distancing measures, staggering shifts and providing additional hand washing facilities, by identifying activities and situation which may facilitate spread of COVID-19 and communicate with workers to let them know what their employers are doing to protect them and what they can do to keep themselves and customers safe. fantastic team, and some people like me, haven’t done any sewing since they were at school, but now they are flying at it.’
Among those who have volunteered is Ravensdale opera star Tara Erraught who is back home after the production of Rossini’s ‘Cinderella’ was cancelled at the New York Metropolitan Opera House.
The group got a big boost when they received €1,000 from Louth County Council’s COVID-19 Fund through the Cooley Community Alert.
The nationwide movement came together in response to the huge demand for masks as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in Ireland in March. With a world shortage of masks, hospitals, nursing homes and other medical facilities were finding it difficult to source masks for their staff.
Within days of the Masks 4 All Ireland group being set up on Facebook, Tina McDonnell and Caroline Sheelan were among the Louth women who volunteered to get involved and after a chance meeting they decided soon set up a group for the county with its own Facebook page.
They now have 83 sewists from throughout the county and over 40 drivers, and make over 1,000 masks a week.
Last week alone, Tina says they had a request from the ICU at Our Lady of Lourdes hospital for a thousand masks.
She explains that the WHO recommends the wearing of masks to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and their use is now being recommended by countries around the world, with many health experts recommended that it be made mandatory for people to wear them in public places such as shopping centres, trains and buses.
The Irish government is among those recommended their use and the Green Party has called for face coverings to be made mandatory as the country moves to the next phase of easing the lockdown.
In order to allow people who aren’t working on the frontline, the group have now set up a facility whereby people can make a request for a mask by filling in the form on the group’s Facebook page and making a €5 donation to cover the cost of materials. Companies can also request masks for their employees in a similar manner.
For more information, checkout the Masks For Louth Facebook page as well as their GoFundMe page.
A teenager who droveoff from a filling station without paying for fuel, has received the probation act.
The defendant (18), but a juvenile at the time of the offence, appeared in custody at the district court having been on remand since 9 March last.
He has previous convictions for road traffic matters.
Barrister Stephen Faulkner added his client’s girlfriend is due to give birth on 9 June.
On the occasion of this incident, 7 November, 2018, he was driving his mother, who suffers from arthritis. She was late for a medical appointment.
Sgt Fintan McGroder presented evidence that a car pulled up at the pumps at Applegreen, Castlebellingham.
It was filled with €30.02 of unleaded petrol before the driver left without paying.
The defendant was subsequently identified from CCTV.