IPU AGM and National Pharmacy Conference 2026

IPU AGM and National Pharmacy Conference 2026

Date


May 08 – May 09 2026

Location


The Mount Wolseley Hotel, Carlow

Type


 In Person Only

May 08 – May 09 2026

The Mount Wolseley Hotel, Carlow

 In Person Only

May 08 – May 09 2026

The Mount Wolseley Hotel, Carlow

 In Person Only

IPU National Pharmacy Conference is the largest pharmacy educational and networking event in Ireland.

🗓️ The IPU National Pharmacy Conference will take place on Saturday, 9 May 2026.

🗺️ At the Mount Wolseley Hotel in Carlow.

🎤 Enjoy the opportunity to engage with fellow members, sponsors and exhibitors.

🌍 Network with pharmacists and cultivate connections that lead to longterm business relationships.

 

  • Dr Catriona Bradley

    Founder and MD of Fios & Praxis Ltd,.

    Dr Catriona Bradley is the founder and MD of Fios & Praxis Ltd, which delivers consulting services in the areas of healthcare, education, professional regulation, professional development and organisational culture. Dr Bradley drives strategic growth at individual, organisational and system levels.

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  • Helen Danaher

    Hospital Pharmacist HSE

    Helen qualified as a pharmacist over 20 years ago. She has worked in both Community and Hospital Pharmacy settings. For the last 10 years, she has worked in the Phoenix Pharmacy. The pharmacy supplies medication and clinical services to a variety of settings, including the Phoenix Care Centre, St Ita’s Hospital Intellectual disability service and the programme for the Homeless.
    She is an active member of the Multi-Disciplinary Team in each of the sites, and she is a member of a number of hospital committees, including Drugs and Therapeutics, Audit committees and Quality & Safety committees.
    She has presented lectures to medical and nursing staff on patient safety, prescribing and polypharmacy. She has attended the College of Mental Health conference in the UK, which focuses on new developments in mental health.

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  • Dr Kate Kirby

    Olympic Sport Psychologist

    Kate has worked at the highest level of sport for almost 20 years and has attended the London, Rio, Tokyo and Paris Olympic Games as a psychologist with Team Ireland. Through her position as a senior psychologist in the Sport Ireland Institute, she has worked directly with medal-winning athletes from Olympic rowing, Olympic sailing and Paralympic swimming. She has also supported World and European medalists from a range of sports such as athletics, women’s hockey, taekwondo, badminton and modern pentathlon.

    More recently, Kate has transferred her high-performance expertise from sport to business, and regularly speaks at corporate events throughout Ireland and abroad.

    Originally from Clonakilty, Co. Cork, Kate now lives in Dublin with her husband and 2 children.

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  • Sinead Lanigan

    Supervising Pharmacist and EPC & CPC Committee Member

    Sinead is working as a community pharmacist in Dublin City Centre and she has  worked in community pharmacy for 25 years. Having trained & worked in the UK, Sinead developed a strong background in service provision. Ms Lanigan worked within community service teams to help support the tailored needs of services within certain communities. Sinead is currently an active member of both the Employee Pharmacists Committee (EPC) and the Community Pharmacy Committee (CPC) in the IPU.

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  • Professor Mary Horgan

    Chief Medical Officer (Interim), Department of Health

    Professor Mary Horgan is interim Chief Medical Officer and Professor of Infectious Diseases at UCD and Mater Misericordiae University Hospital. She is the immediate past President of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland and is the first woman to hold this position since the College’s foundation in 1654. She is the former Dean of the School of Medicine at UCC and was the first woman to be appointed to this position. She is a graduate of UCD School of Medicine in 1986 and was awarded the UCD Alumni Award for Health in 2019. She is a Director of Education of the European Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (ESCMID). She also served on the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) and led the expert advisory group on rapid testing and chaired Ireland’s first National Research Ethics Committee.

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  • Caoimhe McAuley

    Superintendent Pharmacist and Director of Pharmacy, Boots Ireland

    Caoimhe has been a key leader at Boots Ireland since 2007, advancing through key roles including Community Pharmacist, Area Pharmacy Manager, Flagship Store Manager, and Area Manager.

    As Director of Pharmacy and a member of the Boots Ireland Leadership Team, Caoimhe oversees the strategic and operational management of 90 community pharmacies and nearly 200 pharmacists nationwide. She is committed to delivering accessible, high-quality healthcare while driving innovation to meet the evolving needs of patients and communities.

    Caoimhe serves on the Walgreens Boots Alliance Global DEI committee, championing diversity and inclusion across the organisation. In 2022, she spearheaded the launch of Ireland’s first private HPV vaccination service at Boots and last year piloted an innovative Liver Scanning Service to raise awareness of liver health. Her efforts to destigmatise health issues such as menopause through media and events have further reinforced Boots Ireland’s leadership in patient care.

    In 2024, Caoimhe was thrilled to be elected Vice-President of the Irish Pharmacy Union.

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  • Dr Susan O’Dwyer

    Head of Professional Services, IPU

    Dr Susan O’Dwyer is a pharmacist with over 20 years’ experience in community pharmacy. She is the Head of Professional Services at the Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU), where she plays a pivotal role in shaping pharmacy practice across Ireland and leading strategic initiatives across the community pharmacy sector. She is a strong advocate of increasing access to high-quality healthcare in primary care. With extensive experience in the area having implemented several clinical pharmacy services in community pharmacy practice, and a and a PhD in the field, Susan brings a wealth of expertise to her role. She is actively involved in national and European-level working groups that shape pharmacy policy, service delivery and healthcare collaboration.

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  • Frank Olden

    Pharmacy Owner

    Frank Olden is a community pharmacy owner. He started his career as a pharmacist in pharmaceutical industry, community practice, and academia. Starting as a technical specialist at Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Frank gained early exposure to Lean methodologies before moving into community pharmacy. Five years of locum work across Dublin highlighted the stark contrast between chaotic dispensaries and those that ran efficiently, sparking a lasting interest in operational excellence.

    Driven by a commitment to clinical quality, Frank completed a Master’s in Clinical Pharmacy at University College Cork (UCC). During the COVID-19 pandemic, Frank worked in a role in establishing pharmacy departments at the Aviva, UCD, and Gorey mass vaccination centres, later serving as Chief Pharmacist for the two Cork Mass Vaccination Centres.

    Currently, Frank combines clinical expertise with a passion for Lean principles and reducing “rework” in community pharmacy. The goal is to utilise operational frameworks that minimise waste in medication preparation, ultimately reclaiming time for meaningful patient consultation. Prior to owning his own pharmacy, Frank has held roles with Uniphar at Hickeys Pharmacy, Bakers Road, and spent three years as a Teacher Practitioner at the UCC School of Pharmacy.

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  • Conall O Móráin

    Business Broadcaster & MC

    Conall Ó Móráin is a business broadcaster, podcaster, and media commentator with a career spanning several decades in Irish media. He is the founder, producer, and host of “That Great Business Show,” a podcast that delves into the successes and insights of Irish businesses. This podcast was honoured as Ireland’s top business podcast by UCD Smurfit Business School. He is also producer of The Fifth Court legal podcast and of Transform Gov, a public sector digital transformation podcast. His company, The Media Group, is currently developing three other podcasts aimed at international audiences. Conall previously worked as a stockbroker with ABN AMRO (Ireland) for eight years, during which he was appointed a director of the firm. He twice won the Sunday Tribune national share tipping competition. Conall’s just lucky I guess! From 2005 to 2018, he presented the Sunday Business Show on Today FM, which became the station’s most-listened-to Sunday programme. Prior to this, he served as RTÉ’s first business correspondent, contributing to both television and radio. His media commentary extends to platforms such as RTÉ, Raidió na Gaeltachta, TG4, BBC Northern Ireland, and various national press outlets. He was, for many years, Chair of the Dublin-based Ireland International Business Network, a leading global Irish business network. He is also a founding member of the Ireland/Connecticut Business Council.

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  • Larry Ryan

    Director, Ipsos B&A

    Larry has been a researcher for 35 years, and with B&A since 1997. He is a Director, former Shareholder and part of the ownership team at B&A which sold the business to IPSOS in November 2023.  He has recently led Ipsos B&A’s consolidation to a new site in Ballsbridge, where its’ expanded team of 85 is now based. He focusses on qualitative and quantitative Studies for clients across many sectors but with a specific interest in healthcare and on work with representative/members bodies (medical, legal etc.)  He served for four years on the Council of The Marketing Society (of Ireland), chaired its research committee, and has lectured on research at its seminars (as well as at UCD and TCD).  He managed B&A’s previous global network affiliation from 1999 until 2023, serving as a global director of that network, Iris, for 10 years and leading multi-country health and wellbeing studies. He manages many projects in the area of health & wellbeing covering areas like artificial reproduction, women’s health, mental health, health insurance and use of private hospitals and clinics. Pharmacy has been an area of major interest, and he has undertaken projects for the IPU since 2006. He has worked with many leading Pharma and healthcare clients including Pfizer, Novartis, Lundbeck, Sanofi Pasteur, Sanofi Aventis, and Novo Nordisk, typically focussed more on general public/patient rather than HCP. He has also worked with other medical representative bodies (for GPs, Pharmacists, vets etc) and for a range of medical insurers, the HSE, Department of Health and other health promotion agencies. Larry won the Marketing Society 2018 Grand Prix award for his work on the HPV vaccine ‘Rebuilding trust: Reversing Ireland’s HPV vaccination crisis’. The study focused on the dramatic collapse in HPV vaccination in 2015/2016 resulting from concerted global and local social media agitation, which threatened to undermine the entire programme. He won the Grand Prix award again in 2019 for his work with Energia ‘From challenger to Contender’. In 2021 he won a Covid-19 prize from the Marketing Society for work on behalf of the National Concert Hall to successful develop a post-pandemic strategy (with research among concert goers, promoters and others both locally and internationally.) 

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  • Ronan Sheridan MPSI

    Pharmacist and IPU Professional Academy Assessor

    Ronan is the owner and Superintendent Pharmacist of Magners/Sheridans Pharmacy. Prior to this he was Superintendent Pharmacist at Median Healthcare and Regional Manager with LloydsPharmacy Ireland.

    Ronan is an assessor for the IPU Pharmacy Technician course, and is involved in pharmacist CPD. He is a member of the PSI preliminary proceedings committee.

    He has completed a QQI level 6 in Coaching and Training and holds a Diploma in Medical Law from Kings Inn.

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  • Noel Winters

    Partner, Fitzgerald Power

    Noel Winters is Corporate Finance Partner in Fitzgerald Power. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and has a comprehensive knowledge of the issues that matter to community pharmacy business owners. With over 20 years’ experience, Noel has advised on a wide range of matters including turnover stabilisation and growth, profit performance and cashflow maintenance and contributes regularly to pharmacy sector publications and thought pieces. Having advised on numerous acquisitions and disposal cases, Noel has particular expertise in business valuations, finance raising and strategic investment appraisal. As a business operator, he has a deep understanding of the importance of timely and accurate management reporting and focuses on providing this to business owners. Corporate bios aside, Noel’s real passion is the GAA, and after hanging up the boots he enjoys passing his words of wisdom on to the next generation.

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🗺️ At the Mount Wolseley Hotel in Carlow.

👉Mount Wolseley Or Crosslow, Tullow, Co. Carlow, R93 C9H0

📞+353 59 918 0100

📧info@mountwolseley.ie

Swimming Pool

All of our Residents, both in the Hotel and Resort Houses, have complimentary access to our extensive Leisure Centre comprising of a 20 meter Pool, Kiddies Shallow Pool, Sauna & Jacuzzi during their stay.

The Wolseley Walking Trail

Enjoy the fresh country air and rolling countryside of our beautiful resort whilst you take in some exercise. The Wolseley Walking Trail takes you around the perimeter of our majestic award-winning golf course and it is as invigorating as it is serene.

Playground

Woodchip Outdoor Playground with Zipline, Swings, and Slide, this wooded area is the perfect place for fun-filled fresh air, children love the Playground which is safe and secure.

Surrounded by the sounds of the county, relax and let your little ones enjoy Mount Wolseley outdoors.

E Vehicle Charging

The hotel has 5 EV charging points for our guests. Conveniently located in the hotel carpark for Hotel Residents’ use. Each charger has dual sockets and a ‘How to use’ guide is visible to assist with activating the charge. Find more information here.

Local Attractions

https://www.mountwolseley.ie/local-attractions.html

 

Hair Salon/Beautician

The hotel has a Hari Salon onsite ‘Vanilla Hair Design’ appointments can be booked by calling (059) 9151225.

There are two beauticians in the village (about a 10 minute walk)

  • Beauty by Kassy, Market Square, Tullowphelim, Tullow, Co. Carlow, T: (059) 918 0661
  • Tullow Beauty, Mill Street, Tullow, Co. Carlow, Mobile: 089 2653644. Email:  tullowbeauty@gmail.com

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