Dr Jane Leonard, MRCPI
Dr Leonard is a consultant paediatrician who joined the Spina Bifida service in 2011. A graduate of UCD, she is a paediatrician with a special interest in Neurodisability, in particular physical disability. Her early post-graduate training was in Ireland, followed by specialist registrar training in Glasgow where she obtained her certificate of completion of specialist training in Paediatric Neurodisability.
She spent two further years on fellowship in the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne working in the Departments of Paediatric Rehabilitation and Developmental Medicine.
Prof Darach Crimmins FRCSI (SN)
Mr Crimmins is the director of the neurosurgical training programme in Ireland. Since January 2010, he has also worked as a consultant paediatric neurosurgeon at CHI at Temple Street, Beaumont Hospital and CHI at Crumlin.
Prior to that, he practised as a Consultant Paediatric Neurosurgeon at Leeds General Infirmary from 2005 to 2010. He graduated from the Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin in 1993 and underwent his core surgery training in Dublin, Drogheda, Glasgow and London between 1994 and 1998. His general neurosurgical training was in Sheffield and Hull from 1998 to 2004. In 2004, he was an associate specialist in paediatric neurosurgery at Hôpital Necker Enfants Malades, Paris undertook a fellowship in paediatric neurosurgery at Great Ormond Street Hospital, London in 2005.
Mr Crimmins runs the audit of all paediatric neurosurgical activity for the UK and Ireland for the British Paediatric Neurosurgery Group. He teaches paediatric neurosurgery on annual courses of the European Association of Neurological surgeons and the European Society for Paediatric Neurosurgery Group. He has published widely in the neurosurgical literature on management of brain tumours, hydrocephalus and other neurosurgical problems in children FRCSI (Prof
Mr Salvatore Cascio MS, FRCSI, FRCS (Paed Surg), FEBPS
Mr Cascio was appointed as a consultant paediatric surgeon with a special interest in paediatric urology to CHI at Temple Street and CHI at Crumlin in 2016. Before being appointed in Dublin Mr Cascio had worked as a consultant paediatric urologist for eight years at the Royal Hospital for Children, Yorkhill, Glasgow (UK). He joined the spina bifida department as consultant paediatric urologist. He completed his higher surgical training in paediatric surgery and paediatric urology in Newcastle upon Tyne (UK) and Glasgow. In 2006 he undertook a fellowship in laparoscopic surgery at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia.
Mr Cascio spent one year (2000-2001) in research at the Children’s Research Centre (CRC), Dublin under the supervision of Prof Puri on the familial aspect of vesicoureteral reflux. He has been an examiner and question master of the European Board of Paediatric Surgery for eight years and since 2016 is the chairperson of the examination committee of the European Board of Paediatric Surgery (EBPS). He is a regular lecturer to fifth year medical students of the University College Dublin on paediatric urology. His main areas of interest include: neurogenic bladder, minimally invasive surgery, disorders of sex development, bladder and kidney stones.
Ms Miriam Doyle, LRCP, SI MB BCh NUI, MRCS, FEBPS,
Ms Doyle joined the spina bifida service as a Surgical Specialist in bladder management in 2018.
She graduated with honours from the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland in 2006 and since then has worked in Paediatric surgery & Urology across the 3 Dublin children’s hospitals. She specialises in all aspects of Paediatric surgery and urology with a special interest in the neurogenic bladder, urodynamics, biofeedback, PTNS and hypospadias.
Mr. Connor Green, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon
Mr Connor Green is a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at Children’s University Hospital (Temple Street) and Cappagh National Orthopaedic Hospital. He graduated from University College Dublin in 2004. Having undertaken his postgraduate training in Trauma and Orthopaedics on the Irish National Orthopaedic Training Programme, he completed a Paediatric and Adult Limb Lengthening and Reconstruction Fellowship at Sinai hospital, Baltimore, USA. He then completed a Paediatric Orthopaedic and Scoliosis Fellowship at the world renowned Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, Dallas, USA.
He specializes in all aspects of Paediatric Orthopaedic Surgery including foot and ankle, hip and spine. He has a special interest in limb deformity
Regina Mc Crann, Medical Social Worker
Regina graduated from NUI Maynooth in 2006 with a Degree in Social Care in Social Studies and worked in the area of Disability Services and Crisis Intervention Service with young people. Regina graduated from Trinity College Dublin in 2011 with a Masters in Social Work. She has worked in the area of Child Protection from 2012 until early 2017. She has worked in the Children’s University Hospital Temple Street since May 2017 in the area of Neonatology and the High Dependency Ward.
Regina joined the Neurosurgery and Spina Bifida Team in July 2018. As part of the spina bifida team Regina’s role is to provide emotional and practical support to parents. The primary focus is the the emotional and social impact of illness and hospitalisation on the lives of our patients and their families. Therefore we offer both practical and emotional support with the aim of minimising these difficulties.
Rosie Maguire, Senior Physiotherapist
Rosie graduated from the University of Ulster in 2011 with a BSc Honours in Physiotherapy. Rosie has worked in a number of varied paediatric settings since qualifying including primary care and CDNT’s across Kildare and Kerry . Rosie’s special interest is in Neurodisability . Rosie’s role is to liaise with local teams and their families to identify concerns or questions that they may have . Rosie works with the multidisciplinary team to provide holistic care working towards functional goals for service users and their families as well as helping identifying postural or musculoskeletal concerns .
Rachel Clarke, Spina Bifida Clinical Nurse Specialist
Helen Grant, Spina Bifida Services Coordinator
Helen has been the Spina Bifida Services Coordinator since March 2022. Helen has a background of healthcare administration including time working with the both adult and children’s services and with the NTPF. Helen has a degree in healthcare management.
Helen’s role is to be responsible to ensure a family centered co-ordination, streamline and develop the Spina Bifida services to meet the needs of children with Spina Bifida attending CHI.