Our Advisory Network
At the Irish Menopause Institute, our work is shaped by one shared purpose:
To improve the experience of menopause transition for women across Ireland.
Our clinical and academic advisory network brings together experience across education, healthcare, workplace practice, community support, governance and lived experience. Our approach is collaborative, practical and focused on real impact.
We want women to feel heard.
We want professionals to feel confident.
We want workplaces to know how to respond.
We want communities to have trusted support.
Connected To Specialist Expertise
The Irish Menopause Institute is supported by an advisory network combining specialist clinical knowledge, academic leadership and expertise in health education and behaviour change.
Dr Angela Hickey, PhD
Academic Adviser
Dr Hickey supports the academic integrity, educational structure and quality of the Institute's programmes.
Angela is Programme Director of the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI)-accredited BA in Psychology at Griffith College Dublin, where she oversees programme quality, curriculum development, and alignment with PSI standards.
She teaches across a broad range of psychology modules, including Research Methods, Cognitive Psychology, Personality and Individual Differences, Special Education, Inclusion and Diversity, Biological Bases of Human Behaviour, and the Final-Year Dissertation. Angela has also delivered guest lectures on behaviour change at Trinity College Dublin and on undergraduate research methods at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
Her research focuses on behaviour change in relation to health-risk behaviours, with a particular emphasis on supporting marginalised and disadvantaged populations.
Dr Ciara McKenna
Clinical Adviser
Co-founder of Rose Clinic Bray · GP and Menopause Specialist
Dr McKenna provides clinical insight and reviews relevant educational content to support medical accuracy, appropriate professional boundaries and clear signposting to specialist care.
Dr Ciara McKenna is a skilled General Practitioner with a special focus on women's health. After graduating from Trinity College Dublin, she completed her postgraduate training through the South East GP training scheme and became a member of the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) in 2015.
Her passion for women's health led her to earn a Diploma from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in 2013, along with further qualifications in contraception, long-acting reversible contraception and menopause from the ICGP. A recognised British Menopause Society Menopause Specialist, she has earned an advanced certificate from the British Menopause Society and is an active member of both the Menopause Society of Ireland and the British Menopause Society.
Ciara's well-rounded background also includes a joint diploma from the ICGP and Faculty of Sports and Exercise Medicine in Musculoskeletal Injury Management, allowing her to offer patients guidance on physical health and preventative care.
Outside of her medical practice, Ciara is a mother of four. She balances her busy life as a mum with some good coffee and staying active through running and Pilates. A lover of creativity, she channels this into art projects and baking elaborate birthday cakes for her children.
Dr Aoife Nic Shamhráin
Clinical Adviser
Co-founder of Rose Clinic Bray · GP and Menopause Specialist
Dr Nic Shamhráin provides clinical insight and reviews relevant educational content to support medical accuracy, appropriate professional boundaries and clear signposting to specialist care.
Dr Aoife Nic Shamhráin has a deep love for all aspects of women's health. A 2014 UCD Medicine graduate, she completed the Trinity College Dublin (TCD) Specialist Training Programme in General Practice and is a member of the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP). She holds a Diploma from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, as well as a Certificate in Contraception and Long-Acting Reversible Contraception from the ICGP, and has completed additional training in Vulval Health with the British Society for the Study of Vulval Diseases.
As co-founder of The Rose Clinic Bray, Aoife is dedicated to providing evidence-based, patient-centred care for women across a wide range of health needs. She is recognised by the British Menopause Society (BMS) as a BMS Menopause Trainer. Aoife serves on the board of the Menopause Society of Ireland, working to advance women's health nationally.
Her career has spanned Ireland and Australia, where she established a Mirena Clinic and earned a Fellowship with the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. She is an Assistant Scheme Director for the ICGP Dublin-Mid Leinster GP Training Scheme, mentoring the next generation of GPs at University College Dublin and has been appointed Clinical Lecturer/Assistant Professor in the UCD College of Health and Agricultural Sciences.
Outside of work, Aoife is a proud mother of her five-year-old daughter, loves baking, stays active through sea swimming, and enjoys being a member of the Belpark Triathlon Club and Kilcoole Athletics Club. She is also a flautist with the Dublin Symphony Orchestra and the Irish Doctors' Orchestra.
Together, our advisers bring academic rigour, clinical expertise and professional oversight to programmes designed to strengthen the quality, consistency and credibility of menopause education.
Practitioner Network
We are building a trusted multidisciplinary network of qualified professionals across healthcare, wellbeing, workplace, governance and community support services.
The network will bring together expertise in:
- Healthcare, wellbeing and professional support
- Workplace policy, governance and organisational strategy
- Community engagement, equality, diversity and inclusion
Its purpose is to provide women across Ireland with access to clear, credible and consistent education, guidance and support.
This network will continue to grow as our education and training programmes, personalised guidance and support services, workplace partnerships and community initiatives develop.
Our Commitment
Everything we do is guided by our mission to raise the standard of menopause education, understanding and support in Ireland.
We do not replace medical care, diagnosis or treatment. Where medical support is needed, we encourage appropriate pathways to GPs, prescribing practitioners, specialists and allied health professionals.
Our role is to inform, educate, guide and support; helping women make confident, informed choices.
