Noteworthy

NIL BY MOUTH: Why are patients still eating poor quality hospital food?

Open

Ireland

Poor quality hospital food has been highlighted by patient advocates as an issue for decades but Covid-19 isolation measures and a lack of visitors have made this problem even more stark.

7 Backers raised €200 of €1540

PANDEMIC UNPLANNED: Will the Irish health system be better prepared for the next emergency?

Open

Ireland

Covid-19 caught most countries off guard with lack of PPE, ventilators and testing capabilities reported all over the world. So how do we ensure this doesn’t happen in the event of another crisis?

0 Backers raised €0 of €1940

COVID CONSCIOUSNESS: Can we prevent a pandemic-induced mental health crisis in Ireland?

Open

Ireland

Irish society is set to come out the other side of this pandemic as an altogether changed nation. Never before in our recent history has a health crisis dealt us such a heightened level of anxiety, separation and grief in such a short timespan.

3 Backers raised €60 of €847

TRAPPED WITH TORMENTORS: How can we protect people from abuse and violence during the pandemic?

Completed

Ireland

During this pandemic, home is a place of refuge and safety for most of us. But for thousands of women, men and children, home feels like the most dangerous place they could be.

16 Backers raised €720 of €700

CARING FOR CARERS: What’s life like for care workers in the coronavirus crisis?

Funded

Ireland

As Ireland grapples with the fallout from Covid-19, we want to see how one group of frontline workers - home carers - are faring, particularly when it comes to their pay and conditions.

20 Backers raised €1375 of €1375

LIVING IN THE SHADOW: What is the impact of wind farms on local communities?

Open

Ireland

The government’s Climate Action Plan aims to increase reliance on renewables from 30% to 70%. Part of this drive would involve increasing renewable onshore wind energy capacity to a level that equates to introducing over 2,300 more wind turbines to the landscape.

4 Backers raised €105 of €2060

UNLUCKY FOR SOME: Is bingo causing gambling addiction?

Open

Ireland

Last year, the Government proposed to reduce the amount of bingo proceeds that go to bingo operators from 40% to 25%. After a protest at the Dáil by around 50 bingo players who said that the new laws could lead to the closure of bingo halls around Ireland, the proposal was abandoned. A different version of the Gaming and Lotteries Bill was ultimately passed by the Oireachtas.

0 Backers raised €0 of €1510

HEALERS OR QUACKS: Are we protecting cancer patients from fake cancer cures?

Open

Ireland

Every hour in Ireland, a person dies from cancer. The disease is the biggest killer in the country, accounting for one in four of all deaths.

1 Backer raised €20 of €1890

ASSESSING AUTISM: Is a delay in getting a childhood diagnosis of ASD fuelling a private industry?

Open

Ireland

Research shows that early diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) leading to early interventions and treatment can have major long-term positive effects on symptoms and later skills.

4 Backers raised €60 of €2100

NOWHERE TO TURN: Have Irish people died because they can't access out-of-hours mental health care?

Open

Ireland

Acute mental health services are under increasing pressure across Ireland with out-of-hours care being identified as a major issue in many reports.

2 Backers raised €120 of €2200

HEAD IN THE GAME: Is the GAA doing enough to tackle concussion?

Open

Ireland

Concussion was highlighted as a “big issue” by the previous director general of the GAA in 2017 when he raised concerns that no medical personnel are present at most local games.

1 Backer raised €10 of €2060

PARKING PRESSURE: Why are patients and families still paying high rates to park at hospitals?

Open

Ireland

Patients, visitors, and staff of Irish hospitals are forking out over €60,000 every day to park at hospitals around the country. In 2017, €22.4 million was raised by hospitals from parking, making it an important source of funding for them.

1 Backer raised €10 of €1400

SELLING OUR GENES: Should the Government be funding a private company to collect 400,000 Irish people’s DNA?

Funded

Ireland

Personal data is big business - and nothing is more personal than our genetic blueprint.

74 Backers raised €2300 of €2300

RISK TO BABY: Why were Irish women not told for decades about an epilepsy drug that causes birth defects?

Open

Ireland

Sodium valproate is an epilepsy medicine commonly sold under the name Epilim. It was known since its availability in the 1970s that it may cause birth defects if used in pregnancy yet for decades many women across the world were prescribed this drug without being warned of this risk by their doctors.

4 Backers raised €185 of €1500

PATH OF UNCERTAINTY: How has JobPath impacted the mental health of Ireland’s unemployed?

Open

Ireland

Minister Regina Doherty has called it “the most successful [jobs] activation programme” in the history of the state.

3 Backers raised €20 of €750

ADDICTION BY PRESCRIPTION: Why are so many anti-anxiety medications prescribed in Ireland?

Open

Ireland

In September, the Irish Medical Council warned doctors about over-prescribing of a range of highly addictive drugs.

1 Backer raised €40 of €1450

LAST RESORT: Why can't Irish hospitals get the most dangerous superbug under control?

Open

Ireland

A public health emergency was declared by the Health Minister Simon Harris over years ago to control the spread of a superbug, CPE, resistant to the most powerful last-resort antibiotics. In spite of this, the number of patients with the bug has continuously increased.

0 Backers raised €0 of €1050

VAPING NATION: Are teenagers being targeted by the vaping industry in Ireland?

Open

Ireland

Although a relatively new phenomenon, almost 200,000 Irish people regularly vape with another 600,000 having tried an e-cigarette at some stage. Globally, the number of adults who vape is expected to reach almost 55 million by 2021.

0 Backers raised €0 of €2250

SCALES OF JUSTICE: Does the justice system work for wards of court?

Open

Ireland

When a person is deemed incapable of making decisions for themselves, they can be made a ‘ward of court’.

2 Backers raised €150 of €1150

POSTCODE LOTTERY: Does where you live in Ireland determine what kind of healthcare you receive?

Open

Ireland

Access to healthcare in Ireland can vary depending on where in the country you live. Local HSE and hospital budgets often determine whether people have access to medical treatment, equipment and other specialist services.

1 Backer raised €100 of €1900

FUNDING FERTILITY: Has the delay in publicly funding IVF destroyed people’s chance to have children?

Open

Ireland

Around one in four couples in Ireland experience difficulty when trying to have children and will face thousands of euro in costs if they seek fertility treatment.

5 Backers raised €200 of €950

A BITTER PILL: Why are medicines so expensive in Ireland and how much are we paying for them compared to our EU neighbours?

Open

Ireland

The Government spends almost €3 billion on medicines every year which makes up 13% of the entire health budget.

3 Backers raised €50 of €1350

SOMETHING IN THE AIR: Why is the air we breathe in Ireland getting more polluted?

Open

Ireland

In the 1980s, Dublin choked beneath a cloud of smog with pollution seven times higher than the levels considered dangerous by the World Health Organisation. As smoky fuel began to be phased out, the black pall lifted and the city’s air returned to some semblance of normality.

13 Backers raised €255 of €1350

SPEAK OR SURVIVE? Are survivors of sexual abuse properly supported when they come forward?

Funded

National

At least one in four people experience sexual abuse in childhood. About 80 per cent are abused by a person known to them; most often, a family member.

48 Backers raised €1440 of €1410

PARENT RIGHTS: Why are same-sex couples and other parents still in legal limbo with their own children?

Ireland

Half a decade after Ireland’s historic marriage equality vote, many same-sex couples and so-called ‘non-traditional families’ still face discrimination when it comes to their rights as parents.

24 Backers raised €751 of €750

PRICE OF BEAUTY: Are people taking a risk when they opt for dermal fillers?

Completed

National

Dermal fillers have become one of the treatments of choice for people in Ireland wanting to rid themselves of wrinkles.

1 Backer raised €900 of €900

FOLLOWING THE HERD: Why are Meningitis C vaccination rates so far behind target in parts of Ireland?

Completed

National

For many parents, the word meningitis is enough to send shivers down their spine.

2 Backers raised €353 of €350

LATE INTERVENTION: Why does it take over two years to get early intervention appointments for some children?

Completed

Ireland

Across the country, there are thousands of young children in need of early intervention.

9 Backers raised €1100 of €1100

PROTECTING THE PROTECTORS: The mental health crisis in the Defence Forces.

Completed

National

Almost a year ago, the only psychiatrist working in the Defence Forces retired from his post.

2 Backers raised €252 of €250