Professor Sabina Brennan Receives Trinity Innovation Award for Societal Impact

On Monday 27th November, the annual Trinity Innovation Awards took place on the university’s historic campus. Led by Provost Dr. Patrick Prendergast, this ceremony is a prestigious event in which innovative research in a range of topics is celebrated.

Amongst the world-leading awardees of 2017 was Professor Sabina Brennan, a member of ADAPT who contributes greatly to the centre’s research in eHealth. Prof. Brennan was awarded for her achievements as an effective science communicator, having created more than 30 short films that offer practical advice on brain health and address public fears surrounding memory loss. FreeDem films, supported by GENIO, have been licensed to several organisations including Alzheimer’s Societies. They have been translated into multiple languages including Hindi, Urdu, Somali,  Arabic, Polish, French and German, and have been viewed in more than 140 countries.

Prof. Brennan is also the Founder and CEO of Trinity Brain Health, a website providing easy-to-understand information for people with Multiple Sclerosis. Developed as a collaborative project between ADAPT and Novartis, the purpose of this site is to arm readers with the tools necessary for building healthy brain habits and developing awareness around MS. It can also be accessed as an interactive downloadable app.

The Trinity Innovation Award for Societal Impact is not the first time Sabina has been recognised for her extraordinary work. In November 2016, she was presented by Science Foundation Ireland with an award for her “Outstanding Contribution to STEM Communication”, and her research was shortlisted for the prestigious 2017 US-Ireland Research Innovation Award.

Other areas recognised at the Trinity Innovation Awards included those for up and coming entrepreneurial impact, lifetime achievement, and socio-economic and commercial accomplishment, with Prof. Luke O’Neill receiving the highest accolade in the form of the Provost Innovation Award.

The ADAPT Centre are delighted for Sabina, who constitutes one of only eight esteemed Trinity Innovation awardees. It is clear from her efforts and achievements that the future of eHealth is very bright, and ADAPT look forward to their active place within it.

Visit the Trinity Brain Health website by clicking here, and read more about the Trinity Innovation awards here.