Operations In Ireland Research Articles

An Examination of Proactive Intelligence-Led Policing through the Lens of Covert Surveillance in Serious Crime Investigation in Ireland

This article examines the powers and functions conferred by the Criminal Justice (Surveillance) 2009 Act to bolster the resources of the Garda Síochána (Ireland’s National Police and Security Service) to detect, investigate and apprehend suspects. The analysis will encompass the management and use of covert surveillance operations, procedural requirements for external ‘authorisation’ to carry out surveillance with judicial oversight, internal ‘approval’ to carry out surveillance without judicial oversight, and the use of tracking devices as less intrusive measures. The assessment will consider whether there are sufficient procedural safeguards provided in the 2009 Act to protect fundamental rights of suspects, and whether covert surveillance practices as a tool of effecting crime control policies is proportionate and necessary commensurate with fundamental rights of suspects in the criminal justice process. While the focus of analysis is on police covert surveillance operations in Ireland, reference to international best practice and human rights standards emanating from the Irish superior courts and ECtHR jurisprudence will broaden the scope of analysis that is intended to be of interest to a wider readership. Keywords: Criminal Justice (Surveillance) Act 2009 (Ireland); Covert surveillance; Authorisation for surveillance; Approval for surveillance; Garda Síochána (Ireland’s National Police and Security Service); Serious crime investigation

Characteristics of Patients Treated by Helicopter Emergency Medical Services in Ireland from 2012 to 2022: A Retrospective Analysis of Ten Years of Data

Introduction:A dedicated primary scene landing Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) has been in operation in Ireland since 2012. Commencing with a unique collaboration between the Irish Aer Corps and civilian Emergency Medical Services (EMS) it has expanded to include a second charity funded model in the south west of the country. Both services operate under a single governance and dispatch system and provide an Advanced Paramedic level of care to the patients they serve. There is limited published literature on prehospital care in Ireland and to date no detailed descriptive study of patients treated by HEMS in Ireland. This research describes the characteristics of the patients treated by HEMS in Ireland.Method:This retrospective study will investigate the data of an excess of 8000 patients responded to by HEMS (2012-2022) in the republic of Ireland. Descriptive statistics will be used to interpret patient demographics, geographical spread, receiving facilities, mechanism/etiology of disease or injury, vital trends, transportation decisions and clinical interventions and short-term clinical outcomes.Results:Early stage data extraction shows seasonal variation in HEMS use with increased use in the summer months. Almost twice as many male patients vs. females were treated by HEMS while the most common age profile was 55-65 yrs. Trauma presentations have increased over the past 10 years and now account for over 60% of the overall caseload. The most common medical etiology was cardiac arrest or post resuscitation care followed by STEMI Care, the most common trauma cases were from road traffic collisions followed by falls and farm accidents.Conclusion:This study will be the first to describe the overall characteristics of HEMS patients in Ireland over a decade of service provision. As the Irish health system continues to evolve, so must its aeromedical services.

288 EARLY SUPPORTED DISCHARGE AFTER STROKE IN THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: A CONTAGIOUS SERVICE-DELIVERY MODEL

Abstract Background Early Supported Discharge (ESD) after stroke is an internationally recognised model of best practice for patients with mild to moderate functional deficits after stroke. By end of 2021 there were nine stroke-specific ESD teams in operation in Ireland. This paper outlines the analysis of annual reports submitted by each site to the National Stroke Programme. Methods We completed data analysis of the 2020 and 2021 clinical activity of ESD teams, the functional outcomes achieved using the Functional Independence Measure/Functional Assessment Measure (FIM/FAM), and qualitative reporting from patients. Teams were also asked to report on team composition and service developments. Results Team composition and size varied, but all had some combination of Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, and Speech and Language Therapy. 764 patients received ESD after acute stroke in 2021, representing 24.7% of all patients discharged with stroke in participating sites. Activity increased by 39.9% from 2020 (n = 546), which was in turn an increase of 48% on the 2019 figure (n = 370). Although new sites were added in each year, the increased capacity alone does not account for the growth. All sites reported patient improvement on the extended FIM/FAM. Patient feedback was positive, with many reporting particularly on the benefits of receiving intervention in the home at a time when hospital visiting was restricted. Many sites also reported introducing telehealth to support delivery of ESD. Conclusion ESD after stroke continues to grow at pace in Ireland, proving resilient to the pressures of operating in a pandemic. It remains a highly acceptable model to patients, and growth during the pandemic may have been supported by increased capacity, new ways of working, and patients' desire for earlier discharge. Although all teams reported functional improvement among their patients, some sites are achieving greater gains, suggesting that further research into patient selection, treatment intensity and further embedding of telehealth is warranted.

The rights of the child in voluntary care in Ireland: A call for reform in law, policy and practice

Voluntary care agreements form a significant part of child protection systems in many jurisdictions. From a children’s rights perspective, they enjoy numerous advantages over court-ordered removals of children. However, when loosely regulated, voluntary care agreements can give rise to significant concerns in respect of compliance with international children’s rights law. This paper will present findings from the Voluntary Care in Ireland Study, one of the first in-depth empirical examinations internationally of voluntary care agreements. It will present qualitative data on the system in operation in Ireland that indicates that voluntary care agreements are less adversarial, time-consuming and costly than court proceedings. This frees up resources for early intervention and facilitates a more collaborative relationship between parents and social services, making it more likely that children will remain at home or eventually return home from care. At the same time, the findings suggest that the voluntary care system currently operated in Ireland suffer from numerous flaws, including absence of independent oversight; unlimited duration; potential instability (since parents can withdraw consent at any time); weak mechanisms for child participation; and inferior resource allocation compared to court-ordered care placements. The paper examines legislative provisions from a number of comparable jurisdictions and makes recommendations designed to ensure that the voluntary care system in Ireland complies more strongly with principles of international children’s rights law.

Using Linked Statistical Data to Improve Marine Search and Rescue Operations in Ireland

Using Linked Statistical Data to Improve Marine Search and Rescue Operations in Ireland

MNE tax strategies and Ireland

PurposeA systematic assessment of multinational enterprise (MNE) tax minimisation strategies at the firm level is difficult. This paper aims to present systematic evidence for Ireland of tax minimisation strategies at both an aggregate and individual firm level. The paper uses Apple and Google as its case studies.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on 31 US intellectual property (IP)-intensive MNEs with substantial operations in Ireland. Financial and other data including tax payments were extracted from Form 10K and filings in Companies Registration Office in Ireland.FindingsThe paper develops three different measures of effective tax rates and that tax strategies have resulted in effective tax rates lower than the nominal US tax rate and far lower than those published in company accounts. Although two-thirds of profits are earned outside the USA, around 70 per cent of corporate tax is paid in the USA.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper relies on data from a subset of MNEs operating in Ireland. The paper also uses publicly available data which may not be available for all firms.Practical implicationsThe findings have implications for European Union (EU) tax policy and tax revenues in countries where MNEs operate. The paper also has implications for industrial policy based on attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).Social implicationsThe study has implications not only for the equitable distribution of corporate tax payments and income distribution but also especially for a tax-based industrial policy.Originality/valueMNE tax strategies, although of considerable public interest, are often obscure and poorly understood. The paper is original in providing a detailed examination of MNE tax strategies at the firm level and discussing some implications from a public policy perspective.

The influence of aquatic buffer zone vegetation on river macroinvertebrate communities

Aquatic buffer zones (ABZs) are areas of the riparian zone managed to protect streams from the potential impacts of commercial conifer forests and associated forestry operations In Ireland. Previous research identified that the dominant vegetation communities in ABZs are wet grassland and scrub habitats and that the vegetation communities are broadly determined by the soil type (peaty or mineral). One of the primary management options available to forest managers is whether to plant native broadleaves in the ABZ or leave them to be naturally colonised. The present study sought to determine the degree to which the vegetation of ABZs influences the composition and structure of associated aquatic macroinvertebrate communities and how this might inform their future management in particular the decision of whether to afforest the ABZ with broadleaf trees. The macroinvertebrate communities from stream on peaty and mineral soils with ABZs dominated by four vegetation communities were sampled, streams bordered by grassland habitats, scrub habitats, no ABZ i.e. conifer trees planted to the streams edge and control streams with no conifer forests in the vicinity. The results of this study showed that the composition and structure of the macroinvertebrate community varied significantly between streams on peaty and mineral soils, but was largely unaffected by the ABZ type. The differences between communities across soil type can be attributed to the lower abundance and richness of Ephemeroptera and conversely the higher abundance and richness of Plecoptera in streams on peaty soils. The lack of a consistent effect of ABZ type on the macroinvertebrate community illustrates the more dominant effect of water chemistry driven by soil type particularly episodic acidity.

How Technology Can Improve the Efficiency of Excavator-Based Cable Harvesting for Potential Biomass Extraction—A Woody Productivity Resource and Cost Analysis for Ireland

Two cable logging systems were reviewed to compare the efficiency of potential biomass extraction from remote forest sites in Ireland based on productive machine hour (PMH) and unit cost of operation (€/m3). Three operational scenarios (SC) were analysed where SC I was a three man crew operation (choker setter, the carriage operator and unhooking chokers). SC II was a variation of this with a two man crew operation. SC III was operating radio controlled chokers there was a two man crew (choker setter and carriage operator). The study aims to assess how operations in Ireland perform against previous known cable studies to determine whether the cost of timber extraction on remote forest sites inaccessible for mechanised felling, has a future given the increased demand for wood fibre in Ireland, both from the sawmilling industries and the wood for energy sector. The volume per PMH was recorded at 17.97 for SC I, 15.09 for SC II and 20.58 m3 for SC III. The difference in productivity versus SC III remote controlled chokers is 5.49 m3/PMH for SC II crew and 2.61 m3/PMH for SC I. The decrease in total volume extracted from SCs I and II versus SC III was recorded at 15.69 m3 (15%) and 32.97 m3 (36%) product respectively. In value terms, the unit cost (€/m3) varied from 6.29 (SC I) to 6.43 (SC II) to 4.57 (SC III). When looking at the production unit costs of normal wood energy supply chains in Ireland, the figures are similar ranging from 3.17 €/m3 to 8.01 €/m3. The value of the end product of course will always determine which market the eventually goes to but given that cable log wood fibre has been unthinned and unmaintained then the biomass sector may be an ever increasing demand point in the search for increased woody biomass given that the unit costs can be competitive with other wood energy supply chains.

Cognitive and clinical characteristics of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis carrying a C9orf72 repeat expansion: a population-based cohort study

SummaryBackgroundAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease of upper and lower motor neurons, associated with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in about 14% of incident cases. We assessed the frequency of the recently identified C9orf72 repeat expansion in familial and apparently sporadic cases of ALS and characterised the cognitive and clinical phenotype of patients with this expansion.MethodsA population-based register of patients with ALS has been in operation in Ireland since 1995, and an associated DNA bank has been in place since 1999. 435 representative DNA samples from the bank were screened using repeat-primed PCR for the presence of a GGGGCC repeat expansion in C9orf72. We assessed clinical, cognitive, behavioural, MRI, and survival data from 191 (44%) of these patients, who comprised a population-based incident group and had previously participated in a longitudinal study of cognitive and behavioural changes in ALS.FindingsSamples from the DNA bank included 49 cases of known familial ALS and 386 apparently sporadic cases. Of these samples, 20 (41%) cases of familial ALS and 19 (5%) cases of apparently sporadic ALS had the C9orf72 repeat expansion. Of the 191 patients for whom phenotype data were available, 21 (11%) had the repeat expansion. Age at disease onset was lower in patients with the repeat expansion (mean 56·3 [SD 8·3] years) than in those without (61·3 [10·6] years; p=0·043). A family history of ALS or FTD was present in 18 (86%) of those with the repeat expansion. Patients with the repeat expansion had significantly more co-morbid FTD than patients without the repeat (50% vs 12%), and a distinct pattern of non-motor cortex changes on high-resolution 3 T magnetic resonance structural neuroimaging. Age-matched univariate analysis showed shorter survival (20 months vs 26 months) in patients with the repeat expansion. Multivariable analysis showed an increased hazard rate of 1·9 (95% 1·1–3·7; p=0·035) in those patients with the repeat expansion compared with patients without the expansionInterpretationPatients with ALS and the C9orf72 repeat expansion seem to present a recognisable phenotype characterised by earlier disease onset, the presence of cognitive and behavioural impairment, specific neuroimaging changes, a family history of neurodegeneration with autosomal dominant inheritance, and reduced survival. Recognition of patients with ALS who carry an expanded repeat is likely to be important in the context of appropriate disease management, stratification in clinical trials, and in recognition of other related phenotypes in family members.FundingHealth Seventh Framework Programme, Health Research Board, Research Motor Neuron, Irish Motor Neuron Disease Association, The Motor Neurone Disease Association of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, ALS Association.

Impact of Tidal Generation on Power System Operation in Ireland

Tidal stream generation is a form of renewable energy that is predictable but variable in nature. The paper initially identifies the tidal resource around Ireland, utilizing the most appropriate and developed tidal energy technology, thus providing a potential magnitude and output profile. Methods of deployment and control, including the down rating of the generator relative to turbine size and operational output reduction, are suggested to reduce capital cost, increase the capacity factor and reduce the impact on the grid system. The combination of the potential resource and the application of control methods provide the basis to study the effect on the grid system in terms of ramp rate and the demand profile. The same inputs also provide the ability to analyze generator characteristics such as the capacity credit.

Irish Life: Paradise Lost and Regained

Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P) is the product of a merger of Irish Life Assurance and Irish Permanent in 1 999. This somewhat unusual combination brought together the largest life company in Ireland and the largest residential mortgage provider, both with shares in their respective markets of over 20 per cent. In April 2002, the further acquisition of TSB Bank and its merger with Irish Permanent created a full service retail banking operation in Ireland. We believe that Ireland with its strong and fast growing economy and attractive demographics offers tremendous opportunities for our business given our strong franchise and market shares. Our ambition is to become the number one provider of personal financial services in the Irish market and we are confident that, with the business model which we have created together with our singular focus on Ireland, we can achieve that ambition. This article focuses primarily on Irish Life and, in particular, the larger retail life business which has undergone rapid transformation and growth over the past few years.

Diversity and the Irish Workplace: Myths and Reflections from the Gateway Logo

The announcement in August, 2001, by the American information technology company Gateway that it was closing its operations in Ireland and the United Kingdom stunned more than 900 workers at the company's North Dublin plant and evoked a national discussion on the inevitable risks of an economy driven by foreign investment. Gateway's Irish operations were short-lived?the com pany had entered Ireland only in 1993?and the closure came as an abrupt reminder that workers in a globalized economy are susceptible to forces far from the workplace. Corporate officers reported that the decision stemmed from a dramatic downturn in the company's European, Middle Eastern, and African sales.1 The majority of the workforce at Gateway's Dublin facility was Irish, but, like many of the workplaces that have emerged in the years of the so-called Celtic Tiger, it was an international facility that employed citizens of such coun tries as France, Germany, Sweden, Spain, Great Britain, Holland, Austria, Amer ica, Cyprus, and some Eastern European countries. Although Gateway has now closed in Ireland, its diverse workforce was typ ical of recent Irish industrial initiatives. Studying such diversity in an American information technology firm located in Ireland can help us to understand the creation, and re-creation, of Irish identity underway today, particularly in light of recent population movements. Ireland's fluid economic and demographic situation is far from unique; when considering issues of diversity, its experience can be compared to countries as different as New Zealand and Taiwan. Fur thermore, an analysis of Gateway's two most recent corporate logos and the

The Largest Amount of Good: Quaker Relief in Ireland, 1654-1921.

The Largest Amount of Good is the first full account of Quaker relief operations in Ireland and of the evolution of the Quakers' thinking on the purposes and limitations of philanthropy and the responsibility of the state in disaster. Helen Hatton describes how the Quakers rejected orthodox economic and philanthropic theory and, without seeking profit for themselves, provided grants and unguaranteed loans to develop and revitalize Irish agriculture, fisheries, and industry. They also used publicity and political pressure to push for reform of the land-holding system. Although the power of the landowners was too entrenched to be overcome entirely, the Quakers' contribution to Ireland, Hatton demonstrates, is unquestionable. The growth of the Quaker relief service, from mutual help in the seventeenth century to an institution of international standing, has been accompanied by the gradual embodiment of their principles in the direction of the Society. Their work in the Great Irish Famine marked a turning point at which the procedures they had evolved inchoately over two centuries were formulated into a methodology that is accepted today as the basis for relief and Third World development.

Rainfall patterns in relation to peat extraction and silage making

An analysis of the occurrence of 2- and 4-dry-day periods during the summer months is presented, and the frequency of occurrence of such periods is linked to certain operations in Ireland. For example, the number of Peco milled peat harvests is associated with the occurrence of 4-dry-day periods, while silage wilting is likely to be dependent upon the number of 2-dry-day periods. Probability levels for the occurrence of such dry spells are given and the required mechanization system power rating for wilted silage is calculated. For example, a farmer with 30 ha of first-cut wilted silage requires an 88 kW rig, while the corresponding figure for a farmer with 50 ha is 152 kW.

Two cases of ovariotomy, whereof one recovered; to which are appended statistical records of this operation in Ireland

Two cases of ovariotomy, whereof one recovered; to which are appended statistical records of this operation in Ireland

Bibliographical Notices Ligature of the Left Common Iliac Artery, being the second Operation in Ireland, and the first Successful Case of it . By William Hargrave, Ex-President, Fellow and Professor of Surgery in the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland, Surgeon to the City of Dublin Hospital, &c. &c.

Bibliographical Notices Ligature of the Left Common Iliac Artery, being the second Operation in Ireland, and the first Successful Case of it . By William Hargrave, Ex-President, Fellow and Professor of Surgery in the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland, Surgeon to the City of Dublin Hospital, &c. &c.