Nephrology community to gather in Cork for key national meeting

The Irish Nephrology Society Winter Meeting will feature expert talks and discussion on the latest developments in the field

The Irish Nephrology Society (INS) will hold its Winter Meeting at the Imperial Hotel in Cork on 23–24 January 2026. The two-day event will bring together nephrology specialists, trainees, and guests for updates on key areas of kidney care. The programme features clinical talks, case discussions, and expert sessions covering both Irish and international developments in the field.

Opening

The meeting opens on Friday 23 January with a welcome delivered by Dr Sarah Moran, Consultant Nephrologist, Cork University Hospital (CUH). She will be followed by Dr Blathnaid O’Connell, ASPIRE Fellow at CUH, who will present an update on obstetric nephrology. An interactive obstetric nephrology clinical case discussion will follow.

After a short break, the session will continue with a presentation on pre-conception counselling. This will be followed by Dr Claire McCarthy, Consultant Obstetrician, Cork University Maternity Hospital, who will speak about medication safety in pregnancy. Closing remarks for the evening will be delivered by Dr Eva Long, Consultant Nephrologist, CUH. In parallel with these talks, a specific NCHD session will also be held.

A conference dinner will take place later that night, with places reserved during registration.

Second day

Saturday 24 January begins with registration, tea, and coffee, along with an opportunity to meet the event sponsors. Dr Moran will deliver the morning welcome before the day’s scientific programme begins.

The first session starts with an update on the Irish End-Stage Kidney Disease (ESKD) Registry, presented by Dr Conor Judge, Consultant Nephrologist, University Hospital Galway. Dr Judge’s primary focus is applying artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to enhance patient care, including chronic conditions like hypertension.

He leads the development of an AI clinical decision support system for hypertension management at the University of Galway. He is a clinical mentor with the Bioinnovate programme at the University. He also received several research awards including a Health Research Board (HRB) Clinician Scientist Fellowship, the Enterprise Ireland Clinical Innovator Award, the Cleveland Clinic Award, and a Wellcome Trust/HRB Irish Clinical Academic Training PhD Fellowship.

An article published on the HRB Open Research Platform last year, which Dr Judge contributed to, was titled ‘Working towards a national ESKD data system for Ireland’.

The article concluded: “The stakeholder engagement process successfully identified core requirements and governance priorities for a national ESKD data system. The creation of individual workstreams to inform system design and operationalise these requirements are the next steps in this process.”

Following Dr Judge’s presentation, Dr Claire Kennedy, Consultant Nephrologist, St James’s Hospital, Dublin, will then speak on optimising home therapies for ESKD. Ms Carol Moore, CEO of the Irish Kidney Association, will then present on the role of the patient voice in Irish nephrology. A short questions and answers period will bring the session to a close before a break.

The stakeholder engagement process successfully identified core requirements and governance priorities for a national ESKD data system

The second session will focus on IgA nephropathy (IgAN). Prof Michael Clarkson, Consultant Nephrologist, CUH, will begin with guidance on optimising standard care in IgAN. He will be followed by Prof Jon Barratt, Consultant Nephrologist, University of Leicester, UK, who will discuss progress and future directions in IgAN research and treatment.

Prof Barratt leads the renal research group at the University. His research is focused on a bench-to-bedside approach to improving the understanding of the pathogenesis of IgAN.

He is the IgAN rare disease group lead for the UK national registry of rare kidney diseases and a member of the steering committee for the International IgA Nephropathy Network. He works closely with pharmaceutical companies interested in new treatments for IgAN and is Chief Investigator for a number of international randomised controlled phase 2 and 3 clinical trials in this area.

Dr Blathnaid O’Connell and Dr Nick Mayer will then present challenging clinical cases. A panel discussion will conclude the session before lunch.

The third session will open with Prof Austin Stack, Consultant Nephrologist, University Hospital Limerick, who will speak on the burden of glomerular disease in the mid-west.

Prof Stack’s research is focused on better understanding the burden, impact, and treatment of chronic kidney disease and acute kidney injury, including modifiable risk factors and measuring the impact of interventions.

He directs the kidney research consortium at the University of Limerick and spearheads the development of an Irish National Kidney Disease Surveillance System. His work has been funded by the American Heart Association, National Institutes of Health, HRB, and Enterprise Ireland.

He is a reviewer for Wellcome Trust UK, Chief Scientist Office for Research Scotland, and National Institutes of Health.

Next, Prof Mark Little, Consultant Nephrologist, Tallaght University Hospital, Dublin, will discuss machine-learning-informed approaches to maintenance therapy decisions in ANCA-associated vasculitis.

A short questions and answers session will follow before a break.

The fourth session begins with Dr Maeve Crowley, Consultant Haematologist, CUH, who will deliver an update on thrombotic microangiopathy. She will be followed by Prof Atif Awan, Consultant Nephrologist, Children’s Health Ireland, who will speak on rare disease in Ireland. Questions and answers will close the session.

The meeting will end with updates on the work of the Society and closing remarks from Prof Donal Reddan, INS President.