Dr O’Shea became a Member of RCPI in 1988 and a Fellow in 1998. A graduate of University College Dublin, Ireland, he did his core training in Ireland and worked in Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee and the Royal Victoria Infirmary and Freeman Hospitals in Newcastle, United Kingdom, before returning to the post of Consultant Geriatrician at St Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.   

He served as National Specialty Director in Geriatric Medicine from 2000 to 2004 and was elected to RCPI Council in 2007.  He established the successful RCPI Masterclass Series in 2007 and held the positions of Masterclass Series Convenor and Vice-President of Education and Professional Development from 2007 to 2014.  He was Registrar of RCPI from 2014 to 2020, playing a leading role in promoting the College’s work to improve patient care, the quality of medical practice and the health of the population.  He served as Chair of the Irish Committee of Higher Medical Training between 2017 and 2019, President of the Irish Gerontological Society from 2017 to 2020, Clinical Lead for the National Clinical Programme for Older People in the HSE from 2010 to 2019, and was the RCPI Clinical Lead for the Mandatory Teaching Review from 2021 to 2023. 

He was elected as the 143rd President of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland in 2023 and took up his role at the RCPIs annual stated meeting on 18 October 2023.  

Contact: president@rcpi.ie

Professor Michael Keane is Registrar of the College, and an elected Fellow on RCPI Council. Prof Keane is Professor of Medicine and Therapeutics at UCD and Consultant Respiratory Physician at St Vincent’s University Hospital (SVUH). He graduated from UCD in 1989 and following initial clinical training in Dublin, moved to the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor for a fellowship in pulmonary and critical care medicine in 1995. He subsequently took up a faculty position at University of Michigan in 1998 and in 2000 moved to University of California, Los Angeles, where he was Professor of Medicine and Programme Director for the UCLA Interstitial Lung Disease Center.

Professor Keane returned to UCD and St Vincent's University Hospital in 2007 where he is an SFI Principal Investigator at the UCD Conway Institute and SVUH Lead Clinical Coordinator for Lung Cancer services. He is Lead Clinical Director, Chairman of the Medicine Division, Chair of the SVUH Medical Executive and a member of the hospital Board of Directors. He is Clinical Director of the UCD Clinical Research Centre and a member of the Molecular Medicine Ireland Board of Directors. His research interests centre on molecular investigation into, and treatment of, inflammatory lung diseases, particularly pulmonary fibrosis. 

Dr Maeve Skelly is Treasurer of RCPI. She graduated from UCD and trained in Gastroenterology, Hepatology and General Medicine in St Vincent's Hospital Dublin while completing a PhD through the Dept of Pharmacology in UCD. Dr Skelly completed her training in Queen's Medical Centre Nottingham and University of Nottingham. After a couple of years as a Consultant in Sheffield Teaching Hospitals she returned to Ireland to take up her current position as a Consultant Gastroenterologist in University Hospital Limerick. Dr Skelly has been Treasurer of Irish Society of Gastroenterology, Clinical Lead for Bowel Screen in the Mid West and BST Programme Director of UL Hospital. Dr Skelly has served three terms on Council of RCPI and one term as Censor

Dr Anna Clarke MD, MPH, FFPHMI, FFPH, FRCPI, Diploma in Leadership and Quality in Healthcare, currently works as a Consultant in Public Health Medicine at the Department of Public Health HSE East in response to the Covid19 surge. Prior to this, she worked in the National Immunisation Office and undertook project work in NDTP until February 2020. She is the Clinical Lead for the International Clinical Fellowship Progarmme, RCPI. She is a member of the Education and Training Committee of the Institute of Medicine and National Immunisation Advisory Committee.

A former Dean and NSD of the Faculty of Public Health Medicine, she is a current examiner for the FFPHMI examination. In addition, she is a member of the Education, Training and Professional Development Committee and on the Education and Training General Assessors Panel, Medical Council of Ireland, having previously served as a Member and Vice President. Her main interests are education, training and immunisation.

Professor Francis Finucane is an elected Fellow on RCPI Council. Prof Finucane is a consultant endocrinologist at Galway University Hospital and an honorary personal professor in medicine at NUI Galway. He graduated from RCSI, then obtained an MD from TCD followed by an MRC-funded post-doctoral fellowship at the Institute of Metabolic Science in Cambridge, UK. His research focused on how dietary and physical activity behaviours influence health.

Since returning in 2010, Prof Finucane has established a regional bariatric service in the West of Ireland. He is a member of several international scientific organisations, has over 70 publications and he peer reviews for several high impact medical journals. He has served on RCPI policy groups on obesity and physical activity and on the RCPI examinations board. He would like to develop the College’s role in defining clinical and public health policies relating to obesity and enhance clinical training in this area.

Prof Mary Higgins is an elected Fellow on the RCPI Council. Originally from Kildare, Mary graduated from University College Dublin and completed her training in Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Ireland, with membership and then fellowships of RCPI and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (UK).

She holds Masters qualifications in Evidence Based Healthcare (University of Oxford) and Healthcare Education (University of Galway) and an MD from UCD. She gained experience in Maternal Fetal Medicine in Toronto, Canada and returned to Ireland to her current post, as Associate Professor in University College Dublin and a consultant Obstetrician/Gynaecologist in the National Maternity Hospital.

As a Principal Investigator in UCD Perinatal Research Centre she has more than 100 publications and supervises PhD, MD, MSc and undergraduate students. She is currently completing a MSc in Human Factors. Mary was a ministerial appointee to the Slaintecare Medical Advisory Council (2018-2021). She is an Associate Fellow in AMEE (Association for Medical Education in Europe) and Fellow of the Academy of Medical Educators. Within RCPI, Mary is Chair of the Examination Board for the MRCPI (O&G) and the Board of the Postgraduate Certificate in Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

Dr Hogan is a full-time specialist in Occupational Medicine. He was previously the Dean of the Faculty and also served on the College Council. He was the President of the 2018 ICOH Congress in Dublin, the largest Occupational Health event in Ireland, and currently holds the position of Vice President of ICOH. 

Dr Emer Kelly is an elected Fellow on RCPI Council. Dr Kelly is a Consultant in Respiratory Medicine in St Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin. She trained in respiratory medicine, critical care and general internal medicine in Ireland before undertaking further training in Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre in Boston, USA, in the Harvard Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship.

Dr Kelly has a clinical and research interest in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). She has a keen interest in medical education and has a Diploma in Medical Education from the University of Dundee. She has research interests in feedback in medical education and technology enhanced learning and served as the Clinical Lead for Digital Strategy and Innovation in the College. Dr Kelly is currently the incoming E Learning Resources Director of the European Respiratory Society.

Professor McHugh is a Consultant Endocrinologist at Sligo University Hospital. She served on the Board of the Institute of Medicine on the RCPI Council from 2017-2022. She is also part of the MRCPI Part II Examinations Board, and Convenor of the Clinical Examination in Sligo. Prof McHugh is also an External Examiner for MRCPI examinations abroad, and a Trainer for Examiners. 

Dr Pamela O’Connor is a neonatologist at the Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital, Dublin. An NUIG graduate, she trained in paediatrics in Ireland, followed by fellowship training in perinatal and neonatal medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, USA, returning to a consultant post in 2003 at the Coombe and Crumlin hospitals. As director of neonatology in Crumlin hospital, she further developed services for the neonate with complex medical and surgical needs.

Dr O’Connor is FRCPI since 2004, and in 2019, she was elected as a Fellow representative on the board of the Faculty of Paediatrics. She is honoured to represent the specialty of paediatrics on the council of the RCPI. She is a director on the board of Helium Arts charity that supports children with chronic medical conditions. She is passionate about improving the health and wellbeing of the youngest and most vulnerable members of our society.

James O'Neil is a Consultant Cardiologist at Connolly and Mater Hospitals, and a Clinical Professor of Medicine at RCSI. He obtained a BSc in Physiology and graduated from UCD in Medicine in 1995. He trained in Dublin and the Cleveland Clinic as a Fulbright Scholar. He obtained postgraduate Masters degrees in Management and Medical Education. He obtained a BL from the Kings Inns in 2020. He is a regional programme director for Basic Specialist Training in Medicine at RCPI and is a Member of the training board for Higher Specialist Training in Cardiology. 

Professor Liam Plant is an elected Fellow and Censor on the RCPI Council. He graduated in Physiology (1982) and Medicine (1985) from UCC. Following General Professional Training in Cork, he entered Higher Specialist Training in Nephrology in Scotland and was appointed Consultant Renal Physician at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and Honorary Senior Lecturer in Medicine at Edinburgh University. Since 2001 he has had a busy clinical and teaching practice in Cork University Hospital as Consultant Renal Physician and as a Clinical Professor in Renal Medicine in UCC.

He holds, and has held, numerous leadership positions in many domains (Clinical Practice, Service Delivery, Administration, Education, Training & Professional Development) integral to the practice of Medicine. 

Professor Reddan served on Council for 10 years, from 2012 to 2022. He was Vice-President in 2014-2015 and Treasurer from 2017 to 2022. During his tenure, he served as the Education Committee's secretary and chaired the Finance Audit and Risk Committee.