COVID-19; The Quest for a Vaccine

Hopes, Hesitancy and History – what we have learned from the war on disease

Date: Wednesday 14 October 2020
Time: 5:00pm - 6:30pm
Venue: Online event
Cost: Free

Presented by the RCPI Heritage Centre, this online seminar will look at the quest for a COVID-19 vaccine, the hopes, hesitancy and history of vaccinations, and the lessons learned from the war on disease.

You will hear from expert speakers including Prof Luke O'Neill who will discuss the prospects for finding a vaccine for COVID-19. You will also hear from Dr Ida Milne, a specialist in medical history and Dr Anne Moore, Senior lecturer in biochemistry and cell biology who will ask if we will ever learn when it comes to vaccinations for epidemics and pandemics. Harriet Wheelock, Keeper of Collections at RCPI will take a look at smallpox and the introduction of vaccinations to Ireland.

The seminar will be followed by a questions and answers session.

Speakers and Topics

The seminar will be chaired by Prof Karina Butler, Consultant in Infectious Diseases and Chair of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee

 'The most terrible of all the ministers of death': Smallpox and the introduction of vaccination to Ireland - delivered by Harriet Wheelock, Keeper of Collections, RCPI

Vaccination for epidemics and pandemics; do we ever learn? - delivered by Dr Ida Milne, Specialist in Medical History and Dr Anne Moore, Senior lecturer in biochemistry and cell biology, University College Cork

COVID-19: current prospects for therapeutics and vaccines - delivered by Prof Luke O'Neill, Professor of biochemistry in the School of Biochemistry and Immunology at Trinity College Dublin

This seminar will be followed by a questions and answers session.

This event is a benefit of your Membership and Fellowship and is FREE for RCPI Trainees, Licentiates, Members and Fellows, healthcare professionals and the general public.

Meet the speakers 

Prof Luke O'Neill, Professor of biochemistry in the School of Biochemistry and Immunology at Trinity College Dublin, will share his insights on when we might see a vaccination for Covid-19.

Prof Karina Butler, Consultant in Infectious Diseases and Chair of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee

Dr Ida Milne, Specialist in Medical History, Carlow College

Dr Anne Moore, Senior lecturer in biochemistry and cell biology, University College Cork

Harriet Wheelock, Keeper of Collections at RCPI

How to watch 

First, you must book your place at the webinar on this web page. On the day, you must sign into our virtual learning environment RCPI Brightspace.

On the day of the event, the steps are:

• Log in to www.rcpi.ie with your username and password (the same credentials used to book this event)
• Click on the link for RCPI Brightspace
• In your list of courses you will see St Luke's Symposium: COVID-19; The Quest for a Vaccine. Click on this.
• Click on "Join the Live Webinar" - This will launch Zoom, the system we are using for live webinars

Note, the webinar will only become available to watch at 5pm on the day, but we recommend logging in ten minutes ahead of time.

To join this webinar on Zoom you will need a computer (Windows or Apple) or mobile device with internet access and speakers.

If you're joining on a computer

If you're joining the webinar on a computer you can use the Zoom desktop website. You do not need to download the Zoom app - if you see a pop up message about the app, you can dismiss this.

The Zoom website functions best on Google Chrome.

When you click on the link for "Join the Live Webinar" you will see a message asking you to open Zoom. Click on “Open Zoom”.

You will then be asked for your name and email address. Once you’ve entered these details, click on “Join Webinar”.

If you’re joining on a mobile device

If you're watching the webinar on a mobile device you will need to download the Zoom app. To save time on the day, we recommend downloading the app in advance:

Click here for the iOS Zoom app

Click here for the Android Zoom app

When you open the Zoom app click on “Join a Meeting”. You will need to enter the meeting ID number. The ID number for this week's event will be sent to you via email beforehand.

You can find additional help with joining Zoom webinars here

How to submit questions to the panel

Before the event

If you have any questions for our panel please email them to courses@rcpi.ie and we will endeavour to have these answered as part of the event. Alternatively, you can submit questions via Twitter @RCPI_news.

During the event

We are now using Zoom to broadcast our live webinars. When you open Zoom to watch the live webinar you will be able to submit questions to the panel during the event.

To submit questions to the panel:

• Open the Q&A window in Zoom while you are watching the live event
• Type your question into the Q&A box and click Send
• Check Send Anonymously if you do not want your name attached to your question in the Q&A

It may not be possible to answer all questions we receive.

Can't attend? Recordings will be available to watch online afterwards

There are limited places available for the live webinar. If you are unable to book a place, you will be able to watch videos of all of the talks on Panopto, our video sharing platform.