25.11.25

New SCOPE publication!

A Scoping Review of Instruments Used to Measure Weight and Body Composition in Infants Under 1 Year

The SCOPE team are excited to share the second of three results papers from our Scoping Review to identity what outcome measurement instruments are used to measure 26 outcomes from our previously developed core outcome set.

This paper, published in Obesity Reviews, describes the outcome measurement instruments used to measure 3 core infant weight-related outcomes from the Infant Feeding COS.

See the full paper here: http://doi.org/10.1111/obr.70038

The next step is to determine the measurement properties of the identified OMIs and identify the most valid, reliable, and feasible OMIs for wider implementation.

Stay tuned for final scoping review results papers describing outcome measurement instruments used to measure caregiver feeding practices/feeding environment outcomes as well as our systematic review evaluating the measurement properties of identified OMIs.

24.11.25

Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) Annual Conference 2025 

Eibhlín Looney, Research Assistant on the SCOPE and Re-CHErIsH projects, recently attended and presented at the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) Annual Conference 2025, held in Athlone on November 12^th-14^th. The PSI Annual Conference plays a key role in advancing psychological research and practice in Ireland by bringing together professionals, researchers, and stakeholders to share cutting-edge research, engage in professional development, and discuss the latest developments in the field of psychology.

Pictured L-R: Nicola Maiorano, Eibhlín Looney, Eithne Ní Longphuirt, Jillian Doyle, Genevieve Marren, and Marian O’Flynn

Eibhlín delivered a talk entitled “Experiences and support needs of women in Ireland for perinatal stress and anxiety” as part of the Psychological Society of Ireland Special Interest Group in Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Symposium. The symposium explored current developments and future research needs in perinatal care and infant mental health practice in Ireland, entitled: “Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Research in Ireland: Recent Developments”. You can read the full paper of Eibhlín’s talk  here: https://doi.org/10.1017/ipm.2024.52

As part of this symposium, research led by Dr Karen Matvienko-Sikar identifying women’s and stakeholder’s priority areas for perinatal mental health research in Ireland was also presented.

Eibhlín’s attendance at PSI Annual Conference 2025 was supported by Conference Attendance Grant Funding from the School of Public Health, University College Cork.

19.11.25

HiPPP EMR-C and EPOCH-Connect Joint Conference

Dr Dimity Dutch, Postdoctoral researcher for the SCOPE Project recently attended the HiPPP EMR-C and EPOCH Connect Joint Conference held at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia (17-18th November).

The conference theme was “United Frontiers in Parental and Early Childhood Health: Integrating Consumer and Community Involvement” and brought together lived experience experts, researchers, practitioners, and advocates for enabling and centering community voices across research, policy, and practice.

Dimity presented findings from her PhD research understanding caregivers perspectives on child health behaviour screening in Australian Primary Health Care and also presented on behalf of Ms Moira Duffy and the SCOPE Project team, sharing the work Moira led with our PPI group of mothers throughout 2025.

Congratulations to Dimity for winning Best EMCR Oral Presentation at the conference.

24.10.25

Visiting Scholar Dr Jessica Appleton

The SCOPE Project team were delighted to welcome Dr Jessica Appleton, visiting scholar from the University of Technology Sydney, Australia to the School of Public Health in October.

Dr Appleton is a registered nurse, lecturer, and researcher with expertise in infant feeding and nutrition, health promotion, and child and family health.

On Thursday 23rd October, Dr Appleton presented a seminar titled “Support and health promotion for families with infants and young children”. In this seminar Dr Appleton shared her research on supporting optimal infant and child growth, highlighting the interactions between the carer and infant dyad are influenced by the wider social, cultural, and economic environments, and how health and early years professionals can provide support and health promotion for families.

Thank you to everyone who attended in-person and online.

16.10.25

‘Lunch and Learn’ Event to celebrate SCOPE Project PPI group

On October 16th, as part of the National PPI Festival and with funding support from the PPI Ignite Network, the SCOPE Team hosted an event, led by Moira Duffy, to celebrate their dedicated PPI group of mothers. The SCOPE PPI group is comprised of mothers of infants <1 year old who have meaningfully contributed to the SCOPE Project throughout 2025.

The ‘Lunch and Learn’ event, held at the Glucksman Art Gallery on UCC Campus, provided an opportunity to both thank the mothers for their invaluable input and gather their reflections on their experiences as PPI contributors.

Attendees enjoyed a catered lunch from Lea’s Restaurant, and each received a gift for their infants as a token of appreciation for their contribution to the SCOPE Project. Following lunch, the mothers took part in a discussion about their involvement in the PPI group. Their insights are now being compiled into a video that will be featured on the SCOPE Project website and in future research conference presentations.

We extend our sincere gratitude to the PPI Ignite Network for making this event possible, and to our incredible PPI group of mothers for generously sharing their time and perspectives over the past ten months.

03.09.25

SCOPE Project at CoMH Research Conference

The SCOPE Project team were excited to share their research at this year’s University College Cork College of Medicine and Health Research Conference on September 3rd. This year’s theme was “Academic Health Sciences System” reflecting the college’s commitment to advancing health and wellbeing through innovation, collaboration, and impactful partnerships.

Eibhlín Looney presented updates from our sister project Re-CHErIsH (Refining the Choosing Healthy Eating for Infant Health intervention and implementation strategy) during the “Latest Advances” sessions. This was a three stage project integrating perspectives of researchers, caregivers, and healthcare professionals to refine and enhance an existing infant feeding intervention.
You can learn more about Re-CHErIsH, here: https://eiascope.com/related-projects/

Many thanks to the Health Research Board (HRB) and Primary Care Clinical Trials Network Ireland for supporting this research, and to our many wonderful collaborators.

SCOPE Project research was also on display in the poster sessions, presented by Dimity Dutch and Moira Duffy. Dimity also presented a poster on her PhD research, which was supervised by SCOPE co-applicant Professor Rebecca Golley from Flinders University.

30.08.25

SCOPE Project at EHPS Annual Conference

The SCOPE Project team were delighted to take part in a rich and inspiring symposium at the European Health Psychology Society (EHPS) Conference, held in beautiful Groningen, The Netherlands from 26-29th August.

The symposium was titled “Supporting Healthy Child Growth and Preventing Obesity: Evidence and Innovative Methods in Research and Practice” and brought together international experts to share novel and collaborative methods for the development, implementation, and evaluation of child obesity prevention initiatives.

Dr Dimity Dutch and Dr Karen Matvienko-Sikar from the SCOPE Project team were proud to contribute alongside Professor Sarah Redsell (University of Nottingham), Professor Anna Lene Seidler (University Medical Centre Rostock), and Professor Luke Wolfenden (University of Newcastle).

Dimity received an EHPS Conference Grant to support her conference attendance including the CREATE pre-conference workshop for early career researchers on Open Science Practices.

20.06.25

SCOPE Project at ISBNPA2025 Annual Conference

Dimity Dutch, postdoctoral researcher on the SCOPE project, recently attended and presented at the International Society of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity (ISBNPA) 2025 Annual Conference held in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, New Zealand, from 11^th to 14^th June.

The theme of this years conference was Manaaki taiao, manaaki tāngata, manaaki meake nei: Take care of the environment, take care of the people, take care of the future. With over 1000 presentations and 800 delegates, the conference program was overflowing with innovative research, as well as incredible opportunities to learn about Māori culture, and connect with international researchers.

Dimity presented two posters on behalf of the SCOPE project team:

1. “What aspects of outcome measurement instruments are important to parents/caregivers in child health trials”. The poster highlighted child safety and comfort, caregiver trust and understanding, and ease of providing information were most important to caregivers. Stay tuned for the results paper!

2. “Factors influencing use and choice of Core Outcome Sets and Outcome Measurement Instruments in trials of interventions to prevent childhood obesity”. The poster highlighted that trialists are aware of childhood obesity prevention Core Outcome Sets (COS), however additional practical guidance is needed to support uptake. Once again, stay tuned for the results paper!

Dimity also presented the findings of her PhD research which explored child health behaviour screening in Australian primary health care. This research was conducted at Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia, and was supervised by Professor Rebecca Golley, collaborator and co-applicant on the SCOPE Project.

It was also fantastic to see Dr Brittany Johnson, SCOPE collaborator, present an overview of her research programs and insights for designing, measuring, implementing, and evaluating early childhood health promotion initiatives during an invited “One to Watch” presentation.

Dimity’s attendance at ISBNPA2025 was supported by the Centre for Research Excellence in Translating the Early Promotion of Optimal Child Growth (CRE EPOCH-Translate).

04.06.25

SCOPE and Re-CHErIsH at Psychology, Health and Medicine (PHM) Conference 

Eibhlín Looney, Research Assistant on the SCOPE and Re-CHErIsH projects, presented at the Psychology, Health and Medicine (PHM) Annual Conference 2025, at Queen’s University Belfast on May 27th. Eibhlín delivered a lightning talk entitled “What aspects of Outcome Measurement Instruments are important to parents and caregivers in child health studies?”. This talk provided an overview of findings from our international survey  evaluating caregivers’ preferences and perspectives of Outcome Measurement Instruments and data collection processes in child health studies. 

Eibhlín also presented two posters at PHM this year. The first was “Outcome measurement instruments used to measure infant diet, feeding practices, environment, and anthropometric outcomes: A scoping review”. The review of diet-related Outcome Measurement Instruments is published in Appetite. The reviews of infant-feeding practices and feeding environment, and anthropometric Outcome Measurement Instruments are under review and the protocol for the study can be read here.  

The second poster was titled “Refining the choosing healthy infant feeding for infant health intervention and implementation strategy: Re-CHErIsH”. This outlines the work of our sister project, the Choosing Healthy Eating for Infant Health (CHErIsH) intervention which is also led by Dr Karen Matvienko-Sikar. Re-CHErIsH aims to refine delivery of the CHErIsH intervention and trial processes to maximise the likelihood of successful future implementation and evaluation.  

26.05.25

SCOPE Project at the European Congress on Obesity 2025

Moira Duffy and Eibhlín Looney, Research Assistants on the SCOPE project, presented at the 2025 European Congress on Obesity (ECO), in Malaga, Spain, from 11th to 14th May. Organised by the European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO), ECO is the largest annual scientific congress on obesity in Europe.  

Moira delivered an oral presentation entitled “What aspects of Outcome Measurement Instruments are important to parents and caregivers in child health studies?”. Moira presented findings from our research evaluating caregivers’ preferences and perspectives of Outcome Measurement Instruments and data collection processes in child health studies. The protocol for this study can be read here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/7-62 

Eibhlín presented two posters on behalf of the SCOPE team. The first was “Factors influencing use and choice of Core Outcome Sets and Core Outcome Measurement Sets in trials of interventions to prevent childhood obesity”. This poster describes our research examining childhood obesity prevention trialists’ awareness and use of Core Outcome Sets; trialists’ preferences for Outcome Measurement Instruments; and how trialists choose Outcome Measurement Instruments. The protocol for the study can be read here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/7-28. 

The second poster was “Outcome measurement instruments used to measure infant diet, feeding practices, environment, and anthropometric outcomes: A scoping review”. The review of diet-related Outcome Measurement Instruments is published in Appetite, available here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2025.107980. The reviews of infant-feeding practices and feeding environment, and anthropometric Outcome Measurement Instruments are under review and the protocol for the study can be read here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/6-67.  

25.03.25

New SCOPE publication!

Outcome measurement instruments used to measure diet-related outcomes in infancy: A scoping review

The SCOPE team are excited to share the first of three results papers from our Scoping Review to identity what outcome measurement instruments are used to measure 26 outcomes from our previously developed core outcome set.

This paper, published in Appetite, describes the outcome measurement instruments used to measure 13 infant diet-related outcomes.

See the full paper here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2025.107980

Stay tuned for our two scoping review results papers describing outcome measurement instruments used to measure caregiver feeding practices/feeding environment outcomes and child weight/anthropometric outcomes.

21.03.25

New SCOPE protocol published!

Measurement properties of outcome measurement instruments used to measure caregiver feeding practices and feeding environment, infant diet, and infant anthropometry outcomes: Protocol for a systematic review

How, what, and when infants are fed in the first year of life influences their health and development. We have previously developed a core outcome set (COS) of infant feeding outcomes for use in childhood obesity prevention interventions (see here: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-020-0538-2), and scoping reviews have been conducted to identify what outcome measurement instruments (OMIs) are currently used to measure these outcomes (stay tuned for results published soon!). The aim of this systematic review is to evaluate the measurement properties of the identified OMIs that measure outcomes included in the infant feeding COS. This is an essential next step in the development of a core outcome measurement set (COMS) for infant feeding interventions, which ultimately aims to improve evidence synthesis and reduce research waste in this area.

You can read the protocol for the review here: https://doi.org/10.12688/hrbopenres.14108.1

28.01.25

Welcome to Dimity Dutch!

Dimity Dutch recently joined SCOPE as a postdoctoral researcher. Her background is as a Dietitian and completed a Bachelor of Nutrition and Dietetics (Honours) at Flinders University in South Australia. Dimity conducted her PhD at Flinders University where she developed and tested a brief screening tool to measure children’s health behaviours (dietary intake, physical activity, screen time and sleep) to facilitate health-promoting conversations between caregivers and practitioners in primary health care. Dimity also has experience as a research assistant working across many projects to support optimal growth, health and development in early childhood. Dimity is very excited to join the SCOPE team, connect with UCC researchers and explore the beauty of Ireland.

12.12.24

UCC Future College of Medicine and Health Futures 2024 Research Conference

On 12th December 2024, Dr Karen Matvienko-Sikar, SCOPE Principal Investigator, along with Moira Duffy and Eibhlín Looney, Research Assistants on the SCOPE project, attended the University College Cork, College of Medicine and Health Futures 2024 Research Conference. The theme of the conference was ‘Transforming Tomorrow’s Health’.

Dr Matvienko-Sikar presented a poster entitled “What and how we measure outcomes in health research matters: The example of childhood obesity prevention”. This presentation outlined the previous development of a childhood obesity prevention Core Outcome Set, and the work of the SCOPE project in developing a Core Outcome Measurement Set to standardise and improve measurement of infant feeding outcomes to prevent childhood obesity.

Moira presented a poster on behalf of the SCOPE team entitled “Collecting Information in Child Health Research Studies”. This research examines caregivers’ perspectives and preferences regarding outcome measurement instruments used in child health trials in order to improve participant engagement and quality of data that underly study findings. You can read the protocol for this study here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/7-62

Eibhlín presented a poster on behalf of the SCOPE team entitled “Factors influencing use and choice of Core Outcome Sets and Core Outcome Measurement Sets in trials of interventions to prevent childhood obesity.” This research explores the attitudes and awareness of childhood obesity prevention trialists towards existing Core Outcome Sets; the characteristics of Core Outcome Measurement Sets trialists currently use; and how trialists choose Core Outcome Measurement Sets. You can read the protocol for this study here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/7-28

At the conference Eibhlín also delivered a research talk in the “Latest Advances” session entitled “Perinatal stress and anxiety in Ireland: Sources, experiences, and support needs”. This presentation was based on previous research conducted by Eibhlín with Dr Catherine Houghton (University of Galway), Professor Sarah Redsell (University of Nottingham), and led by Dr Karen Matvienko-Sikar. You can read the full paper here: https://doi.org/10.1017/ipm.2024.52

28.11.24

SCOPE and our sister project Re-CHErIsH at the Research Nurses and Midwives Conference

Eibhlín Looney (left) and Moira Duffy (right), Research Assistants on the SCOPE project, recently attended the Irish Research Nurses and Midwives (IRNM) 16th Annual Conference in the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), Dublin.

Moira presented a poster on behalf of the SCOPE team entitled “What aspects of Outcome Measurement Instruments are important to parents and caregivers in child health trials?” This research examines what characteristics of OMIs are important in caregivers’ decisions to engage with and participate in trials of interventions for child health outcomes. You can read the protocol for this study here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/7-62

The Choosing Healthy Eating for Infant Health (CHErIsH) intervention is a related project to SCOPE and is also lead by Dr Karen Matvienko-Sikar. Eibhlín presented a poster entitled “Refining the choosing healthy infant feeding for infant health intervention and implementation strategy: Re-CHErIsH” at the conference. The Re-CHErIsH project aims to refine delivery of the CHErIsH intervention and trial processes to maximise the likelihood of successful future implementation and evaluation.

The Re-CHErIsH poster was awarded second place in the poster competition at the conference! Huge congrats to Eibhlín!!

You can read the protocol for this study here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/7-59

15.11.24

SCOPE Project at the Psychological Society of Ireland Annual Conference

SCOPE Research Assistant Eibhlín Looney, recently represented the SCOPE project at the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) Annual Conference in Athlone. Eibhlín presented a poster and short oral presentation entitled “Factors influencing use and choice of Core Outcome Sets and Core Outcome Measurement Sets in trials of interventions to prevent childhood obesity”.

This ongoing SCOPE research examined trialists awareness and attitudes towards existing Core Outcome Sets and factors influencing their use; the characteristics of Core Outcome Measurement Sets trialists currently use; and how trialists choose Core Outcome Measurement Sets.

You can read the protocol for this study here: https://hrbopenresearch.org/articles/7-28

Results will be published in 2025!

Eibhlín’s attendance at the PSI Annual Conference was supported by a travel bursary from the PSI Division of Health Psychology.

04.06.24

On June 4th, Dr Brittany Johnson, Senior Research Fellow in the Caring Futures Institute in Flinders University and SCOPE collaborator joined us in University College Cork. It was a productive meeting about the SCOPE and corresponding EPOCH COMS research. It was also great to catch up with Dr Johnson and show her around the beautiful UCC campus!

27.05.2024

Our survey on trialist choice of core outcome sets and outcome measurement instruments is now live!

If you are involved in trials of interventions to prevent childhood obesity or improve behaviors related to childhood obesity, we would appreciate your input. Please take a moment to fill out our survey and contribute to this important research: https://tinyurl.com/2bubhtrf

16.04.2024

Congratulations to SCOPE Research Assistant Eibhlín Looney, who was recently awarded a prestigious Membership Bursary for the Psychological Society of Ireland Division of Health Psychology (PSI DHP)! PSI DHP membership bursaries are competitively awarded to support membership of the Division. As part of her award Eibhlín outlined the importance of health psychology in Ireland as follows:

“Exploring impacts of behavioural, social, & psychological factors on physical & mental health, Health Psychology in Ireland is a driving force behind a healthier & happier society. From mental health interventions to chronic disease management, it’s pivotal to everyday wellbeing.”

15.01.2024

Welcome to Eibhlin Looney!

Eibhlin Looney recently joined SCOPE as a research assistant. She has a background in psychology and completed her degree in Applied Psychology in UCC, followed by a Masters in Forensic Psychology from University of Kent. She has experience conducting research on women’s experiences of perinatal stress and anxiety, the integration of refugee and migrant children in the education system, along with literacy intervention programmes for infants and their parents. She has also worked as an Assistant Psychologist with the Health Service Executive and a research intern for the Irish Penal Reform Trust. Eibhlín is particularly interested in early intervention research and the impact of parent-child relationships on health outcomes.

25.11.23

Welcome to Moira Duffy!

Moira Duffy has recently joined the SCOPE Project as a research assistant. Moira’s background is in nursing, with specific experience in the areas of obstetric and maternal-child nursing. She completed her Masters in Public Health at UCC in the Autumn of 2023, during which time she worked as a research assistant through UCC’s School of Nursing and Midwifery and School of Pharmacy. She has particular interest in infant feeding, newborn nutrition, and maternal-infant health and looks forward to contributing these interests and experiences to the SCOPE Project.

Welcome to Dr Reindolf Anokye!

Dr. Reindolf Anokye has recently joined SCOPE as a postdoctoral researcher. His research is centred around exploring psychological and behavioural processes in health, illness and healthcare. As a behavioural scientist, he is particularly interested in how psychological, behavioural and socio-cultural factors contribute to physical health, mental health and illness. Dr. Anokye is actively involved in developing, testing, and evaluating diverse interventions to improve health behaviours. His expertise extends to various domains, including mental health, biometric health measurements, experimental and survey-based causal research designs, psychometrics, and the application of psychosocial strategies to enhance overall health and well-being. His research contributions hold promise in advancing our understanding of what influences individuals’ health choices and identifying effective strategies for promoting healthier lifestyles.

29.08.23

Full time 3-year Research Assistant position on the SCOPE project!

There is currently an opportunity to join the SCOPE team as a Research Assistant for 3 years full-time. Closing date for applications is September 7th at midday (Irish time). More detailed information on this position (Job ID: 070353) can be found below and you can apply here: https://www.ucc.ie/en/hr/vacancies/

08.05.23

On June 8th 2023, we completed the first part SCOPE work-package 1, which involved engaging with stakeholders to discuss and reach agreement on what should be considered when measuring the core infant feeding outcomes included in the infant feeding core outcome set. We are very grateful to those who contributed to the meeting: Catherine S. Birken (University of Toronto), Ann Doherty (University College Cork), Elizabeth McCarthy (University College Cork), Laura McHugh (Health Service Executive), Ellinor Olander (City University London), Mary Rudolph (Bar-Ilan University). Thank also you to those who expressed an interest in attending but were unable to, we look forward to more fruitful discussions and meetings as the SCOPE project progresses.

In April 2023, Dr Karen Matvienko-Sikar (SCOPE PI), was hosted by Prof Rebecca Golley (SCOPE Co-applicant) and the Child and Families Research team (top left) in the Caring Futures Institute at Flinders University as a Visiting International Researcher. During her visit, Karen presented a keynote seminar to staff at the Caring Futures Institute at Flinders University on ‘Supporting maternal and child health in first 1000 days: using behavioural science to improve development and use core outcome sets in trials”. This seminar was well attended and sparked substantial conversation and interest in Core Outcome Sets and Core Outcome Measurement Sets. She also presented to Wellbeing South Australia on ‘Supporting maternal and child health in first 1000 days’ (top right). The visit generated lots of discussion and plans for future research. You can read more here.