Tom Duffy, Alice Nugent, Denis O'Shea (St John's Ward), Enda Munnelly (Race Director)in the Katie Nugent Garden at Crumlin.

October date for katie nugent duathalon in clonmellon

The garden at St Johns Ward, Crumlin which was commissioned and built in 2014 by the Katie Nugent Fund, was the setting recently for the launch of the 2015 Katie Nugent Duathlon. After a break last year, this will take place again on Sunday 18th October at Ballinlough Castle, Clonmellon, the home of the late Katie’s parents, Nick and Alice Nugent.
Anybody aged from 16 to 80 is welcome, from first time competitors through to experienced triathletes.
The format remains the same as in previous years - competitors run 2.5km, cycle 22km then run 2.5km again. (In addition to the individual competition there is a team event, where one member runs and the other cycles.) The cost to enter the individual competition is €50 plus a minimum €100 in sponsorship. Entry to the two person team competition: €100 to register plus minimum €200 in sponsorship.
Employers are asked to encourage staff to participate by funding the entry cost and/or required sponsorship, and likewise hope that employees will approach their employers with this request - benefits are palpable, both physically and mentally, and lead to greater productivity all round. Support of this charity has the normal tax benefits.
All money raised will go to the Katie Nugent Fund. This was established in 2011 to improve psychological and emotional support for patients and families at St John’s Ward at Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin (OLCHC), where every child in Ireland with cancer and leukaemia is treated.
To date the Fund has raised over €700,000 and, having completed the garden, is currently supporting a programme to be co-ordinated at the hospital by Trinity College, Dublin.
The philosophy of care of the multidisciplinary team of the haematology/oncology service at Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin (OLCHC) has always been one of family centred care, recognising that each child is an individual with a unique set of needs.
Following cancer diagnosis, shocked parents grapple with a barrage of complex information while also trying to manage their child’s distress and that of their other children.
The hospital, in collaboration with Trinity College Dublin (TCD), has developed a shared vision to conduct a needs analysis to identify parents’ needs over a 12 month period as they progress through their child’s treatment, and the degree to which the identified needs are met by the current service.
It will also take account of the needs of staff as addressing the support needs of parents requires an approach that acknowledges parents’ experiences, staff resilience and the interface between parents and staff. This approach will enable the service to develop so that it can meet parents’ needs more effectively.
A new service framework can then be developed, implemented and reviewed and it is an aspiration that experience from this project will inform other children’s cancer centres internationally where finding ways to support parents is frequently highlighted as an ongoing challenge.
Entries for the duathlon can be made on www.precisiontiming.net