Iracema Leroi, MD, FRCPC, MRCPsych
Site Director, Trinity College Dublin
We need to investigate trans-disciplinary and trans-national approaches to improve the lives of people living with dementia.
Current Work
Iracema is Professor of Geriatric Psychiatry and Site Director of GBHI at Trinity. She specializes in pragmatic interventions for cognitive and neuropsychiatric issues in neurodegenerative disorders, particularly Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. Iracema leads the HRB-CTN Dementia Trials Ireland and was Chief Investigator for the EU-funded SENSE-Cog programme, exploring the links between hearing, vision, and cognition in older adults. She now heads the HRB-funded EMERALD Lewy research program, focused on advancing the diagnosis and care of Lewy body disease in Ireland. At St James's Hospital, she established the 'Mind and Memory' clinic, supporting individuals with cognitive and behavioral issues related to Parkinson’s and Lewy body dementia.
Personal Hero
Lady Florence Baker and Sir Seretse Goitsebeng Maphiri Khama
Words of Strength
Sharing leadership, empowering growth, and serving with purpose.
Vision
It is only through meaningful interdisciplinarity and the seamless entanglement of disciplines, approaches, and ideas that we can achieve transformative advancements in global brain health capital—essential for the well-being of every individual worldwide.
Strategy
As a global citizen, Iracema's strategy to lead GBHI Trinity is rooted in values-based, horizontal, and servant leadership. She is dedicated to empowering every member of the GBHI community, recognizing their vital and unique role in our shared mission. Together, we are building a global network of brain health leaders who support and learn from one another, leveraging shared challenges across diverse contexts.
Motivation
By uniting diverse disciplines, ideas, and approaches, we are fostering a dynamic learning ecosystem of interdisciplinarity to address global threats to brain health. Central to our work are the voices and lived experiences of those directly impacted, ensuring their insights guide our efforts.
Education & Experience
Iracema received her medical school training from the University of British Columbia, Canada. She trained in psychiatry at the University of Ottawa and Dalhousie University in Canada. She then completed a fellowship in the neuropsychiatry of neurodegenerative disorders and joined the faculty at Johns Hopkins University before moving to the United Kingdom, where she was became Professor of Psychiatry in Aging and Dementia at the University of Manchester. Iracema joined Trinity College Dublin in 2019. She led one of the largest RCTs of a non-pharmacological intervention for cognitive impairment related to Parkinson's disease (the INVEST study). She also has close collaborations for applied dementia research in Bangladesh, Pakistan and India.
Awards & Honors
Podcasts
Talkin’ About Neurodegeneration: Iracema Leroi, JP Connolly, David Loughrey and Ronald Cartin
Sensory Cognitive Health (Visual & Hearing Impairment)
Talkin’ About Neurodegeneration: Iracema Leroi, Christine Maddocks, Peter Owens, Jacqui Cannon
Lewy Body Disease
Featured Publications
News
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