Cystic Fibrosis Service

Cystic Fibrosis is a genetically inherited disease that affects many organs in the body but mainly the lungs, digestive system, reproductive system, pancreas and liver. Symptoms and severity of illness differ from person to person. Age of diagnosis is usually at birth but some receive a late diagnosis from age 11 – 50 years.

With new treatments and research, people with cystic fibrosis are living longer healthier lives but face greater challenges as a result, e.g. lung transplantation or liver transplantation. Greater challenges bring greater psychological stressors and an increased need for psychological intervention and support.

Here in St Vincent’s cystic fibrosis service, psychological support is on-going as there is a constant need for adjustment due to illness and the disruption it brings to daily life and living.

The Cystic Fibrosis Psychology service provides:

• Psychological review as part of the annual review.
• Psychological support and interventions/ therapies in accordance with the needs of the patient.
• Outpatient and day care reviews – which affords contact with patients who attend from all areas Ireland. These help to identify patients who are struggling with psychological stressors.
• Monitoring progress
• Adherence to treatment
• Assessment for Lung Transplantation

Psychological support is provided on the following basis:

• Self-referral
• Inpatient
• Outpatient
• Day care service

How to access the service:

• Patients can phone directly on: 01 2214670
• By asking any member of the cystic fibrosis team including clinical nurse specialists
• All Staff on St Christopher’s inpatient ward can request on appointment on behalf of a patient

Meet our CF Psychologists

Dr Daniel Goldstone, Senior Clinical Psychologist in Cystic Fibrosis 

Daniel is a Senior Clinical Psychologist who works as part of the multidisciplinary team in the National Centre for Adult Cystic Fibrosis at SVUH. Daniel focuses on providing evidence-based psychological services in an empathic, person-centred way, working with patients to help them live more fulfilling, purposeful, values-driven lives. As part of the CF team, Daniel helps patients work through issues they may experience with: transition to adult services, identity, wellness, mood, anxiety, fears, grief, trauma, and relationship distress, amongst other things. He has extensive experience working with complex medical and psychological issues in both the public and private sectors.

Daniel is also a member of the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI) and the Division of Clinical Psychology of the PSI, is an advanced Brain Working Recursive Therapy Practitioner, and has a keen interest in contributing to research in his field.

Dr Dermot McMahon, Senior Clinical Psychologist in Cystic Fibrosis 

Dermot is a Senior Clinical Psychologist at the National Referral Centre for Cystic Fibrosis, St. Vincent’s University Hospital. He has extensive experience providing psychological assessment and therapeutic support for individuals with complex physical and mental health needs across all age groups. Dermot has particular expertise in engaging harder-to-reach patient populations, including those affected by trauma, including medical trauma. He is passionate about understanding each person’s story and sees therapy as a space to explore what matters most to them in the context of their life, relationships, and health.

Dermot’s approach to therapy is flexible and collaborative. He draws on a range of evidence-based models, including Mentalisation-Based Therapy (MBT), Attachment-Based Family Therapy (ABFT), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). His work is most often grounded in relational, compassion-focused, and psychodynamic principles, with a particular interest in transpersonal and Internal Family Systems (IFS) models of therapy. Dermot also holds strong skills in clinical supervision, teaching, and multidisciplinary and multi-agency collaboration, and encourages a systemic perspective when approaching complexity.

Dermot enjoys teaching and supporting the next generation of psychologists and health professionals. He has taught clinical psychology doctoral trainees, master’s psychology students, nurses, and early-career psychologists. Areas of specialism include; psychosis and trauma, crisis resolution, psychodynamic practice, complex formulation, and the integration of therapeutic models. He is also a member of the editorial board for the Irish journal publication Clinical Psychology Today.