PIER Project call for swimmers and surfers to take part in project

A team of researchers at the Antimicrobial Resistance and Microbial Ecology Research Group is calling on swimmers and surfers to take part in a project to find out if recreational water users are more at risk of picking up superbugs. The PIER (Public Health Impact of Exposure to antibiotic Resistance in recreational waters) study is being led by Professor Dearbháile Morris and Dr Liam Burke, with a work package from Whitaker Institute members Dr Christine Domegan, Dr Sinead Duane and Dr Easkey Britton, of the Applied Systems Thinking Cluster. The research team hope to recruit 300 people to take part – one group of 150 sea swimmers, surfers and people who regularly use the sea, lakes or rivers for recreation, along with a second group of 150 people who rarely take to the water.  Anyone aged 18 or over who lives on the island of Ireland can take part and those interested in supporting the research can find out more and sign up at the PIER website.

Read more from thejournal.ie here and here, The Irish Times, Irish Mirror, breakingnews.ie, herald.ie, Independent.ie here and here, Irish Examiner here and here, afloat.ie, and evoke.ie.

Read more about the PIER project here.