Welcome to the website of the Irish Association of Respiratory Scientists (IARS)
The IARS is the professional body representing respiratory physiologists in Ireland. Members are employed throughout Ireland in both the public and private health care sectors and are listed under allied healthcare professionals.
Respiratory physiologists perform lung function tests on patients using a variety of skills, techniques and equipment, whilst they are at rest or during exercise. Such tests are performed in order to aid diagnosis and monitor respiratory disorders such as Asthma or COPD.
Respiratory physiologists also perform overnight sleep studies of patients who have suspected respiratory sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnoea.
The aims of the I.A.R.S. are:
- Advance the practice and delivery of respiratory measurement services in Ireland.
- Provide information on the diagnosis of respiratory disease to patients.
- Promote the highest standards of practice, education, and training within the profession.
- Facilitate dialogue and discussion with other professional associations and societies.
This website is available to members of the public to provide further basic information about respiratory disease and the tests used to investigate them. This website is also available to Health Care Professionals who wish to complete training in spirometry testing. Full details of this course can be found in the section Spirometry Courses.
About Us
Members of The Irish Association of Respiratory Scientists are employed in most acute general hospitals and many of the private hospitals in Ireland. We are responsible for delivering the highest standards in physiological measurements to our patients in both respiratory and sleep medicine.
What we do:
Many different patients are sent for lung function tests. Most of our patients are undergoing investigations for respiratory or sleep disorders, such as asthma or obstructive sleep apnoea, but many patients are referred for different reasons. Specialists in cardiology, oncology, rheumatology, neurology, dermatology, endocrinology, hematology, and infectious disease often request lung function tests. In addition to these specialist medical referrals, we provide services to surgical specialties including cardiothoracic surgery and heart transplantation, preoperative assessments, and general practitioner referrals.
It is the responsibility of the IARS to ensure our members are properly equipped to deliver accurate, efficient and patient friendly services to all of our patients. To this end, the IARS offers opportunities for continuing professional development to our members by delivering educational meetings and special advanced courses on a range of topics in lung function and sleep medicine. Many of our members are also affiliated with other professional bodies such as the European Respiratory Society and the Association for Respiratory Technology and Physiology in the UK. Members are encouraged to undertake further studies and to achieve advanced qualifications.
The IARS works to deliver internationally accepted standards – such as those from the American Thoracic Society and the European Respiratory Society. The BSc (Hons) in Clinical Measurement Science, at TU Dublin, is the only degree course in the south of Ireland qualifying respiratory physiologists. The course is constantly updated to reflect evolving and improving standards. The IARS is also affiliated to the Irish Thoracic Society, which represents respiratory health care professionals in Ireland and we work together to ensure all standards are consistently monitored and delivered.
The IARS is affiliated to the Irish Institute of Clinical Measurement Science which is the professional body representing clinical measurement graduates in Ireland including respiratory physiology.
The IICMS belongs to the Health Social Care Professional body which embraces twenty six disciplines in the health service.
The IARS is education partners with both Technological University Dublin and the European Respiratory Society in the delivery of the accredited spirometry training programme for health care professionals in Ireland.
As in other medical specialties, research is an important part of respiratory medicine in Ireland. Members are involved in both in-house and international research studies in areas that will have long-term benefits to many patients, and we will continue to provide the necessary educational resources to our members to allow full participation in this important area.
As qualified respiratory physiologists, we provide a patient centered diagnostic and therapeutic service to our patients, in a caring and considerate environment. We constantly strive for excellence in our professional roles, and as the educators of our students and other Health Care Professionals.
Patient Information
Click the boxes below for more information
Pulmonary Function Tests
Many people are referred by their GP or hospital consultant for lung ...
Transfer Factor/Diffusion Capacity (DLCO)
The DLCO measures how effectively oxygen crosses from the lung to the...
Provocation Tests
Exercise Provocation TestExercise Provocation test is used in the dia...
Exercise Testing
Cardiopulmonary Exercise Test (CPET)Patients experiencing unexplained...
Allergy Testing
Skin Allergy TestingA skin allergy test tests the sensitivity of a pa...
Lung Diseases
Lung diseases can affect the airways, alveoli (air sacs), the lung lining (interstitium) or a combination of these. Lung diseases may be classified as obstructive lung disease, characterised by airway obstruction, and restrictive lung diseases, characterised by reduced lung expansion and a decreased lung volume. In this section, we look at the most common lung diseases where patients require regular pulmonary function testing.
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Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a term used to includ...
Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF)
Pulmonary Fibrosis is a disease that affects the areas of the lungs i...
Pulmonary Hypertension
Pulmonary Hypertension is high blood pressure in the pulmonary artery...
Sleep Disorders
The most common sleep disorder is Obstructive Sleep Apnoea syndrome (...
Spirometry Courses
View our available courses below
TUDublin, the education partners with IARS, recommend that the CPD Certificate in Spirometry for Health Care Professionals programme remains closed due to the high risk associated with spirometry testing and the potential adverse exposure to students involved in the course.
This decision affects all three modules of the programme: Spirometry Training day, Certificate module, as well as the Recertification module.
We will continue to monitor the situation and once it is considered safe to resume this training programme we will do so.
IARS Spirometry Programme Committee
IARS News
COVID-19 Information
These documents and links are living documents and may be changed / updated as new COVID-19 information becomes available.
Guidance on Lung Function Testing: SARS COVID-19
Guidance on Perioperative Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Interesting Research
Dates for 2020
- ARTP Meeting Bermingham 16-18 Jan
- Irish Sleep Society Meeting 25 Jan
- HSCP National Day 4 Mar
- IICMS meeting (Athlone) 27 Mar (Cancelled)
- ERS Congress (Vienna) 5-9 Sept
- Sleep & Breathing (Basel) 24 -28 Sept
- ITS Meeting (Cork) 27-28 Nov
Our Team
Please see our team below.

Ms Geraldine Nolan
Coordinator
IARS

Mr Niall Smith
Chairperson
IARS

Ms Michelle Balicaco
IARS Webmaster
IARS

Mr Mark Traynor
Treasurer
IARS
Contact Us
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