Pauline's research focuses on ageing, cancer survivorship and living with chronic illness, and draws on her methodological expertise in qualitative evidence synthesis, trial methodology and Delphi consensus methods. She led the Cochrane priority review on recruitment to vaccine trials during pandemics. She was also senior author on the first Cochrane rapid qualitative evidence synthesis, which addressed World Health Organization priorities during COVID-19. She is Co-Lead of the Qualitative Evidence Synthesis stream of Evidence Synthesis Ireland and a founding member of the Ageing Research Centre at UL.

Pauline teaches across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. She is currently the Course Director for the Professional Doctorate in Healthcare Practice.  Her teaching interests are in all aspects of nursing, particularly acute and chronic care, advanced physical assessment and research. Pauline has extensive experience in programme management and curriculum development at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. She has led major curriculum developments, including the redesign of the BSc Nursing programme at NUI Galway and interprofessional simulation developments in the School of Nursing & Midwifery in UL. .

Pauline Meskell is an NMBI registered nurse and Professor of Research in the School of Nursing and; Midwifery, EHS Faculty at the University of Limerick. She completed her PhD at NUI Galway. From 2021 to 2026 she was Head of School, and in that time she led its growth and its change of designation from Department to School. She also chaired the Irish Universities Association Heads of Nursing & Midwifery for two terms. She has secured over €10 million in competitive research funding as Principle Investigator and co-applicant, including the Health Research Board €5.3 million investment in Evidence Synthesis Ireland (ESI). In 2024 she received an evidence Synthesis Ireland/Cochrane Ireland Trainer Award.