UCLan is collaborating with a group of North West universities and hospital trusts
A new partnership involving the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) has been launched to support and encourage palliative care research in the North West.
The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has funded a research and clinical partnership in palliative care, recognising this is an area of high clinical need where more research is required.
The Palliative Care Research Partnership North West Coast (PalCaRe NWC) is led by Lancaster University and in addition to UCLan, it includes The University of Liverpool, University of Chester, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust and the Clinical Research Network North West Coast.
Vanessa Taylor, Professor of Learning, Teaching & Professional Practice (Cancer and Palliative Care) and Deputy Head of UCLan’s School of Nursing, said: “I welcome this partnership. I am excited by the opportunities it offers to collaborate - developing and improving palliative and end of life care research to benefit patients and their families and to shape the future of palliative care across the North West region.”
"I am excited by the opportunities it offers to collaborate - developing and improving palliative and end of life care research to benefit patients and their families"
— Vanessa Taylor, Professor of Learning, Teaching & Professional Practice (Cancer and Palliative Care) and Deputy Head of UCLan’s School of Nursing
Catherine Walshe, Professor of Palliative Care at Lancaster’s International Observatory on End of Life Care, commented: “We know how important palliative care is, and that research is vital to help us to provide the best possible care. I hope this partnership will help boost research so that local people have the opportunity to take part in research that takes account of our local needs here in the North West.”
The PalCaRe NWC has three aims:
- to work with people providing all types of palliative care in this area to understand more about what helps and hinders research locally and to address any of these barriers
- to help develop research capacity and expertise across the local area
- to support people applying for large-scale NIHR grants
The partnership has already launched a survey to understand more about local barriers. The survey is aimed at anyone working in palliative care across the North West Coast including people in hospitals, community settings, nursing homes, hospices etc. as well as those involved in palliative care research.
You can find out more about the survey online and a website is being developed, where more information will be added as the project progresses.