Palliative Care Research Network Symposia
The Annual Palliative Care Research Network Symposium offers researchers opportunities to learn from global experts, share and exchange knowledge and network with peers. Information about the 2023 Symposium can be found below, programmes for past events can be found at the bottom of the page.
Introduction
The All Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care (AIIHPC) 12th Annual Palliative Care Research Network Symposium was held in the Ashling Hotel on 7 December 2023. The theme of the symposium was to examine how research should be implemented to ensure palliative care practice is evidence based. It was an all day, in person event that comprised of speakers, panel sessions and poster presentations. The event was supported by the Health Research Board, Health and Social Care R&D Division, Public Health Agency and Health Service Executive (HSE) and was approved for CPD by Royal College of Physicians Ireland.
Audience
There were 65 participants from the island of Ireland and internationally including members of the Palliative Care Research Network (PCRN) and Early Career Researcher Forum (ECRF), health and social care professionals, service providers, policymakers, charity representatives, and Voices4Care members.
Programme
The programme for the 12th Annual Palliative Care Research Network Symposium is available here, and you can find biographies for all our contributors here.
Slides and Videos
Opening
Dr Feargal Twomey, Clinical Lead, National Clinical Programme for Palliative Care, HSE/Royal College of Physicians Ireland, opened the event and provided an update on key priorities for palliative care in Ireland. View Feargal’s presentation here.
End of life research - more than feasible
Invited Speaker Prof Andrew Davies, Professor in Palliative Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin and Our Lady’s Hospice and Care Services spoke about the importance of research to inform practice and used his current research on clinically assisted hydration at end-of-life (CHELsea II trial) to highlight the point. View Andrew’s slides here and video here.
Developing an inclusive approach to doing research that makes a difference
Invited Speaker Dr Mark Pearson, Reader in Implementation Science, Wolfson Palliative Care Research Centre, Hull York Medical School spoke about what is meant by implementation science and used research on delirium prevention and management in palliative care as a case study in effective implementation. View Mark’s slides here and video here.
Launch of Research Special Interest Group Pilots
Dr Mary Rabbitte, AIIHPC Research Programme Manager provided an update on the PCRN and Early Career Researcher Forum (ECRF) that included the launch of the research special interest groups pilots. View slides here and video here.
Panel Discussions
Voices4Care members John Joyce, Fiona Somers, and William Higgins were involved in a panel discussion that explored patient and public perspectives of implementation of research for evidence-based practice that was chaired by Jane Clare, AIIHPC PCRN Project Manager.
Dr Barry Quinn, Queen’s University Belfast, PCRN member, Dr Mark Pearson, Invited Speaker, Marian O’Mahony, Voices4Care member and Dr Emer Brangan, AIIHPC Research Impact Project Manager discussed the steps needed to ensure effective implementation of research in a panel discussion that was chaired by Prof Suzanne Guerin, University College Dublin, PCRN member.
Presentations on the theme by ECRF and PCRN members
Chaired by Dr Yvonne Muldowney ECRF Committee and Dr Geraldine Foley PCRN Strategic Scientific Committee Vice Chair that included:
- Dr Suzanne Denieffe and Dr Margaret Denny on energy hardship. View slides here and video here.
- Dr David Byrne on chronic heart failure. View video here.
- Dr Ashleen Crowe and Rachel McCauley on end-of-life decision making. View slides here and video here.
- Amitha Vasu on developing critical thinking skills. View slides here and video here.
- Dr Natasha Bradley on palliative care and oncology. View slides here and video here.
- Dr Siobhán Fox on dementia palliative care services. View slides here and video here.
- Prof Cherith Semple on family centred care. View slides here and video here.
Poster presentations
You can find a selection of the posters presented on the day below:
- The impact of pain management education on palliative care nurses: A systematic review. Presented by Mrs Shelbi Baby.
- Investigating the Appropriateness of the Death Literacy Index (DLI) to the Population of Ireland. Presented by Stephanie Crawford.
- What are the views of people with dementia and family carers on an Irish model for dementia palliative care? Presented by Dr Siobhán Fox.
- Family Caregivers’ Lived Experiences of Transitioning during End-of-Life-Care. Presented by Ms Bríd McCarthy.
- A National Study in Ireland to Measure Undergraduate Nursing Students’ Knowledge of Death Rituals Practised by Three World Religions (Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism). Presented by Dr Nipuna Thamanam.
Congratulations to Mrs Shelbi Baby, who the organising committee awarded the ‘best poster’ prize to.
Closing Comments
Dr Regina McQuillan, Palliative Care Consultant, St Francis Hospice and Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, PCRN member provided an update on the day’s proceedings and key learnings. View video here.
Videos of recorded sessions are available here.
Acknowledgements
We would like to acknowledge the support of the PCRN Symposium Organising Committee, Dr Barry Quinn, Dr Geraldine Foley, Dr Yvonne Muldowney and Prof Suzanne Guerin (Chair). We would also like to thank all our speakers on the day and those that took part in the panel discussions and poster presentations.
If you have any queries or comments about the Symposium please contact Jane Clare, PCRN Project Manager AIIHPC at jclare@aiihpc.org