All Ireland Research Priorities 2025-2030

The All Ireland Palliative and End-of-Life Care Research Priorities 2025-2030, launched at the 14th Annual Palliative Care Research Network Symposium in November 2025, were identified in collaboration with people with lived and/or professional experience in palliative care. These priorities will guide researchers to address key research areas for people with life-limiting conditions and their families, carers, and health and social care professionals on the island of Ireland over the next 5 years.

The research priorities will be used to encourage key groups such as research funders, researchers, service providers, and policy makers to focus on research that has been prioritised by people with life-limiting conditions, their families, carers, and health and social care professionals. We will also develop more specific research questions from these research priorities.

Top 10 All Ireland Palliative and End-of-Life Care Research Priorities

What are the best ways to provide personalised palliative and end of life care that meets all the physical, mental, practical, social, and spiritual needs of a person with a serious life-limiting illness?
How can communication and care co-ordination be improved across the teams of health and social care professionals caring for people with any serious life-limiting illness?
What are the best ways to provide emotional and psychological support to people with a serious life-limiting illness, from diagnosis through to end of life?
What kinds of palliative and end-of-life care and support need to be in place to enable people to die well at home? What skills do staff need? What helps or hinders the delivery of care at home?
How can it be ensured that everyone has access to the palliative and end-of-life care they want or need?
What are the best ways to provide support to children (e.g. psychological and social support) when someone important to them is dying, or has died?
What are the best ways to train and support staff who provide care at the end of life – either at home, in care homes or nursing homes?
How can palliative and end of life care better meet the needs of people with illnesses other than cancer e.g. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pulmonary fibrosis, organ failure, motor neuron disease (MND)?
How can the quality of palliative and end-of-life care in hospital be improved? What helps or hinders improvement?
What skills, training and information do carers, friends and family members need to be able to care for someone who is dying at home (e.g. giving medicines safely by injection, managing incontinence, moving people)? What is the impact (pros and cons) of upskilling the people giving care?

AIIHPC will through its ECRF Bursary, ECRF North/South Fellowship and PCRN International Fellowship Awards, fund researchers who are working in areas that address the All Ireland Palliative and End-of-Life Care Research Priorities.

The awards are in line with AIIHPC Palliative Care Research Network (PCRN) Strategic Plan 2023 – 2027 which provides a framework to support early career researchers and those leading and shaping international projects.

AIIHPC would like to acknowledge the support of the James Lind Alliance and Marie Curie UK and our funders the Health Research Board and Health and Social Care R&D, Public Health Agency who supported the development of the priorities.

Note: The first Palliative and End-of-Life Care Priorities for the Island of Ireland were developed in 2015 see Palliative and End of Life Research Priority Setting Project for Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland 2015.