Minister for Health Simon Harris Speaks About Importance of Collaboration at Palliative Care Research Network (PRCN) Symposium

Palliative care will be improved by people bringing together their research knowledge across the island of Ireland, a major conference in Dublin heard today. Minister for Health Simon Harris was welcomed to the annual Palliative Care Research Network Symposium by Dr Regina McQuillan, chair of the All Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care (AIIHPC), who hosted the event.

Mr Harris spoke about the PCRN as an example of how collaborating across the island of Ireland improves the palliative care experience of people with life limiting conditions and their families.

The audience included people with palliative care needs and carers, senior researchers and clinicians from universities, palliative care providers and representatives from the Health Research Board (RoI) and Public Health Agency Research and Development Division (NI).

At the symposium, Karen Charnley, Head of AIIHPC, launched the Palliative Care Research Network Strategy 2017-2022, which sets out the direction for the development of the network over the next five years. The vision is that as the leading Network for palliative care research on the island of Ireland, network members undertake internationally recognised research that enhances palliative care knowledge and expertise and improves the quality of life of people with life limiting conditions.

“We will be supporting a collaborative research community and building leadership and capacity. A very important part of this work will be involving people with life limiting conditions, carers and communities in research. We want to ensure that knowledge from research improves education and practice and changes policy.”

Professor Sonja McIlfatrick, Chair of the Palliative Care Research Network’s Strategic Scientific Committee said;
“The Strategic Plan 2017-2022 sets out the direction for the PCRN as a confident and successful network, building and strengthening our research community. By sharing resources, knowledge, skills and expertise in and across disciplines we are leading the way forward and developing research that is relevant across the island of Ireland and internationally. I look forward to seeing the PCRN build on successes to date and take advantage of future opportunities over the next five years.”

AIIHPC’s Palliative Care Research Network was established in 2012 to address the need for collaborative multidisciplinary palliative care research on the island of Ireland. The network includes senior researchers from universities, hospices and health and social care organisations, people with life limiting conditions and carers and representatives from health agencies from across the island of Ireland.

The Strategic Plan 2017-2022 is available by clicking on the following link; https://aiihpc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Strategic-Plan-Final.pdf

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For further information contact Aileen Gaskin 087 7724 717 aileen@communicationsclinic.ie