News

ICEOL Hosts Research Symposium

The Duke Institute on Care at the End of Life hosted a researchers' symposium Sept. 13 for a dozen local researchers from Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill whose work has been partially supported by the Institute's grant programs. Since 2001, ICEOL has awarded 12 research grants totaling almost $220,000 to these investigators. Their work expands the knowledge of how patients and families are best cared for during a terminal illness. During the symposium, the researchers were grouped into five different areas in end of life care: spirituality, health services research, care giving, nursing homes, and clinical care issues.

Senior faculty at Duke University and visiting members of the Institute's Advisory Board led panel discussions after the presentations of each group of researchers.

"This was an exciting and intellectually stimulating day with powerful debate of critical topics in end of life care," said Richard Payne, director of the Institute. "The Institute has done a very good job of supporting interdisciplinary research that is important for this field. I hope our efforts will serve as a model for future research so that a wide-range of professions can work together effectively to improve care for patients and families."

Abstracts of the presentations and brief biographies of each researcher and discussant are available below.

PANELS

Spirituality: Discussant: Allen Verhey, Ph.D.

"Defending God: Biblical Responses to the Problem of Evil"
James Crenshaw, Ph.D.

"The Influence of Spirituality on Decision-Making in Patients with Advanced Cancer: A Study of Cultural Differences"
Kimberly Johnson, M.D.

Health Services Research: Discussant: Keith Meador, M.D., Th.M., M.P.H .
"Development and Validation of the Parent Experience of Child Illness (PECI)"
Melanie Bonner, Ph.D.

"Measuring Quality of Life at the End of Life: Validation of the QUAL-E"
Karen Steinhauser, Ph.D.

Caregiving : Discussant: James Tulsky, M.D.

"Til Death Do Us Part: Informal Dementia Caregiving in the Last Three Months of Life"
Elizabeth Clipp, R.N, Ph.D.

"The Experience of Volunteers Providing Caregiving Support"
Marilyn Hartman, Ph.D.

"The Dying Caregiver Project"
Judith Hays, R.N., Ph.D.

Nursing Homes and End of Life: Discussant: Harvey Cohen, M.D.

"Access to nursing Home Hospice: Perspectives of Nursing Home and Hospice Administrators"
Laura Hanson, M.D., M.P.H.

"Defining A Good Death for Resident in Long-Term Care"
Jean Munn, M.S.W. (for Sheryl Zimmerman, Ph.D. )

"When a Caregiver Can No Longer Provide Care: The Experience of Transferring a Terminally Ill Spouse to a Nursing Home"
Laura Porter, Ph.D.

Clinical Panel: Discussant: Kathleen Foley, M.D.

"The O 2 Breathe Study: An International Multi-Site Randomized Controlled Tiral of Oxygen vs Medical Air for the Palliative Management of Refractory Dyspnea in Patients with PaO 2 >55"
Amy Abernethy, M.D.

"Improving the Care of Dying Patients at an Academic Medical Center via Provider and Family Feedback"
James Tulsky, M.D. (for Anthony Galanos, M.A., M.D. )

General Discussion : Discussant: Richard Payne , M.D.