Primary Care Update: July 2008
We continue to seek to develop studies in SUPAC which have a primary care focus, and a number of proposals are emerging. Much primary palliative care expertise resides in COMPASS, and primary care issues are increasingly mentioned in COMPASS meetings. There have also been a number of important events contributing to this effort:
- Seeking to stimulate further research, COMPASS researchers in liaison with CECo and the Palliative Care Research Society convened a conference in Edinburgh on 6th March 2008 entitled "Palliative Care Research in the Community: Taking Stock". Around eighty delegates attended to hear a range of expert speakers discussing topics such as the importance of research in this area, issues surrounding recruitment and retention, and the role of primary care research networks. Examples of important new research projects in primary care were presented on non-cancer palliative care, the needs of older people dying in nursing homes, and the role of service users (presented by Marilyn Kendall and Carolyn Morris). Three presentations of recent PhDs confirmed the emergence of competent new researchers in primary palliative care, and delegates left enthused and encouraged to collaborate and meet again next year, possibly in Liverpool.
- The international primary palliative care group, convened by Scott Murray and Geoff Mitchell in Brisbane, Australia, continues to function to bring primary care researchers from USA, Canada, Australia, Africa and UK together to consider an internationally relevant research agenda.
- The annual conference in June 2008 had a strong primary care theme, with a dedicated workshop on methodological issues in primary palliative care research.
- The NCRI Primary Care Clinical Studies Development Group hosted an international conference in Edinburgh in April, attended by over 60 people from North America, Europe and Australia. The purpose of the meeting was to develop international collaborative proposals in primary care and cancer.
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