In this episode it is my pleasure to talk with Professor Katherine Sleeman about the new Impact Centre for Palliative and End of Life Care. Listen in to  learn about the centre’s aims and hear how you can be involved.

Key messages

• Professor Sleeman explains her dual role as an academic and clinician in palliative care at King’s College London.

• We discuss the Optimal Care Study, a large, multi-year research project on digital Advance Care Planning. 

• Key findings of the Optimal Care Study: digital Advance Care plans are underused, often not commissioned and implemented too late. Interconnectivity and embedding into routine practice are major challenges.

• The study also  produced 20 practical recommendations for improving digital Advance Care Planning, focusing on technology, organisational change, and empowering patients and families.

• We discuss the new Impact Centre for Palliative and End of Life Care at King’s, its mission is to bridge the gap between research evidence and clinical practice.

• The Impact Centre aims to make research accessible and usable for all practitioners across all care settings.

• The Centre is currently gathering input via a survey to identify sector priorities and preferred ways to receive information.

• Emphasis is  on the importance of public involvement and feedback to shape the Centre’s work.

• Personal reflection from Professor Sleeman on her own Advance Care Planning and the importance of taking practical steps.

• We close with a call to action for listeners to participate in the survey to contribute to the work of the Impact Centre.

Resource

• The Impact Centre for Palliative and End-of-Life Care 

• Improving End-of-Life Care: Insights from NACEL 

• Optimising digital advance care planning implementation in palliative and end-of-life care: a multi-phase mixed-methods national research programme and recommendations 

• Clair Fisher legacy work

  
  

Bio

Katherine Sleeman is professor of palliative care at King’s College London. She leads research focused on the intersection between palliative care, policy and practice. She practices clinically as a consultant in palliative medicine at King’s College Hospital.