PURPOSE
One of the major challenges of palliative care research is not only conceptualizing and posing important research questions, but also in designing the studies, developing the instruments, and employing analytic techniques that will accurately answer the questions being posed. Many institutions conducting research in palliative care lack faculty and colleagues with the expertise in these key areas of research infrastructure.

Rigorous palliative care research may require sophisticated methodologies that are beyond the experience of most investigators, such as alternatives to the randomized controlled trial. As is true in the clinical practice of palliative care, there are challenges specific to palliative care research (such as variable and short periods of survival; the burden of surveys and investigations among seriously ill patients, and their families; missing data due to an inability of seriously ill patients to complete study instruments; multiple illnesses and comorbidities) that will require the active and ongoing collaboration of clinician scientists, health services researchers, and statisticians, each of whom brings specific and targeted expertise to the complex and multifaceted problems faced by our patients and their families. These challenges are also present in other areas of research but typically are overcome by having investigators conducting related research within the same division or department sharing the support of the needed consultant (e.g., biostatistician).

Given the relative isolation of palliative care researchers, it is only the largest programs that can adequately support the interdisciplinary faculty necessary to conduct high quality palliative care research.  In recognition of this fact, the NPCRC provides funding to investigators to employ as consultants experts in instrument design, research design, and analytic techniques specific to palliative care. Awarded applicants have the option to employ consultants who are at their own designated institution or they can utilize the services of consultants associated with the NPCRC who are available to, and shared by, Center investigators across the country.

HOW TO APPLY
Further details on the Research Design/Statistical Support Grant will be released in 2009/2010.