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Wolfson Palliative Care Research Centre

We conduct world-leading research to enhance the quality of life for individuals facing advanced illnesses, particularly those with life-limiting conditions, and their families. We actively work to reduce inequalities in palliative care.

Why we are addressing palliative care research

Over 600,000 people die each year across the UK.

Without research, we cannot know how to deliver the best care for these people and their families.

In the UK, less than 0.5% of cancer research funding is allocated to palliative and end-of-life care research.

Despite the need for appropriate care, there is a lack of research and understanding to inform this care.

We work to remedy these challenges and deliver high-quality research that improves care for adults, young people and children living with advanced illnesses.

Annual reports: 2022 | 2023

Annual report 2024

Latest news

WPCRC researchers present in Australia

06.02.25

This week, Dr Sophie Pask and Dr Helene Elliott-Button presented at the University of Technology Sydney.

Jonathan Koffman at the Maruzza International Congress on Paediatric Palliative Care

30.10.24

Jonathan Koffman gave a keynote lecture at the 6th Maruzza International Congress on Paediatric Palliative Care, Barcelona in October 2024.

Costs of Informal Care – a Wake-up Call

20.08.24

We recently completed a survey on the costs of families providing care for those nearing the end of life. We estimate that for each person who died, it would cost £41,000 to replace the care their families provide over the last year of life.

Wolfson Team Graduates

19.08.24

We were delighted for four of our team to be awarded their PhDs (Mike Patterson, Gochi Nwulu, Alex Wray, and Sophie Pask), and one of our team to be awarded her MSc (Steph Meddick-Dyson) at the University of Hull graduation ceremony in July.

The Dyspnea Society international meeting in Montreal

04.07.24

Helen Elliott-Button, one of our early career researchers, received the inaugural Booth Breathlessness Memorial Award for her PhD work on older adults with frailty and breathlessness.

Wolfson part of £5m project to research health inequalities across North Yorkshire

15.12.23

Researchers from Wolfson Palliative Care Research Centre at Hull York Medical School, the University of Hull and the University of York are part of a major collaboration looking to identify the causes of health inequalities across North Yorkshire and help improve the lives of the most vulnerable residents.

New online course: Managing Chronic Breathlessness

15.11.23

A new free online course, called Managing Chronic Breathlessness, is now available on the NHS Learning Hub. The course aims to help health professionals understand how chronic breathlessness can still be improved even when the underlying condition cannot.

Professor Koffman awarded Helen H Lawson Award at BMA research event

03.11.23

Congratulations to Professor Jonathan Koffman, together with colleague Dr Matthew Allsop (Associate Professor of Palliative Care at University of Leeds), who were awarded the Helen H Lawson Award to assist research into end-of-life care decision-making at the BMA Foundation for Medical Research event on 1 November. This award will enable them to further explore the role of shared records in supporting decision making in advanced illness.

Our work

We are a collaborative force, uniting world-leading researchers, healthcare professionals, policy makers, patients, families, and the public.

As a recognised NIHR Policy Research Unit in Palliative and End of Life Care in collaboration with King’s College London, we provide policy-related evidence to shape local and national decision-making and raise the standards of care for individuals dealing with advanced illnesses and their families. We welcome enquiries from policy makers for guidance or research.

We are part of a major collaboration looking to identify the causes of health inequalities across North Yorkshire and help improve the lives of the most vulnerable residents. This is the NIHR-funded Health Determinants Research Collaboration North Yorkshire, a five-year programme of work in partnership with North Yorkshire Council, which will help inform and shape how North Yorkshire Council delivers its services.

Our research is a key component of the University of Hull’s Institute of Clinical and Applied Health Research, ensuring that it directly addresses real needs and concerns.

Our strategic objectives

To study under-researched symptoms and problems of those with advanced illness and their families
To reduce inequalities in palliative care outcomes, through research on improving access to and optimising delivery of palliative care services, both in the UK and globally
To research health and social care systems to inform and improve palliative care services and outcomes in low- and middle-income countries
To develop, research and report measurement of individual-level palliative care outcomes and implementation of these measures into practice to improve care
To research the social and psychological aspects of palliative care
To develop better methods and test novel approaches for palliative care research
To advance education and research on the implementation of palliative care evidence into policy and practice

Our commitment extends to building research capacity in the palliative care community. We welcome research collaborations, visits, and provide research opportunities for Medicine students, as well as postgraduate taught and research study opportunities. We also provide tailored resources for healthcare and social care professionals, equipping them to deliver best-practice palliative care services to those in their care.

Our research projects