Hospice research: The importance of program participation

Abstract

Hospice research is needed in order to understand the complex phenomena of holistic carefor terminally ill persons and their families. Hospice program participation is key to future hospice research efforts. The purpose of this article is to encourage hospice programs to participate in hospice research. The discussion includes why research is done, who undertakes a research project, the role of institutional review boards in assuring rights of human subjects and potential strategies for recruitment of research subjects. The authors use their experiences with conducting hospice research to illustrate potential recruitment strategies.