Project Summary
This project focuses on implementing successful, innovative strategies to develop statewide community partnerships and engagement to address a critical need for palliative care services in Nevada. Despite the positive benefits of palliative care, the existence of these services in Nevada continues to be lower than in other states. Aims of this project are to strengthen a patient-centered palliative care research network and develop a patient-centered palliative care community. We work with our stakeholders focusing on improvement of access to palliative care and identification of effective care intervention and delivery models for patients in our community. The stakeholders who play a critical role in providing care, advocacy, and education for those providing and receiving palliative care include patients, caregivers, providers of palliative care, policy makers, local and national palliative and hospice care organizations, and academic researchers. To finalize the comparative effectiveness research (CER) questions being developed during the Tier II period and prepare a proposal to implement interventions to test our CER questions on improving palliative care in Nevada, we will incorporate the perspectives, experiences, and efforts of patients, providers, and caregivers gained throughout the process of this project. We will work with our partners to propose a comparative effectiveness research intervention for the ultimate, overarching goal of enhancing the access to and reimbursement for health insurance coverage, and outcomes and satisfaction of patients who need palliative care services in our community.