A NEW Calvary Centre for Palliative Care research has opened.

The research centre, a partnership between Little Company of Mary Health Care and Australian Catholic University, will use collaborative programs of interdisciplinary, nursing-led research to further palliative and end-of-life care for those who need it.

Little Company of Mary Health Care chief executive officer Mark Doran said all the available data in health trends and population projections indicate a growing demand in this area.

“We already work very closely with outstanding mutual and community benefit, but the research centre will raise our combined capacity to further palliative and end-of-life care for people who need these services,” he said.

Australian Catholic University vice-chancellor Professor Greg Craven, said innovative research is critical to the training and development of nurses who play a significant role in palliative and end-of-life care at both Clare Holland House and across Australia.

“Nurses are vital across the entire health spectrum, but they play an even more significant role in palliative and end-of-life care,” he said.

“Most palliative and end-of-life patients are not optimally treated with high-end and invasive surgery or other procedures, in most cases the care program involves the management of one or more medical issues so that people are without pain and able to enjoy as normal a life as possible.”