Palliative Care Research and Innovation

Pat Coyne, MSN, ACHPN, ACNS-BC, FAAN, FPCN, explains why embracing compassion is essential in palliative care.


Kathleen Lindell 

Kathleen Lindell
Ph.D., RN, ATSF, FAAN
Associate Professor
Mary Swain Endowed Chair in Palliative Care

As the Mary Swain Endowed Chair in Palliative Care Health, Dr. Kathleen Lindell shines a light on the importance of nurses having a seat at the table and engaging directly with the critical work of palliative care. She is intricately involved with palliative care research, education, practice and strategy being done both at MUSC College of Nursing and on a national level. Under her mentorship, both faculty and students are inspired to pursue new avenues of collaboration and research in palliative care.



"The faculty within the College of Nursing are very supportive and really get to know the students that they mentor. It is through these relationships that students are poised for success. The expertise of the PhD faculty allows them to focus not only on the student’s specific area of research but also on building their portfolios. The mentorship I received from MUSC faculty was instrumental in the publication focused on COPD and palliative care."

Jessica Madiraca
Ph.D., RN, CNS, CCRN-K
Alumna


Student Work

Jennifer Huggins, Ph.D. Student, at the 2024 Hospice and Palliative Care Nursing Association (HPNA) Conference.


L-R Drs. Sara Miller, Jessica Madiraca, and Kathleen Lindell at the 2023 American Thoracic Society (ATS) Conference

Palliative Care Research Faculty

Teresa Kelechi 

Teresa Kelechi
Ph.D., RN, FAAN
Associate Dean for Research and Ph.D. Studies

miller headshot
Sarah Miller
Ph.D., RN
Interim Assistant Dean for Ph.D. in Nursing Science Program
Associate Professor

Faculty Highlights


Diana Layne Headshot 

Diana Layne
Ph.D., RN
Assistant Professor


Dr. Diana Layne, PhD, RN, CPHQ, a graduate of MUSC's College of Nursing PhD program and, specializes in caregiving research. Her focus spans professional and family caregivers, initially exploring negative behaviors in healthcare settings and later expanding to faculty and student experiences.

From 2021-2023 she was a SC Clinical and Translational Research Institute (SCTR) KL2 scholar and adapted an existing nurse-led palliative care intervention for use with Alzheimer’s patients and caregivers.


She has participated in numerous dementia clinical trials training programs including the 2021 cohort of the Palliative Care Research Cooperative (PCRC) Clinical Trials Training program as well as the 2022-2023 cohort of Center for Aging and Serious Illness (CASI) Dementia Palliative Care Clinical Trials Training program.