Background Hospice care should be grounded in four key components: expert pain and symptom control, compassion, teaching and research (Saunders. Nurs Times. 1965;61(48):1615–17). Research in particular is deemed essential for the delivery of up-to-date evidence-based interventions and quality improvement to ensure outstanding care delivery (Calanzani, Higginson, Gomes. Current and future needs for hospice care: an evidence-based report. Help the Hospices; 2013; Hospice UK. What is hospice care? [internet] 2024).

Aim In 2023, Lindsey Lodge revised their strategic vision and it was evident how research practice could support key aspects of this. However, understanding from the executive team and clinical staff on research value was limited which negatively impacted the allocation of staff capacity and resources to undertake research activity within everyday practice.

Method It was through one of the Advanced Care Practitioner’s doctoral study on implementation science that helped source the ‘Research Framework for Hospices’ (Payne, Preston, Turner, et al. Research in palliative care: can hospices afford not to be involved? A report for the Commission into the Future of Hospice Care. 2013) and ‘Integrated Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Healthcare Services’ (i-PARiHS) and enabled evaluation of the use of both frameworks in collaboration to help develop a research strategy for Lindsey Lodge.

Results The i-PARiHS framework has guided Lindsey Lodge on how to apply use of the research framework for hospices and how to complete stakeholder mapping, which has enabled liaison with the local Integrated Care Board and networking with academics at the local university, as well as helping identify the mechanisms in place to help the hospice become research-active. Furthermore, integrating both frameworks has guided dissemination of progress for the research strategy and engendered better sustainability for research activity to be embedded in the longer-term.

Conclusion The i-PARiHS framework will now be used to develop an action plan for transitioning the hospice from a level one research-active hospice to level two and beyond in order to ensure the highest quality of care continues to be delivered alongside widening income generation opportunities through securing research grant monies to participate and/or conduct independent research.