Throughout April, faculty, staff and students are sharing what research and creative activity at Boise State means to them.
Katherine (Kate) Doyon is an associate professor in the School of Nursing. Doyon’s research area of expertise is in palliative care, an often misunderstood and overlooked area of healthcare for the seriously ill.
Palliative care is a form of supportive, holistic care in which practitioners work with the patient to create a set of goals for the best quality of life as their illness progresses and work to meet those goals and needs through medical, spiritual, emotional and other systems.
Doyon is a Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation Award winning scholar, a Cambia Sojourns Fellow, and a National Institutes of Health-funded researcher. She currently conducts palliative care research in the context of resettled refugees, alongside her student team.
Q and A
Q: What is your favorite memory related to research and/or creative activity at Boise State?
A: “My favorite memory related to research is presenting our research at a national conference with my students. The students were fabulous -they were so poised, professional, and demonstrated an enormous depth of understanding on the topic. People literally lined up after our presentation to ask them more questions!”
Q: What motivates you to explore new ideas or create something original?
A: “My research is focused on communication in healthcare, what motivates me is that my work improves health outcomes for patients and I hope my communication interventions also help the healthcare team have greater job satisfaction.”
Q: How do you think research and creative activity contribute to society?
A: “Health research significantly contributes to society in innumerable ways – addressing public health challenges, addressing basic delivery of care, and investment in health cost reduction.”
Q: What do you wish more people knew about your research or creative activity?
A: “Research takes so much time and energy because you have to document every step of the process and in health research, you are collaborating with real people who have their own lives to attend to. In research you can’t fudge it, you must be transparent. Most researchers are driven by the idea of making the world a better place and that is what keeps them invested in the work even in the face of setbacks.”
Q: What does Research and Creative Activity at Boise State mean to you?
A: “The research I do at Boise State directly impacts patient care in Idaho and Boise specifically, I love that my research includes collaborating with members of the community to make a difference in the community.”