Professor in Palliative Care
I am a social scientist with an academic foundation in public health, focusing on mental illness and psychiatry. My early career was with the National Health Service (NHS), where I worked across several health authorities that later transitioned into commissioning agencies. In my public health role, I investigated the health needs of local populations and commissioned services to address them. During this time, I developed a keen interest in older adults and what was historically referred to as terminal care.
I transitioned from the NHS to academia, beginning my formal academic career at King’s College London, where I completed a PhD examining the experiences and outcomes of care for people living with cancer from minority ethnic backgrounds. My research has since centered on equity in end-of-life care and developing innovative methods to maximize social justice in palliative care research. I have also explored the complex relationship between clinical uncertainty in serious illness and joint healthcare and treatment decision-making.
I am the joint course director for the multidisciplinary online MSc in Palliative Care: Implementing Best Practice. I serve as the module lead for Palliative Care Research and Practice and regularly teach undergraduate medical students. Additionally, I run a Scholarship & Special Interest Programme focused on clinical uncertainty.
Social media for palliative and end-of-life care research: a systematic review
Wang, Y., Koffman, J., Gao, W., Zhou, Y., Chukwusa, E., & Curcin, V. (2024). Social media for palliative and end-of-life care research: a systematic review. BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care, 14(2), 149-162. https://doi.org/10.1136/spcare-2023-004579
Researching minoritised communities in palliative care: An agenda for change
Koffman, J., Bajwah, S., Davies, J. M., & Hussain, J. A. (2022). Researching minoritised communities in palliative care: An agenda for change. Palliative medicine, https://doi.org/10.1177/02692163221132091
What do we do with all the evidence for symptoms in palliative care?
Boland, J. W., Koffman, J., & Boland, E. G. (2022). What do we do with all the evidence for symptoms in palliative care?. Palliative medicine, 36(6), 892-894. https://doi.org/10.1177/02692163221098005
My main research interests lie in equity and end-of-life care, with a continued focus on clinical uncertainty and the development and evaluation of complex interventions. Recent studies I have conducted utilize big linked data to examine opioid prescribing for managing cancer pain at the end of life among different ethnic groups. Funded by the Medical Research Council, recent work has also explored the foundational principles for conducting palliative and end-of-life care research with families from minority ethnic backgrounds.
Currently, I am involved in two national studies. One uses big linked data to evaluate the anticipated benefits of Electronic Palliative Care Coordination Systems (EPaCCS) and to investigate how social determinants of health influence their development and content. Additionally, I am leading an NIHR-funded study on the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool Intervention (CSNAT-I), focusing on carers of individuals with long-term or serious illnesses from minority ethnic backgrounds.
Project
Funder
Grant
Started
Status
NIHR National Institute for Health Research
£245,420.00
1 January 2025
Ongoing
£770,949.00
1 January 2024
£30,310.00
1 October 2024
I am deeply committed to supervising students with a focus on equity in palliative and end-of-life care. I am also interested in mentoring students exploring clinical uncertainty and the development and evaluation of complex interventions.
My recent PhD students have investigated topics including:
The presence of symptom clusters in people living with COPD in China.
The development and evaluation of an advance care planning complex intervention involving family members in Japan.
Mining social media to understand its role and ethical considerations in palliative and end-of-life care research.
Currently, I am supervising PhD students whose research focuses on:
Developing cancer pain education resources for cancer patients from minority ethnic backgrounds.
Examining the place and meanings of value-based healthcare in palliative and end-of-life care.
Wolfson Palliative Care Research Group
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