The Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery & Palliative Care is proud to present the first event in our Inaugural Lecture Series.

The event is a celebration of our new professors, Katherine Sleeman and Catherine Evans, who will present an overview of their contribution to their fields.

This event is free and open to members of the public, please register via the Eventbrite page. 

Doors for this event will open at 16:45 (BST), with the lectures to commence at 17:00. A drinks reception will be held at 18:10, immediately after the lecture.

From womb to tomb: how a developmental biologist found palliative care by Professor Katherine Sleeman

Biography

Professor Katherine Sleeman is the Laing Galazka Chair in Palliative Care, at the Cicely Saunders Institute, King's College London.

Katherine graduated from University College London Medical School with a BSc in Developmental Biology. Following general medical training in London, and a PhD at the Institute of Cancer Research, she joined the Cicely Saunders Institute as an NIHR Clinical Lecturer in palliative medicine (2010). She was subsequently awarded an NIHR Clinician Scientist Fellowship (2016-2021), and in 2021 became the inaugural appointee to the Isobel Laing Michal Galazka Chair in Palliative Care, funded through an endowment from the Kirby Laing Foundation and Cicely Saunders International.

Katherine's research uses a variety of methods, particularly routine data analysis, and focuses on the intersection between palliative care and policy. She leads the Marie Curie Better End of Life programme, and co-leads the Covpall Care Homes study. She is the executive lead for Reach and Impact at the Cicely Saunders Institute. In 2019 she received the inaugural Women in Palliative Care award from the European Association of Palliative Care, and in 2020 she received a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust fellowship to strengthen public and policy engagement in palliative care.

From curious undergraduate community nurse to Professor of Palliative Care; my thousand mile journey that began with a single step by Professor Catherine Evans

Biography

Catherine Evans is a Professor in Palliative Care and Honorary Nurse Consultant. Since 2011, she has held a joint post between the Cicely Saunders Institute and Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust. She has pursued a successful clinical-academic career as a nurse securing NIHR personal fellowships on the integrated clinical academic programme. She was appointed in 2022 as Deputy-Director of the King’s Clinical Academic Training Office.

Catherine leads a programme of research on new models of care integrating palliative care in community healthcare and social care for older adults with multimorbidity, including dementia and frailty. Catherine co-leads a major research programme called Empowering Better End of Life Dementia Care (EMBED-Care), and the CovPall Care Homes study on the care home response to meet palliative care needs during COVID-19. She is the executive lead for public and community involvement in research at the Cicely Saunders Institute. Her work has built novel infrastructure for meaningful involvement in research for people affected by serious illness.