July 9, 2026
Why Clinical Research in PALTC Settings is Important
By Barbara J. Zarowitz, PharmD, MSW, BCGP, FPALTC, and Sarah D. Holmes, PhD, MSW
One of the Foundation for Post-Acute (PALTC) and Long-Term Care Medicine’s key priorities is to support the generation and dissemination of high-quality research in PALTC settings. This year, the Foundation received 20 applications for research grants covering a wide variety of topics intended to explore several conditions common to residents in skilled nursing and assisted living settings, new devices, tools, and techniques for mediating illness or improving care delivery. Over the 4 years the Foundation has funded research grants, the quality of submissions has improved. Collaboration among investigative teams has been a noted strength of these proposals.
Research is essential for improving care, informing clinical decision-making, guiding policy and regulatory practices, and evaluating the effectiveness of innovative clinical practice. PALTC settings are known as spaces where recruitment of participants and engagement in research are challenging. At the same time, research in these settings is necessary to improve the care of older adults and those who care for them.
Clinical research in PALTC settings directly informs care delivery and resident outcomes (e.g., pain management, functional improvement, behavior management). Clinical providers are uniquely positioned to identify research questions arising from care processes, ensuring that studies address real-world challenges. It is often a question that presents itself while optimizing patient management that stimulates an idea for clinical research and gives providers a voice in identifying evidence-based practices.
Because they work within the PALTC setting, clinical providers also have access to direct patient care data through electronic medical records and minimum dataset. Researchers external to PALTC may formulate important questions but be unable to pursue answers in the absence of facility- and resident-specific data. Facility clinicians can team up with academic researchers to strengthen their research partnerships and provide access to research infrastructure, including skilled graduate students, human subject oversight, data analysts, and biostatisticians. Collaboration between facility clinicians and academic researchers deepens understanding of the link between real-world situations and the data. Better research questions can be formulated and answered.
Grant Review Process
The Foundation for PALTC Medicine has a Grant Committee comprised of scholars and clinicians in PALTC practice, research, and education. Each year, a call is disseminated inviting individuals interested in obtaining funding to submit a letter of intent (LOI) briefly summarizing the need for the project, what they intend to study, and how it aligns with PALTmed’s mission and vision to improve the quality of care for older adults.
Each LOI is reviewed by the Grant Committee, looking for study feasibility within one year, integrity of the scientific methods, specifically defined and measurable objectives, the applicant’s likelihood of success, and a reasonable budget. The committee selects projects that satisfy the requirements and invites those applicants to submit a full research proposal. Among the 20 letters of intent received this year, 5 investigators were invited to submit a full proposal funding consideration. This year, the Grant Committee anticipates being able to fund two general awards and one each for Parkinson’s disease and tardive dyskinesia.
This is an exciting time for the Foundation to witness PALTC research maturing from sponsorship of research grants.
There are those who say we cannot afford to invest in science, that support for research is a luxury at moments defined by necessities. I fundamentally disagree. Science is more essential for our prosperity, our security, our health, our environments, and our quality of life than it has ever been before.”
--Barack Obama, National Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., April 27, 2009
Barbara J. Zarowitz is editor-in-chief of Caring for the Ages. Sarah D. Holmes is chairperson of the Foundation for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine Grant Committee and associate
professor at the University of Maryland School of Nursing Department of Organizational Systems and Adult Health.