Dr Clare Mc Veigh has received £95,000 in funding from the Burdett Trust for Nursing Grant Programme to conduct mindfulness research with people who have a diagnosis of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). The ‘MERCURY Study’ will explore the impact of an on-line nurse-led, high impact, Compassionate Mindful Resilience (CMR) program for adult patients with IPF. The study will co-produce the CMR intervention in collaboration with an Interdisciplinary Advisory Group (IAG) for use with people with IPF. This group includes the research team and other members such as Tom Mc Millan, the Chairman of Pulmonary Fibrosis NI, Respiratory Clinicians, service users and informal caregivers. This project benefits from collaboration with research leads from Asthma and Lung UK and Action for Pulmonary Fibrosis, allowing access to expert patient IPF panels and linkage with regional and national policy makers. The research team, led by Dr Mc Veigh, also benefits from international collaboration with Mc Gill University in Montreal and the University of Washington in America.

 

Previous research from the project team implemented the CMR programme for people with end stage kidney disease (ESKD) (Wilson et al. 2024a; Wilson et al. 2024b). The COSMIC Study, led by Professor Helen Noble, highlighted significant improvements in participant’s levels of anxiety and depression, self-compassion, mental wellbeing, resilience, and mindfulness. People with a diagnosis of IPF have complex palliative care needs and can experience high levels of psychosocial morbidity, due to their life-limiting chronic respiratory condition. This online nurse-led intervention aims to enable the implementation of a robust mindfulness programme that promotes self-compassion and resilience amongst people living with IPF.