As the lead NIH Institute for end-of-life research, NINR supports science to assist individuals, families, and health care professionals in managing the symptoms of life limiting conditions and planning for end-of-life decisions. NINR also recognizes that high-quality, evidence-based palliative care is a critical component of maintaining quality of life at any stage of illness, not just at the end of life. Activities in this area address issues such as: relieving symptoms and suffering; and understanding decision-making by patients, caregivers, and provider...

Millions of Americans suffer from adverse symptoms such as fatigue, pain, insomnia, or chronic wounds, that can inhibit their ability to lead normal lives. Often, these symptoms are associated with a chronic condition, such as insomnia experienced by those living with chronic heart failure, or they may be treatment-related, as in the case of cancer patients experiencing pain associated with chemotherapy.

Throughout its twenty-five year history, NINR has supported research on new and better ways to manage the symptoms of illness..

Millions of Americans suffer from adverse symptoms such as pain that can inhibit their ability to lead normal lives. Pain can be a debilitating symptom of chronic illness such as arthritis and diabetes, and pain can itself become a chronic condition. Throughout its history, the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) has supported symptom science research on new and better ways to manage the symptoms of illness, including research on the biological and behavioral aspects of pain, with the goal of developing new knowledge and new strategies for improving patient health and quality of life...

Precision medicine is an emerging approach for disease treatment and prevention that takes into account individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle for each person.

In the President’s 2016 Budget, President Obama unveiled the Precision Medicine Initiative — a bold new enterprise to revolutionize medicine and generate the scientific evidence needed to move the concept of precision medicine into every day clinical practice...

With advances in technologies, nurse scientists are increasingly generating and using large and complex datasets, sometimes called “Big Data,” to promote and improve the health of individuals, families, and communities. In recent years, the National Institutes of Health have placed a great emphasis on enhancing and integrating the data sciences into the health research enterprise. New strategies for collecting and analyzing large data sets will allow us to better understand the biological, genetic, and behavioral underpinnings of health, and to improve the way we prevent and manage illness...

The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) supports global health research to achieve its mission of advancing nursing science to improve the health and well-being of all the world’s citizens. As such, NINR-supported science is conducted abroad in low and middle income countries (LMICs) on topics that address the Institute’s primary research focus areas.

Nurses and nursing research have a critical role in many of the health issues facing LMICs.  However, our impact is most significant in promoting health, as well as preventing and managing chronic illnesses and infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.  

Photo Credit: Dan Stiepleman

New advances in genomics and other fields have allowed nurse scientists to better understand the symptoms of chronic illness, such as pain, fatigue, and disordered sleep. NINR supports research to develop improved, personalized strategies to treat and prevent the adverse symptoms of illness across diverse populations and settings.