Abstract
Background: Large scale nurse-led research is infrequently observed when compared to other health disciplines. Advancing nurse-led research and improving uptake of evidence requires a shift in how the profession secures funding.[1] Nurse-led research faces barriers like limited opportunities, competing demands, low perceived value, and a paucity of role models/mentors. [2] With the increase in doctorly trained nurses, there is an urgent need to address such barriers.
Aim: To explore the mechanisms that build a successful nurse-led research program.
Methods: Case studies (CS) of how two nurse Chief Investigators navigated the path to leading major grants.
CS1: From a small post-doctoral seed-funded project in dementia care emerged a nationally funded study on implementing advance care planning in nursing homes.[3] Over 10 years, this momentum and sustained focus on dementia care led to a €7.5M Horizon Europe grant. The In-Touch trial[4] is the first EU Commission grant of this scale to be awarded to a nurse in Ireland. It coordinates 80 researchers across 10 countries to examine the effectiveness of a palliative care intervention on quality of life in advanced dementia.
CS2: Evolving from a nursing master’s thesis on the lived experiences of testicular cancer (TC) survivors[5], through a doctoral scholarship using virtual reality to raise men’s awareness of TC (E-MAT), and national funding to trial E-MAT[6-8], emerged TRANSCEND-XR; a €6M Horizon Europe grant with 15 partners in 12 countries[9,10]. TRANSCEND-XR co-creates and evaluates an extended reality intervention for young TC survivors[11]. This marks Ireland’s first EU Cancer Mission–funded and only nurse-led cancer project of this scale.
Findings and implications: Developing a major research program is shaped by personal capability building and evolving leadership demands. Understanding one’s “career phenotype,” developing a coherent long-term plan, and progressing from novice to expert researcher are key. Success also relies on crafting compelling narratives, assessing effort versus reward, cultivating grit, and sustaining momentum. Cross-sector, multidisciplinary collaborations, aligning projects with priority areas, and producing methodologically rigorous proposals are essential. This CS proposes a strategic roadmap to help doctoral-trained nurses secure funding, build research programmes, and normalise nurse-led, large-scale initiatives shaping future practice.
Notes
Reference list included in attached slide deck.
Sigma Membership
Omega Epsilon at-Large
Type
Presentation
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Case Study/Series
Research Approach
Pilot/Exploratory Study
Keywords:
Mentoring and Coaching, Succession Planning, Global Leadership, Nursing Research
Recommended Citation
Cornally, Nicola and Saab, Mohamad M., "From Seed Funding to Global Impact: Building a Successful Nurse-Led Research Program" (2026). International Nursing Research Congress (INRC). 184.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/inrc/2026/presentations_2026/184
Conference Name
37th International Nursing Research Congress
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Conference Year
2026
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-08-22
From Seed Funding to Global Impact: Building a Successful Nurse-Led Research Program
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Background: Large scale nurse-led research is infrequently observed when compared to other health disciplines. Advancing nurse-led research and improving uptake of evidence requires a shift in how the profession secures funding.[1] Nurse-led research faces barriers like limited opportunities, competing demands, low perceived value, and a paucity of role models/mentors. [2] With the increase in doctorly trained nurses, there is an urgent need to address such barriers.
Aim: To explore the mechanisms that build a successful nurse-led research program.
Methods: Case studies (CS) of how two nurse Chief Investigators navigated the path to leading major grants.
CS1: From a small post-doctoral seed-funded project in dementia care emerged a nationally funded study on implementing advance care planning in nursing homes.[3] Over 10 years, this momentum and sustained focus on dementia care led to a €7.5M Horizon Europe grant. The In-Touch trial[4] is the first EU Commission grant of this scale to be awarded to a nurse in Ireland. It coordinates 80 researchers across 10 countries to examine the effectiveness of a palliative care intervention on quality of life in advanced dementia.
CS2: Evolving from a nursing master’s thesis on the lived experiences of testicular cancer (TC) survivors[5], through a doctoral scholarship using virtual reality to raise men’s awareness of TC (E-MAT), and national funding to trial E-MAT[6-8], emerged TRANSCEND-XR; a €6M Horizon Europe grant with 15 partners in 12 countries[9,10]. TRANSCEND-XR co-creates and evaluates an extended reality intervention for young TC survivors[11]. This marks Ireland’s first EU Cancer Mission–funded and only nurse-led cancer project of this scale.
Findings and implications: Developing a major research program is shaped by personal capability building and evolving leadership demands. Understanding one’s “career phenotype,” developing a coherent long-term plan, and progressing from novice to expert researcher are key. Success also relies on crafting compelling narratives, assessing effort versus reward, cultivating grit, and sustaining momentum. Cross-sector, multidisciplinary collaborations, aligning projects with priority areas, and producing methodologically rigorous proposals are essential. This CS proposes a strategic roadmap to help doctoral-trained nurses secure funding, build research programmes, and normalise nurse-led, large-scale initiatives shaping future practice.
Description
This presentation maps career development from post-doctoral training to professor of nursing research - providing unique insights into the pitfalls and peaks that underscore the development of a large-scale funded research programme. An emerging strategic career roadmap with emphasis on key steps for securing grants to develop impactful, patient focused research at-scale is proposed. This will provide nurses graduating from their doctoral programme with a toolkit for research success.