Nathan Adam Boucher
Assistant Research Professor in the Sanford School of Public Policy

I am a Research Health Scientist at Durham VA Health System’s Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation (ADAPT), Duke University faculty at the Sanford School of Public Policy and the Medical School, Senior Fellow at the Duke Center for the Study of Aging & Human Development as well as Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy Core Faculty. My research has focused on assessing patients’ and caregivers’ experiences and expectations of health care delivery during advanced illness and near the end of life, using qualitative and mixed methods research. I have extensive experience in clinical medicine, health care administration, health professions education, hospice and palliative care quality improvement, and community-based research. Challenges and opportunities at the intersection of social care and health care inform my research agenda. My collaborations across disciplines at VA and Duke and with community organizations have afforded me deep insights into the lives and challenges of vulnerable community members and family/friend caregivers. I have active research 1) describing caregivers’ social and health needs related to caring for older adults re-entering the community from prison; 2) examining hospice admissions practices and what can be done to reduce inappropriate live discharges; and 3) developing, with a cross-disciplinary team, a “life story book” intervention for families and community members living with dementia. As a VA Research Health Scientist and Career Development Awardee, I am 1) a principal investigator designing a community-based lay navigator program targeting caregivers’ social and practical needs as they engage in their complex roles as caregivers of Veterans with advanced stage illness, and 2) a co-investigator on several VA projects utilizing my qualitative research skills and passions for public policy and stakeholder engagement.

Current Appointments & Affiliations

Contact Information

  • 206 Rubenstein Hall, Box 90312, Durham, NC 27708
  • Box 90312, Durham, NC 27708

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