David Kenneth Wright

David Kenneth Wright is a Full Professor and Interim Associate Vice-Dean, Academics at the University of Ottawa's Faculty of Health Sciences. He holds a PhD in Nursing (University of Ottawa) and postdoctoral training in biomedical ethics from McGill University. His academic leadership focuses on palliative care and nursing ethics, co-founding the Canadian Palliative Care Nursing Association in 2021. His research explores grief literacy, nursing ethics, and narrative methodologies in end-of-life care.

Education: BSc in Anatomy & Cell Biology (McGill, 2004), MScA in Nursing (McGill, 2007), PhD in Nursing (U Ottawa, 2013), Postdoc in Biomedical Ethics (McGill, 2014).

Research interests emphasize nursing ethics, death/dying/grief dynamics, qualitative methodologies, and palliative care policy. He leads the Palliative Care and Nursing Ethics Research Hub, examining issues like LGBTQ+ elder care, MAID ethics, and grief support systems. Recent work critiques systemic barriers in palliative care access and explores nurse moral distress in pandemic contexts.

His publications (2011–2025) critically engage with topics like neuropalliative care ambiguities, hospice delirium management, and prison palliative care ethics. Articles highlight interdisciplinary collaboration and equity-focused care innovations. Current projects include a mixed-methods study on Canadian grief support needs and dementia care spaces for LGBTQ+ populations.

Not currently supervising students but actively mentoring through research collaborations. His advocacy extends to healthcare policy reform, particularly in end-of-life care frameworks and nurse workforce sustainability.