Lara Pivodic

Lara Pivodic is Professor of Ageing and the End of Life at the End-of-Life Care Research Group, jointly affiliated with Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) & Ghent University. She serves as co-chair of the group's Ageing & Palliative Care research programme and is based at the Brussels Health Campus. Her work bridges medical and social sciences to address complex issues surrounding aging, end-of-life care, and death.

Her educational background includes:

• PhD in Medical Sciences from Vrije Universiteit Brussel
• MSc in Psychology from the University of Vienna

Professor Pivodic's research spans epidemiological studies, policy analyses, intervention development, and clinical trials focused on aging and end-of-life care. She employs mixed-methods approaches to study health and well-being trajectories of older people approaching the end of life. Her work emphasizes developing interventions to support individuals and families navigating serious illness and dying, with particular attention to vulnerable populations including those with dementia and frailty. Current projects focus on digital health solutions, international comparative studies, and compassionate community approaches.

Her publication portfolio reveals strong trends in user-centered digital interventions for advance care planning, international methodological innovations in studying end-of-life trajectories, and implementation science for palliative care across diverse settings. Recent work demonstrates increasing interdisciplinary collaboration and methodological sophistication in addressing complex end-of-life challenges.

Scientific recognition includes:

• Early Researcher Award of the European Association for Palliative Care (2017)

Professor Pivodic has secured significant research funding including the European Research Council (ERC)-funded TRAJECT project (2023-2028), multiple fellowships from the Research Foundation – Flanders, and support from the AXA Research Fund. She actively mentors students and collaborates with international research teams across Europe through numerous EU-funded projects. Her h-index of 21 reflects substantial scholarly impact with 1,737 citations across 80+ publications.

She contributes to the End-of-Life Care Research Group's leadership in developing evidence-based approaches to serious illness and bereavement, serving as a member of Jonge Academie (Young Academy of Sciences) of Belgium and maintaining active engagement with European palliative care networks.