Sally Norton is dedicated to improving the care of patients with advanced illness. Her well-established program of research is focused on palliative care and end-of-life decision-making with emphases on the communication processes and practice patterns of care delivery in acute and long-term care settings.
A nationally recognized expert in palliative care research and qualitative and mixed-method research designs, she has worked successfully across professions to improve communication and understanding surrounding systems of palliative care and hospice delivery, and to pinpoint the approaches most meaningful to patients and families that lead to the highest quality outcomes.
Norton is a fellow of the Hospice and Palliative Care Nurses Association (HPNA) and the American Academy of Nursing. She also serves as a co-director of research for the Division of Palliative Care in the Department of Medicine at the University of Rochester and holds a secondary appointment in the School of Medicine and Dentistry. She was honored with the Distinguished Researcher Award from the HPNA in 2017, and was named Palliative Care Nurse of the Year by the March of Dimes in 2013, and a Distinguished Practitioner by the National Academies of Practice in 2006.