Development of an interprofessional and interdisciplinary collaborative research practice for clinical faculty

This article describes an interprofessional collaborative research practice fellowship designed to foster the research skills of clinical faculty. The year-long fellowship was grounded in big data analysis and the triangle of informatics--knowledge, information, and data. Fellows were selected to include diverse perspectives, training, and knowledge but had limited experience in team science or being a member of an interprofessional research team. The underlying philosophy of the fellowship was experiential learning. Protected time and formal mentorship were necessary factors for developing the interprofessional research practice and the skills to participate in an interprofessional research team. We believe that this innovative interprofessional faculty research fellowship is a viable option for supporting scholarly activity and research collaboration. The findings could inform interprofessional clinical practice and be implemented for patient care. Engagement in interprofessional collaborative research and incorporation of the perspectives, knowledge and expertise of multiple professions, is a model to de silo knowledge creation.