title: Can interprofessional collaboration provide health human resources solutions? A knowledge synthesis.
abstract: Many studies examine the impact of interprofessional (IP) interventions on various health practice and education outcomes. One significant gap is the lack of research on the effects of IP interventions on health human resource (HHR) outcomes. This project synthesized the literature on the impact of IP interventions at the pre- and post-licensure levels on quality workplace, staff satisfaction, recruitment, retention, turnover, choice of employment and cost effectiveness. Forty-one peer-reviewed articles and five IECPCP project reports were included in the review. We found that IP interventions at the post-licensure level improved provider satisfaction and workplace quality. Including IP learning opportunities into practice education in rural communities or in less popular healthcare specialties attracted a higher number of students and therefore may increase employment rates. This area requires more high quality studies to firmly establish the effectiveness of IP interventions in recruiting and retaining future healthcare professionals. There is strong evidence that IP interventions at the post-licensure level reduced patient care costs. The knowledge synthesis has enhanced our understanding of the relationships between IP interventions, IP collaboration and HHR outcomes. Gaps remain in the knowledge of staff retention and determination of staffing costs associated with IP interventions vis-à-vis patient care costs. None of the studies reported long-term data on graduate employment choice, which is essential to fully establish the effectiveness of IP interventions as a HHR recruitment strategy.
authors.affiliation: Health Systems and Workforce Research Unit, Alberta Health Services, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. esther.suter@albertahealthservices.ca
authors.forename: Esther
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Suter
authors.forename: Siegrid
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Deutschlander
authors.forename: Grace
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mickelson
authors.forename: Zahra
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Nurani
authors.forename: Jana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lait
authors.forename: Liz
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jarvis-Selinger
authors.forename: Lesley
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bainbridge
authors.forename: Sheila
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Achilles
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ateah
authors.forename: Kendall
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.forename: Ruby
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Grymonpre
mesh_terms: D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006280:Health Workforce; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D019359:Knowledge; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D014481:United States