Fostering a culture of research within a clinical radiation oncology department.

Abstract

Support and investment in increasing a research-active culture in clinical practice needs to be translated at the department and hospital levels as well as regional, state and national levels. We aimed to improve the research culture of our department, to enable more clinical staff to become more research competent and research active. We describe and discuss the appointment of a Director of Research and a Research Coordinator into our already-research-active department and the interactions at the research-clinical interface. By identifying barriers and instituting enablers which ameliorate their effect, we explore how a clinical department can utilize the resources already available with the goal of developing a more confident and competent clinician-researcher culture as measured by a range of research metrics. We observed an improved research culture within our department. Our department's improved research culture was reflected by increased numbers of peer-reviewed publications (of 30%), research students/supervisions (of 60%) and engagement of external speakers. We also observed double the number of first-authored peer-reviewed articles and a growth in conference presentations, posters and speaker invitations/awards. In the majority of the research performance metrics tracked, there was a steady improvement noted over the four years monitored. By responding to the barriers of staff (such as time, expertise and ideas) with structural and personal enablers, as well as funded resources, it is possible to develop research capacity and confidence in a clinical setting.