Leading Research and Evaluation in Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practices.
Dawn Forman, Marion Jones, & Jill Thistlethwaite (Eds). Palgrave, Macmillan, UK. 2016. 359 pages. ISBN 978-1-137-53744-7
The editors introduce the importance of interprofessional practices and collaborative techniques in order to provide high quality care regarding healthcare and evaluation. The use of these practices will aid in answering difficult questions regarding the care and health outcomes of individuals. The overall content of the book explores a variety of research and evaluation methods, as well as different frameworks that can be used for implementing interprofessional education and collaborative practices in health care settings.
The book is aimed towards an audience who push the boundaries in health outcomes and care by using interprofessional practices. The book incorporates many techniques on how to implement these practices, the variety of issues that can arise during implementation, as well as the keys to success. The book combines theoretical and practical frameworks in order to assist the reader in becoming knowledgeable on how to improve these practices. The theoretical underpinnings of the book are important for the implementation and evaluation of IPE and IPP. The book heavily describes the practical side of evaluation, providing many case studies and research findings that allow the reader to use the skills and knowledge that have been studied in their own interprofessional practices.
Overall the book is very well organized, with an introductory section that provides information on how to use the book effectively. In addition to this, each chapter provides an overview including information such as the key points being covered, contributing authors of the chapter or section, and the country of origin for the research being used.
The book is split into four parts and then further divided into a total of seventeen chapters from a range of different authors. Within these chapters are case studies from a variety of countries as well as research from international studies. The book considers the different challenges that may arise in implementation of interprofessional practices, as well as the different requirements that will lead to its success. Through the extensive amount of case studies and research evaluations, the reader can take away many valuable skills and have knowledge on what methods can be used to increase the effectiveness of Interprofessional education and collaborative practices. The research is highly referenced and incorporates data from all over the world, allowing the book to have widespread use across professions. The authors were successful by showing how we need to implement IPP through its use of a variety of evidence to support the topic of interprofessional practices. The goal of the book was met through the variety of examples and explanations that increased the knowledge of the reader on the topic. A widespread coverage of many topics was completed by the book in many areas that relate to interprofessional education and collaborative practices.
For more information about this book see: http://www.palgrave.com/la/book/9781137537423
Reviewed by: Madison Weimann, Concordia University of Edmonton, Canada