Developing a team for multicultural, multi-institutional research on fatigue and quality of life.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To describe the process of establishing a multisite team to conduct research with a multicultural focus on fatigue.

DATA SOURCES

Articles, book chapters, personal experience.

DATA SYNTHESIS

Teamwork facilitated development of a productive professional working group, sharing of resources, and data collection culminating in a research proposal for studying cancer-related fatigue in a multicultural population.

CONCLUSIONS

Establishing a common goal by investing time, committing to the process, and establishing trust was the secret to effective team functioning.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

The prospect of multi-institutional collaboration has implications for oncology nurses in the areas of research and practice. Goals that could not be achieved easily in the setting of a single institution are reached more easily with multisite collaboration and teamwork.