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You need not look any further than the recently released nursing education grants from the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) to know that a major shift has occurred with how the federal government will allocate funds for health professional education.   Despite the fact that the evidence of its effectiveness is only moderate at best, the United States Department of Health & Human Services has gone all-in with its preference to fund health professional education projects that incorporate inter-professional education models.   While scholarly research on the effectiveness of inter-professional education methodologies compared to traditional techniques is not conclusive, it is hard to find fault with the logic behind such strategies.  With the proliferation of medical homes and emphasis on patient-centered care, health professional rarely practice in environments isolated to a single discipline.  It makes sense that if health care is to be delivered with a team-based approach; education settings should mimic such principles.

In today's competitive grants market, there are a variety of sure-fire ways to get your grant proposal tossed into the rejection pile.

With the U.S. Government's increasing focus on streamlining resources and engaging in whole-community and regional approaches to education, law enforcement, and healthcare, collaboration is a critical component of several federal grant programs.  Many organizations are already engaged in valuable and mutually beneficial collaborative projects that fit seamlessly within the guidelines of the grant to which they're applying for funding.  However, sometimes a grant's requirements might lead you down a new path of collaboration.  While there are obvious benefits to working with other organizations to accomplish a project—additional personnel and support, additional resources, broader project impact—there can also be pitfalls that result from miscommunication, different organizational objectives, and the failure of one or more partners to fulfill their responsibilities, all of which can threaten the success of the project.  There are several steps you can take in the beginning to ensure that your collaborative efforts will be more likely to result in a successful project period, increasing your likelihood of building on a successful partnership and receiving future grant awards for continued impact in your community.