Research development at the University of Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Research and Scholarly Activities Task Force to address the research needs of the university. The task force was composed of faculty members from several departments to ensure broadbased consensus regarding the needs for research development at the university. The chairman of the task force was chosen because he was a champion of research and because of his ability to develop group consensus—he played a critical role in the process. The task force used Bland and Ruffin’s article, “Characteristics of a Productive Research Environment: Literature Review” (Acad Med 1992; 67:385-397), as a model for establishing the university’s needs. The article lists 12 essential components of a productive research environment (Figure 1). The task force determined which of these components were already in place and which ones were needed, then made recommendations to the president of the university. The first priority was to establish an administrative unit capable of developing research infrastructure.