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PURPOSE Clinician-scientists are said to be well-placed to connect research and practice, but their broker role has been underexplored. This review sought to gain an understanding of the broker role of clinician-scientists. METHOD The authors conducted a realist review to describe context-mechanism-outcome (CMO) configurations associated with the broker role of clinician-scientists. CINAHL, PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Embase were searched between May and August 2017. Data were analyzed qualitatively; data synthesis was focused on assembling findings into CMO configurations. RESULTS Of an initial 2,241 articles found, 9 were included in the final review. Included papers show that clinician-scientists, in their broker role, achieve two organizational-level outcomes: an increased volume of clinically relevant, practically applicable research and increased evidence application to improve care. They also achieve the individual-level outcome of professional development as a researcher, clinician, and broker. Multidimensional skills and management support are necessary context factors. Mechanisms that contribute to outcomes include balancing economic and scientific interests and performing boundary-crossing activities. Four CMO configurations by which clinician-scientists achieve outcomes in brokering a connection between research and practice were identified. Useful program theories for explaining these are boundary crossing, social network, communities of practice, and diffusion of innovation theory. CONCLUSIONS The mechanisms found may provide insight for interventions aiming to support clinician-scientists in their broker role. The authors expect that if more attention is paid to learning multidimensional skills and management support for the broker role is strengthened, stronger links between research and practice could be forged.