Medical Research conducted in the patient care setting is facing a new financial barrier, the prospective payment system. Both university and hospitals must rethink clinical research resource use. This may result in better accountability for research costs and affect the hospitals' willingness to conduct experimental or innovative treatments. (MSE)

A group is actively supporting legislation to require seat belts on only newly manufactured school buses. However, misinformation is being circulated to oppose the installation of seat belts in school buses. If the industry continues to block the installation of seat belts, punitive legislation may be passed. (MLF)

The editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine discusses considerations in medical research integrity and publication, including the issues of research methodology, readership interest, article selection, editing, honesty, the author's responsibility, announcements of research to the mass media, and previous publication. (MSE)

Research management strategies used effectively in a large-scale clinical trial to determine the health effects of exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam are discussed, including pre-project planning, organization according to strategy, attention to scheduling, a team approach, emphasis on guest relations, cross-training of personnel, and preparing…

Health care has become a leading growth sector of the economy, and a large part of that growth has its origin in the research generated by faculty in academic health centers. This paper discusses an effective program for translating academic health center research into economic development based upon observations at 12 centers. Topics included…

After a continuing effort to improve its grant application process, the department of medical microbiology and immunology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is submitting many more applications and realizing increased funding. The methods and strategy used to make the process more efficient and effective are outlined. (Author/MSE)

The founder of the Whitehead Institute (Massachusetts) describes the issues and challenges encountered in establishing a private research institute, focusing on the evolution of the institute's affiliation with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Autonomy, taxes, the differences between academic and industrial organizations, and defining…

Some problems in the changing pattern of relationships between bedside teaching, clinical research, and provision of medical services in academic hospitals are examined, including patient types, sophistication of medical intervention, and specialization. Four elements of government policy that might favor desirable development in these areas are…

An autobiographical account by the army's chief logistical adviser to the surgeon general during World War II calls attention to the challenges of medical service planning and three postwar changes in medicine: demand for access to care; bigger federal biomedical research expenditures; and the rise of specialization. (Author/MSE)

An analysis of the state of medical informatics, the application of computer and information technology to biomedicine, looks at trends and concerns, including integration of traditionally distinct enterprises (clinical information systems, financial information, scholarly support activities, infrastructures); informatics career choice and…

Existing federal government policies and systems to protect against scientific misconduct in government-supported research projects are described, and additional considerations not covered in federal policy are enumerated. Misconduct inquiries and review procedures are outlined. Applicant and institutional responsibility and the role of prevention…

Portuguese legislative and policy moves since 1974 and their effects on academic hospitals are chronicled. The changes began with a serious university crisis, through which academic hospitals were abolished, and have resulted in legislation offering the potential for a restructuring of medical training and research. (Author/MSE)

Most of the hospital beds available to the University of Liege (France) for training purposes are in a public teaching hospital with an autonomous legal structure and privileged relationship with the university. Other beds are in other facilities. The financing, supervision, and management structure integrates the institutions and supports medical…

During the 1980s, AIDS emerged as a leading cause of death among young adults. Subsequently, no college or university can expect to escape from this problem. These collected articles were targeted for university, and health-science-center administrators. The information contained here is grouped under eight headings. Section 1, the medical…

A discussion of the implications of health care reform for academic health centers (a complex of institutions which educate health professionals) looks at problems in the current system, the role of academic health centers in the current system, financial pressures, revenue sources other than patient care, impact on health research, and human…