A seminar series was developed in a family medicine training program to provide residents with some basic skills required to interpret medical studies critically. The sessions were designed to be clinically relevant, dependent on active resident participation, and focused on research methodology and interpretation. (Author/JMD)

Clinical trials and access to therapeutic drugs pose dilemmas for researchers, physicians, and AIDS patients. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recognizing the need for greater access to drugs by a broader spectrum of the infected population, is establishing the Community Programs for Clinical Research on AIDS. (Author/MLW)

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…

Reports that Harvard University Medical School is considering policy changes that would ease financial restrictions in its conflict-of-interest standards for faculty researchers. Supporters argue that such changes are necessary to attract and retain top researchers, but ethicists warn that as collaborations between industry and academic medicine…

Describes a study that investigated the use of a natural language processing technique called noun phrasing to determine whether it is a viable technique for medical information retrieval. Evaluates four noun phrase generation tools for their ability to isolate noun phrases from medical journal abstracts, focusing on precision and recall.…

The past 2 decades have shown that HIV prevention can work. Evidence worldwide indicates that concerted national HIV prevention efforts have resulted in maintenance of low seroprevalence rates or decline in rates where they would have otherwise risen. The best efforts are based on sound scientific research. Advances in, challenges to, and future…

The mission of the Broad Foundations is to transform K-12 urban public education through better governance, management, labor relations and competition; make significant contributions to advance major scientific and medical research; foster public appreciation of contemporary art by increasing access for audiences worldwide; and lead and…

This report describes current research activities and future plans of the Pediatric, Adolescent, and Maternal AIDS (PAMA) Branch of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's Center for Research for Mothers and Children. The mission statement of the Branch notes that PAMA develops, implements, and directs a wide range of…

Participants in this workshop were scientists from various disciplines, including public health, oncology, nutrition, epidemiology, biochemistry, immunology, pharmacology, pediatrics, geriatric medicine, and the behavioral sciences. The workshop featured deliberations by medical experts on the dimensions and demographics of hunger in America. The…

During the past decade teleconferencing systems have gained a substantial role in continuing medical education in Canada through maintenance of contact between physicians in remote and urban areas, medical education, group consultation, and administration. A group of Canadian physicians at Memorial University of Newfoundland and their Kenyan and…

Departing markedly from previous reports to Congress by the National Science Board, this document presents in an informal, narrative style six stories depicting scientific discoveries and their effects on society. Drawn from the physical, biological, medical, and social sciences, topics discussed include: (1) computers and semiconductors; (2)…

A Pittsburgh program to encourage physicians to choose clinical investigation careers consists of nine months of formal lectures and laboratory training and 15 months of a supervised laboratory research project. The curriculum ranges from basic laboratory techniques and biomedical content to advanced instrumentation, statistical analysis, computer…

Recent activities of the General Accounting Office (GAO) related to the allocation of medical resources and services are reviewed. Focus is on the evaluation of programs designed to increase public access to quality health care and to contain health care costs. GAO supervision of grant monies designated for medical research is also discussed. (JMD)

Discussion of biomedical science and technology focuses on factors important to a vital health care industry. Topics addressed include high expectations about health care, spending for health care, aspects related to international competitiveness, constraints on growth in the biomedical industry, the role of research, and research and employment…