Nearly 30 years ago, renowned immunologist James E.K. Hildreth, M.D., Ph.D., was compelled to start researching the virus that causes AIDS. He marveled at its enigma and was pressed into action by its ability to cut lives short and devastate communities. The disease set him on a course of medical inquiry that has included biomedical breakthroughs…

Non-medical research involves the same issues of justice, beneficence, and respect for persons that apply to non-medical research. It also may involve risk of harm to participants, and conflicts of interest for researchers. It is therefore not possible to argue that such research should be exempt from ethical review. This paper argues that…

Relying upon grant-supported salaries, many medical schools have greatly expanded their faculties; but if new funding devices are not discovered, retrenchment will occur. Physicians, who are trained to look at the big picture, must continue to be an essential element in the biomedical research team. (MLW)

Examines the lack of support for the training and employment of clinical investigators to capitalize on the knowledge gleaned from decades of basic scientific research. Argues that this dilemma can be addressed by carefully defining and marshalling a coalition of institutions to support increased funding for clinical investigations. (MDM)

This interview with Jeffrey Borer, who directs cardiovascular research at Cornell Medical College, addresses his research interests, the status of research compared to practice, ways to meet educational needs of students with science talent, the role of contests and mentors, and the importance of exposing children to many types of learning…

In the 1990s in Australia, women will comprise one-third to one-half of medical graduates. If the medical profession is to take full advantage of the skills of all its graduates, significant changes in opportunities for women must occur, including restructuring the male-oriented medical research and teaching professions. (MSE)

Responding to a report on the Clinical Research Training Program of the National Institutes of Health, the author finds that the low applicant rate among dental students is due less to lack of interest in the program or its emphasis on research but more to a program structure modeled on a medical school rather than a dental school curriculum. (MSE)

A policy statement drafted by the Association of American Medical Colleges is presented that reviews the goals, environment, and mechanisms of support of biomedical and behavioral research.

Discussion of academic medical centers (AMCs) looks at: change due to heavy federal funding in recent decades; adverse consequences, including deemphasis on education in favor of research and clinical service delivery, and discrepancies between AMC internal and external labor markets; and challenges to medical education in research, education, and…