American College of Cardiology

PROCEEDINGS OF THE 30TH BETHESDA CONFERENCE. THE FUTURE OF ACADEMIC CARDIOLOGY. BETHESDA, MARYLAND, OCTOBER 26-27, 1998.
JACC Vol. 33, No. 5, April 1999:1091-1135

30th Bethesda Conference:
The Future of Academic Cardiology*

Task Force 2: Research

Jeffrey S. Borer, MD, FACC, Co-Chair, Robert A. Vogel, MD, FACC, Co-Chair

EFFECT OF CURRENT NATIONAL MEDICAL PRIORITIES AND REIMBURSEMENT STRATEGIES ON CARDIOVASCULAR RESEARCH ACTIVITIES IN ACADEMIC MEDICAL CENTERS

SUMMARY RECOMMENDATIONS

Academic medical centers must

1. Develop and support clinician-investigators, that is, well trained researchers who also provide patient care.
2. Expand the focus and contribution of clinician-investigators by initiating formation of interdisciplinary clinician-investigator groups comprising basic scientists, epidemiologists/statisticians, clinician-investigators and others, focused on complex, multidisciplinary patient-related research.
3. Provide clinical education for nonclinician researchers involved in the interdisciplinary groups, and rigorous training in research methodology for clinician-investigators.
4. Develop a cost accounting structure for currently unremunerated academic activity.

The American College of Cardiology must

1. Encourage expansion of the National Institutes of Health extramural clinical research budget, and expansion of parallel public funding sources for cardiovascular clinical research.
2. Encourage and participate in provision of parallel patient-oriented research support from quasi-public and nonprofit sources.
3. Develop mechanisms and supporting dialogue to enable and enhance industrial funding for investigator-initiated research, as well as enhanced industry-initiated research.
4. Organize interactions with the nonmedical public to heighten public awareness of the value of cardiovascular research.

TASK FORCE 2 REFERENCE LIST