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Contact: Media Relations Officer
AAMC Study Shows NIH Awards Increasingly Concentrated
in Research Intensive Medical Schools
Washington, D.C., January 27, 2000--Grants and contracts from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are becoming increasingly concentrated in research intensive U.S. medical schools, according to a new study from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) published Jan. 27 in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). The study's lead authors are the AAMC's Ernest Moy, M.D., and Paul F. Griner, M.D.
The study shows that from 1986 to 1997 the proportion of research awards granted by the NIH to the 10 most research intensive medical schools increased from 24.6 percent to 27.1 percent, while the 75 least intensive medical schools received proportionately fewer awards, 24.3 percent to 21.8 percent. The 40 medical schools in the mid-range of intensity remained constant. There are currently 125 U.S. medical schools.
Researchers investigated changes in the distribution of NIH awards among medical schools from 1986 to 1997 and differences in the patterns of distribution according to the medical school department, the academic degree held by the principal investigator, and the awarding NIH institute.
According to the study authors, the increasing concentration of awards in the top 10 research intensive medical schools is consistent with predictions made in 1981. At that time, David R. Challoner, M.D., and David R. Perry reported in NEJM that 75 percent of NIH research funds were awarded to the 40 schools with the most research activity and predicted that awards would become increasingly concentrated among the most research intensive schools. Dr. Challoner and Mr. Perry are co-authors on the current study. Dr. Challoner is at the University of Florida and Mr. Perry is affiliated with the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.
The increase in the proportion of awards concentrated in the 10 medical schools with the most research activity was greater among clinical departments than among basic-science departments and greater among principal investigators with a M.D. than among those with a Ph.D.
The researchers note that many external factors may be hampering the ability of some medical schools to support research including the ability to recruit and retain clinical investigators from among the limited pool of physician researchers.
The researchers note that the study findings may be useful to administrators, researchers, and educators at medical schools as they evaluate their institutions' future commitment to research. "Perhaps the relevant question in research policy is whether and how the concentration of research in some institutions influences the advancement of science. Does concentrating research in fewer institutions retard or accelerate the pace of discovery? Is there an optimal distribution of research that would maximize the scientific return on society's investment?" write the authors. The researchers conclude that insight into these questions will be gained with additional analysis of trends in the distribution of NIH research awards among medical schools.
The AAMC research was supported, in part, by The Commonwealth Fund.
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The Association of American Medical Colleges represents the 125 accredited U.S. medical schools; the 16 accredited Canadian medical schools; some 400 major teaching hospitals, including 74 Veterans Administration medical centers; 91 academic and professional societies representing nearly 88,000 faculty members; and the nation's 67,000 medical students and 102,000 residents.
Additional information about the AAMC and U.S. medical schools and teaching hospitals is available at www.aamc.org/newsroom.
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