Atlanta Medical Center's commitment to excellence in medical education includes its support of an in-house research program that coordinates and provides services for medical staff, resident and allied health research activities. Many Atlanta Medical Center physicians are actively involved in clinical trials, usually Phase III or IV studies, especially in the areas of cardiology, infectious disease and primary care.

The Atlanta Cancer Pavilion, located on campus, is actively implementing NCI-sponsored trials through several national community clinical oncology program networks. Nurse investigators, as well, are participating in a number of sponsored studies, evaluating investigational clinical support devices.

The Research Department is often able to assist these investigators by initially locating available studies and negotiating with the sponsors to choose Atlanta Medical Center as a study site. Ongoing support is then provided, ranging from financial administration to assistance with document preparation and submission.

Residents are encouraged to assist senior investigators and thereby gain experience in conducting clinical trials, and establishing sponsor and funding relationships.

There are equally broad opportunities for resident or physician-initiated research to be successfully conducted. The Research Department can assist physicians and residents throughout the research process, from initial development through implementation and data collection, computerized medical records review, and statistical analysis and preparation of manuscripts for publication.

Atlanta Medical Center resources also include a federally compliant Institutional Review Board to monitor the rights and responsibilities of research program participants. There also is a basic research laboratory available on site, as well as established cooperative resource pooling with other area institutions.

Current areas of resident research activity include several basic and applied funded projects in orthopaedics and obstetrics as well as a systematic longitudinal evaluation of the impact that a newly integrated Ethics in Medical Education program is having on physician and patient behaviors.