EVALUATION OF AN INTRODUCTORY COURSE ON CLINICAL RESEARCH FOR INNER CITY

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. As part of the GCRC NIH funded grant, the Long Beach Poly Technic High (LB Poly) course in clinical research began in 2001. Senior high school students taking honors courses or advanced placement courses are eligible to take this course. Attracting 10-17 students each year, 66 students have completed the course since 2001. The course is 14 weeks long, five hours per week consisting of activities at LB Poly and activities at a hospital site. Activities at LB Poly include journal club, seminars, exams and biomedical ethics discussions. Activities at the hospital sites include experimental design, literature searching, statistics, research ethics including the ethics of human subject research, clinical research with a research mentor, and presentation of research work. We hypothesize that participation in this course leads to a greater interest in science and research leading to increased interest in becoming a physician-scientist. To test our hypotheses, a twenty minute long, 73-item telephonic survey has been developed to measure the post-high school educational and research activities of the course participants. Using course records for contact information, all 66 course participants will be invited to participate in the survey. The invitation to participate in the survey will include an information sheet on the survey, a copy of the survey and an addressed, postage-paid postcard to decline participation. Course participants who do not decline participation will be contacted by telephone and asked if they would like to participate in the survey. Those ageeing to be surveyed will be asked 15-73 questions regarding their college attendance, field of study, research activities, future plans and impact of the LB Poly course. To maintain confidentiality, responses will be securely kept and anonymous.