PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

David Korn

Publications and source records attributed to David Korn.

28 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2002

Industry, academia, investigator: managing the relationships.

Financial self-interests in medical research are again the subject of increasing public and government concern. Proposed new statutes and regulations would prescribe research conduct and oversight, as well as faculty behavior, in ways that would represent an unprecedented interposition of federal authority into areas of traditional university autonomy. Overly zealous regulation could also interdict a fruitful product development pathway of enormous benefit to public health. Yet, the universities and their academic medical centers have failed to respond sufficiently or credibly to the profound transformation of their research culture in the past two decades, which has witnessed a dramatic increase in the privatization of historically public biomedical research, and in the financial self-interests of investigators and institutions in the research they conduct. The author reviews the history of federal regulation of individual conflicts of interest in biomedical research, and examines the always-complex relationships and expectations of research universities with industry and society. While university oversight of individual conflicts of interest demands strengthening, the issues are long debated and well understood. In contrast, the financial interest of institutions in the medical research they conduct is recent, more complicated, poorly understood, and highly sensitive, involving investment decisions that lie at the heart of university autonomy. The author argues that institutions and professional societies must promulgate and enforce transparent standards of conduct, and strengthen oversight and management of financial self-interests, to avoid burdensome federal intervention and corrosive public skepticism. He concludes by reporting three promising responses from academia and major medical journals.

Academic Medical Centers↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Dares to addiction: youth definitions and perspectives on gambling.

BACKGROUND: Over the past decade, there has been a rapid growth of gambling in Canada and internationally. Although youth are a potentially vulnerable group, little is known about what they understand and if they are being affected by the recent increase in gambling. METHODS: This study examined how youth view gambling using an inductive qualitative research design and analysis based on grounded theory principles. Twelve focus groups were conducted comprising 103 participants (median age = 15 years) with diverse representation of Ontario youth. Focus-group questions were designed to capture youth's experiences and opinions about gambling. RESULTS: Youth participants defined a spectrum of gambling from a dare and friendly betting to legalized forms of gambling (lotteries, casinos) and addiction. Their opinions varied according to age and gambling type. For example, daring and friendly betting were identified as positive activities used by younger adolescents to relieve boredom and establish social relationships. Gambling was separate from daring because of its association with money. Many participants had minimal awareness of the potential negative impact of gambling. Information technology (Internet) was seen as an attractive medium for playing games and gambling where no money was involved. CONCLUSION: Lack of awareness of gambling among youth and its consequences underscores the need for public education. The diverse range of gambling behaviour and age-dependent access to money need careful consideration in defining youth gambling "problems" and in designing public health interventions.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Engaging youth about gambling using the internet: The YouthBet.net website.

OBJECTIVE: YouthBet.net's (www.youthbet.net) goal is to prevent gambling problems among youth through an interactive, multimedia website based on a public health approach. PARTICIPANTS: YouthBet.net was designed by youth for youth. A youth working group spent several months designing the look and feel of the site to ensure that it would appeal to youth aged 10-19. In total, 34 youth from the Greater Toronto Area participated in the first 3 phases of the usability testing of the site using Video Capture of User Site Interaction methodology. SETTING: Urban Toronto. INTERVENTION: Utilizing public health strategies such as health promotion, harm reduction and problem prevention, YouthBet.net features games, information and help resources to protect youth from gambling-related harm. OUTCOMES: Youth participants indicated that they liked the interactive way gambling information was presented via realistic games and quizzes, often citing that YouthBet.net would be a fun and educational tool to be used by teachers in the classroom. Participants had no difficulties navigating the site, finding content and playing games. Additionally, all youth said that they would return to the site and would recommend it to a friend if they were having a problem with gambling. CONCLUSION: YouthBet.net is one of the first comprehensive websites designed for youth gambling. Findings from this research will inform future health promotion, harm reduction and problem prevention efforts for youth gambling using Internet technology.

Adolescent↗