What do you think about the appropriateness of drugs developed specifically for African Americans?

Take BiDil. I know there's a lot of controversy about it; but I really think it is appropriate. And as you get people taken care of, it's even better.

To be honest, this is not really a new issue. Maybe we feel more open about saying it, but there have always been medicines that worked better in some people than others. Initially, diuretics were for African Americans; they weren't for other people. And if you look at it, there are certain diseases that are peculiar to certain populations: Tay-Sachs is peculiar to the Jewish population; Alport's Syndrome is peculiar to white males with a certain genetic makeup.

Looking forward, what is the biggest issue facing science and medicine for ethnic minorities?

One thing that the National Medical Association is very interested in is increasing the number of minorities in clinical trials. I think that would improve patient compliance because it would really make patients take ownership of their health. There has been some historical fears about being "guinea pigs" in clinical trials; but with more minority physicians involved in heading and conducting clinical trials, I think we'll see more participation from minorities.

Know Your Associations

The following is a select group of organizations focused on serving the needs of minorities.

Association of American Indian Physicians

http:// http://www.aaip.com/

Association of Black Cardiologists

http:// http://www.abcardio.org/

Association of Chinese American Physicians

http:// http://www.acaponline.org/

Association of Pakistani Physicians of North America

http:// http://www.appna.org/

Association of Philippine Physicians in America

http:// http://www.aboutappa.org/

Hungarian Medical Association of America

http:// http://www.hmaa.org/

Islamic Medical Association of North America

http:// http://www.imana.org/

Japanese Medical Society of America

http:// http://www.jmsa.org/

Korean-American Medical Association of the U.S.

http:// http://www.koreanama.org/

National Hispanic Medical Association

http:// http://www.nhmamd.org/

Polish-American Medical Society

http:// http://www.zlpchicago.org/

United States Colombian Medical Association (USCMA)

http:// http://www.uscma.org/

SOURCE: American Medical Association