ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses that the climate for primary care research at academic health centers is not supportive. The climate for research is also less than optimal within the discipline. The climate for research in primary care is defined by its research standards, its environment, and the personal attitudes of its members. Although people can set personal standards, it should ultimately be the discipline that sets the ethical standards for its research. In addition, primary care research must address family aspects of health, such as family epidemiology, and the effects of family and community on illness patterns. Ethical standards also arise in the analysis of results. In addition to "data-dredging", ignoring issues such as statistical power and experiment-wise alpha when planning a study is unethical. Although he/she can set local standards and work to foster attitudes favoring research, these may realistically rest with others.
