NUMC Cardiology Reveals Need for Increased Diversity among Research Participants Nationwide
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Nassau Health Care Corporation
NUMC Cardiology Reveals Need for Increased Diversity among Research Participants Nationwide
East Meadow, N.Y., September 8th, 2022 – Nassau University Medical Center’s Department of Cardiology conducted a review of major cardiovascular trials between 1986 and 2019 to determine if representation of traditionally under-represented racial or ethnic groups had increased over time. Their findings, recently published in the Heart, Lung, and Circulation Journal, reveal no improvement in representation in the past 3 decades.
Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC) continues to lead the way in medical research on healthcare inequality. Physicians in the Department of Cardiology recently published an article in the Heart, Lung, and Circulation journal outlining the findings of a multi-year study of major research trials in the field of cardiology. The article, titled “Inclusion of Under-Represented Racial and Ethnic Groups in Cardiovascular Clinical Trials,” reveals a startling reality about medical research: there has been no significant increase in representation of traditionally under-represented groups in cardiological research since 1986.
The study examined 153 randomized clinical trials and determined that only 56.2% reported race and ethnicity of participating members. The low figure is surprising for several reasons. First and foremost because race and ethnicity often correlate with social determinants of health, or social or economic factors that affect an individual’s health, functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks. Given that Black, Asian, and Hispanic individuals are disproportionately likely to experience high blood pressure, heart disease, and other cardiological conditions. Race and ethnicity are critical data points about trial participants that can ultimately influence guidelines and improve outcomes.
Second, the last decade has seen an increase in discussions of healthcare inequality, including in the field of cardiology. The COVID-19 pandemic, in particular, shone a bright light on limited access to care and reduced health outcomes among under-represented groups in the United States. Despite heightened awareness of this problem among medical professionals and the general public, research practices have not yet evolved to capture and respond to this disparity. The article therefore serves as a call-to-action to physicians in research hospitals like NUMC to diversify their representative population in clinical research trials, as well as report data about race and ethnicity in their findings.
Dr. Amgad Makaryus, Chairman of the Department of Cardiology and Co-Chair of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, also sees this as an opportunity for community members, saying: “We encourage you to participate in research trials. NUMC’s goal is to eliminate healthcare disparities among racially, ethnically, and culturally diverse patient populations, and we can’t achieve that goal without your help.”
Nassau Health Care Corporation congratulates Drs. Viliane Vilcant, Carlos Ceron, Gagan Verma, Roman Zeltser, and Amgad Makaryus on their recent and exciting publication. NUMC continues to serve as an exemplary medical research institution committed to providing high-quality health care to Long Island’s most vulnerable populations.
With over eight decades of history in the area, Nassau University Medical Center serves as the region’s premier Level I trauma center, treating critically injured patients as well as providing coordinated medical care to Long Island residents at every stage of life. Nassau University Medical Center is committed to its mission of providing the community with outstanding and compassionate state-of-the-art medical and surgical care.
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