\"Making Your Research Count: Addressing the National Academy of Science
Research Agenda on Diversity Issues", November 16, 2007, San Francisco,
CA

This workshop explored three of the National Research Council's (NRC's)
research recommendations for minority health in late life. It provided a
forum to review critical research, explore resources and advance the
research agenda on diversity issues. The workshop was organized by the
NIA Research Centers for Minority Aging Research (RCMAR) and held as a
pre-conference to the Gerontological Society of America's (GSA's) annual
scientific meeting. Participants included RCMAR Scholars, junior and
senior faculty from related NIA Aging Centers and projects, an NRC
representative and other research faculty interested in minority aging.
It was supported by an NIA R13 conference grant.\
\
The conference opened with an agenda-setting plenary session titled
"Aging, the Life-Course & Health Disparities: Exploring the
Intersections" by James S. Jackson, PhD, Director, Institute for Social
Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Co-Director, Michigan
Center for Urban African American Aging Research (MCUAAAR). Keith E.
Whitfield, PhD, Research Professor, Department of Psychology and
Neuroscience at Duke University led an interactive discussion of this
presentations' key elements. The morning sessions set the stage for a
panel of researchers to present their work on the selected NRC themes.

Dr. Eileen M. Crimmins, Edna M. Jones Professor of Gerontology and
Sociology at the University of Southern California, and NRC
representative, presented "Addressing the National Academy of Sciences
Research Agenda on Diversity Issues" which outlined research priorities
related to NRC Recommendation #6 (*Clarify the degree to which
socioeconomic status accounts for racial and ethnic differences in
health outcomes over the life course*). She was followed by Mitchell D.
Wong, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor in Residence, Division of General
Internal Medicine/Health Services Research, University of California,
Los Angeles, who discussed his research focused on NRC Recommendation #1
(*Attempt a systematic decomposition of racial and ethnic differences in
mortality and morbidity among older people to determine the relative
contribution of particular diseases or conditions*). An afternoon
plenary presented by Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, MD*,* Professor of
Medicine; Chief Division of General Internal Medicine, University of
California, San Francisco, Director, Center for Aging in Diverse
Communities (CADC) focused on his research related to NRC Recommendation
#2 (*Clarify the contracts between mortality rankings and morbidity
rankings, particularly between older whites and Hispanics, and assess
the relative contributions of diseases and conditions to differences in
mortality and overall health*).

The afternoon session provided participants with a panel session
exploring the use of both local and national datasets for minority aging
research. Dr Kenneth F. Ferraro, Director of Center on Aging and the
Life Course; Professor of Sociology, Purdue University presented
"Existing Data and The Opportunities for Diversity Aging Research",
which discussed the use of datasets related to minority aging research.
He was followed by R. Turner Goins, PhD, Associate Professor, West
Virginia University, RCMAR Scholar, addressed the available datasets and
the need for additional datasets to study the Native American
population.

The afternoon continued with four interactive small group sessions
focused around the following areas: (1) "Race vs. Socioecomonic Status"
facilitated by Janet C. Frank, DrPH, and James S. Jackson, PhD.; (2)
"Disease Burden by Race \| Ethnicity**"** facilitated by Mitchell D.
Wong, MD, PhD, and Keith E. Whitfield, PhD; (3) "Mortality-Morbidity
Paradox**"** facilitated by Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, and Steven P.
Wallace, PhD; and (4)

"Cross-Cutting Issues**"** facilitated by Turner Goins, PhD and Sidney
M. Stahl, PhD. The interactive sessions were followed by a summary
discussion "Mapping Key Research Areas and Needed Resources" delivered
by Janet C. Frank, DrPH, and Steven P. Wallace, PhD. This synthesis of
information assisted workshop attendees in identifying research
questions, needed research, and interests and desires to move forward on
specific recommendations. The day concluded with a closing plenary
titled "Advancing the Research Agenda on Diversity Issues" by Keith
Whitfield, PhD. Dr. Whitfield focused his comments on "training,
teamwork and translation" and presented from his research on the
contribution of environmental and genetic factors to risk for poor
health, poor health behaviors and health disparities.

The workshop materials are available on the National RCMAR Coordinating
Center's website: [www.rcmar.ucla.edu](http://www.rcmar.ucla.edu/). For
more information, please contact Ms. Pamela Jackson-McCall at
prjackso@mednet.ucla.edu.