Straight talk with...Otmar Kloiber

Representing some 8 million physicians from over 80 countries across the globe is no easy task, but Otmar Kloiber has handled this responsibility since 2005. As secretary general of the World Medical Association (WMA), Kloiber deals with a wide array of medical topics, ranging from drug-resistant tuberculosis to the ethics of organ transplantation. Founded shortly after World War II, the WMA is a voluntary consortium of national medical associations that fosters physician independence and promotes sound principles of medical care and ethics. Its widely recognized Declaration of Helsinki, an ethical framework designed to protect research subjects, just underwent a round of proposed edits to ensure better protection and greater rewards for research subjects. Kloiber explains the implications of these drafted changes, scheduled for final approval this fall, and the role of the WMA with Coco Ballantyne.