C 0. Chan

Revugh—Ppratt
October 5, 1978

Memo to File
J) October 5, 1978

Discussion with Bob Michels and his psychiatry colleagues.

 

The bottom line is that there is a full recognition
of the complementary needs and capabilities and we can
go right from there towards the search for appropriate
candidates. The repertoire of clinical resources and
needs for a more basic research program is full recognized
on their side. They have not been able to recruit the
kind of people they would want without the additional
factors that we could offer. I think it will take some
time before our colleagues here understand our responsi-
bilities on our side.

I indicated that the maximum that we probably could
commit would be a single tenured professorship given the
different connotations that this title has compared to
roles across the street. They might be able to generate
several additional positions based on somewhat softer or
patient care originating funds.

I suggested with general agreement that it would be
premature to try to get agreement in principle on this
side to the general concept. It would be far better
to identify a promising and attractive candidate and
the number of these today is rather thin.

We probably should continue to give some consideration
to Wyatt but Kety's comments are not all that enthusiastic

and in the light of Barchas' review and the recent circum-

ol: [vino
Memo to file continued
-2-

Stances there probably is not too much merit in going
ahead right now.

That leaves a rather thin list of tangible candidates
but we should probably reexamine the situation with Satl
Snyder at least as a consultant and that is one of the
tangible step. Kety has already been consulting with
Bob Michels not knowing of the Rockefeller connection.
Perhaps I should call him up myself and see how he would
illuminate it.

Gerry Smith will send me some more background material
on a few of their other candidates and I will start trying
to indoctrinate myself on the frontiers of this area of
investigation. There is a real problem on the extent to
which clinical investigation is the primary opportunity
for research in biochemical pharmacology as people like
Snyder would in fact offer a different emphases. But that
is where a discussion with him about research atrategies
would already be useful and interesting.

Besides Michels, Bill Frosch and Gerry Smith, Kappas
was there and of course one of our own responsibilities is
to try to figure out our own process in the evaluation of
possibilities and opportunities. We should probably have
some report of these conversations with our colleagues in

the Hospital group in the near future.