Present:

REE;

cory Gos

Officers! Conference
Monday, March 18, 1946
eae

RBF, JHW, AJW, oM, WW, aG

Reports aprropriation of $5,000 for expenses of entertaining UNO rep-
resentatives — action at closed session of Executive Committee,

There will be no Executive Committee meeting in April,

AG's idea about condition of medical schoole es subject of Foundation

intereet, And WW's observation that if Cormittee on Review of Program
has plan for meeting with head of each division seperately after

April Board meeting, the subject of the medical schools be brought up

‘In that way before the Committee,

AG asked to set forth the idea,

Questions the assumption made in the reorganization of 1927-1998. that
medival education is on the hich rosd and more or lese taking care of
itself. ‘The war and the postwar call for a review of policy, The
following things are cogent and important; from 1920-1926 no doubt
that medical schools lost between 20% and 40% of income; have noticed
following important phenomena in the medical schools - salaries cut,
subordinate posts rubted out, forward plans paralyzed or put on shelf
exeent as result of ad hoc sifts, Resultant uncertainty reflected: in
younger generation's decision not to go into academic medicine, About,

‘1927 came temporary relief. There was little Picking up, and some.

pickup in terms of attitude of younger generation, With the war came.

a cataract of very unfortunate developments; acceleration of pre-
medical and medical training; schools had tuition guaranteed; students
wentiinto-uniform: numbers increased by 10% to 254; saving in overhead
from constent operation; faculties cost less; cunior men were lost, the

one waving factor being the dean't« liet, ‘ith the end of the war there

Game immediately © tremendous wave of veteran Coctors, many with inede-

quate tre ining, pressing for gradunte work or internships - the nost:

laborious and time-consuming kin? of education, fire other ‘things vare
in the picture: requests from foreign countries for advanced work for —

their students, e.g., French Government fellows; various foundations |
have extraordinary large amounts of money for research which may give

rise to grants available which cannot be nonestly Placed,

The level of: education, research and teaching is going to detertorate
seriously in the next five to ten yenrs, mostly because central

-expeneef aré not adequately provided, Full time is on the skids -
willy jonlyvbeisaved' by | gropp prectice, To do research work there must

be free. tine and younger men to tackle part of the’ research; and sta-_

“nility of a career concerns young men who can go into. ‘private practice

or health work,

Recommends eubstantial allocation to central expenses of some of the
vest schools to do three things; cell a halt.on deterioration; en-
hance likelihood that research money will be weal: spent; what the
Rockefeller Foundation does is closely watched byy public and can set
example and influence private donors
AG:

WW;

ATW:

oHW:

uM:

ASF;

COFY

Bnumerates schools on geographic or area basis (suggestion $1,000, 000°
endowment each for 10 schools,

These interests overlap interests of NS *ivision -— preclinical subjects
suffer fastest. Very large proportion of it common to all fields, Seems
sensible procedure to put common ideas before Appraisal Cormittee.

“One very large Wndefined element in situation which makee action unwise -

namely, clarification of position of Federal government with regard

“to support of: cultural - enterprises - believes there will be clarification
_by Decemher,

Problem Of direct interest and importance to IHD from geveral angles.

An operating division with a medical etaff and type of activities will
be directly dependent for its results on quality of personnel, In the
@evelorment of putlic health in general, funds are increasingly available
fror state and federal government. Major problem is pereonnel to spend,
It is a problem of medical schools, not of schools of public health,

IED for almost ten years has been etrengthening central adrinistrations
of schoole of rublic health - supporting some research in addition,

A proper officers! question. Foundation always under obligation of
continuity as well as of venturing into new fields, History warrants
priority in medicine and public health. Medical schools have proved their
capacity to use money wisely in the public welfare, Zmphesis on teaching
can be roused in other directions, Shortage of doctors in country
districts, incrensed call for social medicine and the level of medical
fees is menaeure of shortage of doctors, Observation: general cuestion
of where emphasis of Foundation money goes - does it go toward general
support of where it has been, or does it go toward backing of those areas
of strategic importance ir the world today not likely to be otherwise
provided for, e. Eos. psychiatry and social medicine, agricultural work in

“Mexico, “philosophy, reece, in-the encial field and government? another
question. that. :-perhaps is worth raising has to do with details of figures;

would this bé contribution to endowment? Anewer: Yes. What percentage
would it be in total budget? $75,999 addition to budgets ranging |
from $400,000 to $800,000, Would assume that study of finances of medical —
schools night de rensonable as tesis of consi@eration, For four or five
years the situation would be better then before becauce tuitione will be wun,

Study trend of budget, prewar, and trend of gifts, AG protests that
‘medical schools do not share this proerperity ~ increase in tuition not in

their picture, GHW holds to lesirability of examination of gehsol
finances, Speake for use of foundgetion funds to point toward things vital
in particulier fields,

Humanities more ind move :aced with questions of underlying continuity,

One thing certain about’ Feccral Government - Eumanities will not get any
of the money - 19 rellef in that quarter,

Colleges tend to get all gifts - graduate echools not 20 fortunate

If the Government should discover that they ere not getting what they
want, there might be anendmant of purposes (i.e., if research cannot
ve “honestly placed! might devote funcs for recruitment or training
purposes),