#Dr pardes professional#

We were all volunteers (and continue to be). Number one: we agreed not to make elaborate or complicated bylaws. PARDES: WeвЂ™ve followed a number of principles that have stood the test of time. These are people who have really understood how psychiatric research is funded, who have a deep knowledge of how things work.ДR. PARDES: From the very beginning, the Council has been composed of a substantial number of people who are dedicated and very highly regarded leaders in their respective fields. QUESTION: What have been some of the factors behind the effectiveness of the Council?ДR. Having вЂњa NARSADвЂќ has become a mark of distinction, something academic researchers who receive such an award often boast about, in part because the grants are so thoughtfully awarded by experts in the field, who advise the Council.

#Dr pardes professional#

Little did I know then that the CouncilвЂ™s work would be one of the great professional and personal experiences of my life! For over 30 years, this group, which is now composed of over 172 leaders in all aspects of neurobiology, neuroscience, clinical care, psychology and psychiatry, has awarded thousands of grants worth more than $394 million to the very best scientists, many of them just starting out and in greatest need of external support. The original members of our Scientific CouncilвЂ“about a dozen peopleвЂ“selected me as president at our first meeting in 1986. QUESTION: The Scientific Council of NARSAD (and now BBRF) traces its origins to that same time, the year 1986, correct?ДR. Together, under Gwill Newman of Chicago, they formed an organization called NARSAD, the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression.

At the beginning of this effort, the core group consisted of several leaders from NAMI and a group from Kentucky, Boston and other places, called the Schizophrenia Foundation. PARDES: After NAMI had been running for a while, they raised the question: вЂњShouldnвЂ™t we launch a private organization that would be dedicated to the support of research, to complement our citizens' advocacy group and the work of the NIMH?вЂќ Again, I agreed enthusiastically.

QUESTION: Explain how that group gave rise in 1986 to what we now call the Brain & Behavior Research FoundationвЂ“ or NARSAD, as it was called then.ДR. It continues to this day to be a highly influential citizens' group on psychiatric illness. It was called the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, or NAMI. The group that emerged from that 1979 gathering in Madison did precisely that. I also thought we could make a serious dent in stigma by bringing families into the picture on a national scale. So I felt the time was ripe for a partnership between people in the psychiatric profession and the public.

At the same time, most people who donвЂ™t suffer from a psychiatric illness figure they will never suffer from oneвЂ“an attitude very few reasonable people have about cancer or heart disease, for instance. Why? Well, most patients with severe mental illnesses arenвЂ™t able to advocate, either because of incapacity or a fear of being stigmatized. There were no similarly powerful advocacy groups at that time for people with mental illness. PARDES: Other citizen groups had been working for years on behalf of people with other illnesses, including muscular dystrophy, cancer, and heart disease. QUESTION: Why? What was so important about bringing families into the picture?ДR. They asked: вЂњWhat if we had a family group that worked for mental illness causes?вЂќ I thought it was a great idea. In 1979, I had been invited to a meeting in Madison, Wisconsin held by a group of parents of people with schizophrenia. In my years in Washington, as we got the NIMH to focus more on research and clinical treatment of mental illness, I also felt strongly that we should work to develop collaborations with citizens. One of these is what youвЂ™ve called вЂњcitizen involvementвЂќ in the cause of mental health.ДR. But you also devoted time to related issues and causes.

The story begins in 1984, when, after serving for five and a half years under Presidents Carter and Reagan as Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), you decided to return to academic medicine, becoming Chair of Psychiatry at Columbia University and later the Dean of the Medical School and V.P. So there is no one better suited than you to help us understand the vital role the Council has played in the FoundationвЂ™s history.ДЇirst, letвЂ™s provide a little context for our readers. Pardes, as the founding President of the FoundationвЂ™s Scientific Council, your name above all others is associated with that body. Please enjoy this Q&A sit down with Herbert Pardes, M.D.,В Executive Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees,В NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital / President and Founding Member of the BBRF Scientific Council, and 2014 Pardes Humanitarian Prizewinner in Mental Health.