Document 6RZaa5bz2jOZLEJ4xbO70YrXg

July 12, 1956 PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL . D r. Wayland J. H ayes, J r . U. S. Public H ealth Service Communicable D isease C enter Box 769 Savannah, G eorgia D ear Doctor Hayes: I h asten to fulfill m y p ro m ise to you to give you in w riting an idea of the nature of the position in this D epartm ent which I have invited you to consider, and my view of the p resen t status and the future p ro sp ects of this position and of this D epartm ent in the field of O ccupational M edicine. In my attem pt to p resen t these m a tte rs as re a listic a lly as I can, I sh all om it all referen ce to the financial side of the situation, since this is not at this tim e the p rim ary consideration, and since, in any c a se , it can probably be m ade to fit the c ase . The U niversity title involved is that of A ssociate P ro fe sso r. L et m e say at the outset, that I reg ard this as the forem ost re se a rc h and educational organization in the United States in the field of Occupational M edicine, and I am quite confident that if we can get and keep the right kind of people in th e o rg a n iz a tio n , we can m a in ta in th a t p o sitio n s u c c e s s fu lly . We a re in difficulty at p resen t because of our urgent need fo r a sa tisfac to ry chief of our Division of Toxicology, The disablem ent of D r. F ra n cis F . H eyroth, head of this Division and A ssistant D irector of the K ettering L aboratory fo r m any y ears has dealt us a serio u s blow. This is one of th ree key positions in the D epartm ent, and we need for it an outstanding m edical investigator and teach er, who is also capable of dealing with the p rac tic al side of in d u strial m edicine and hygiene, with understanding. I have reaso n to believe that you would fulfill these req u irem en ts. I should advise you, how ever, that because of the im portance of th is appointm ent, I shall w ish to be su re that it m eets with the approval of Dean D orst and of c ertain m em bers of the F aculty Council of the C o lleg e of M e d icin e.- .. .. . . Some tim e in the not too distant future, the L aboratory will have to have a new d ire c to r, and the D epartm ent of P reventive M edicine and Industrial H ealth of the M edical School w ill have to have a new head. The two a re not necessarily synonymous, for Preventive M edicine, on the one hand, and The K ettering L aboratory as the re se a rc h agency of the D epartm ent, on the other, a re the two p a rts of a D epartm ent.that has m ultiple functions. At p re se n t John g 00 05 866 ft Q D r. W ayland J . H ay es, J r , - (2) - Ju ly 12, 1956 P h a ir, P ro fe sso r of P reventive M edicine, with offices and conference and class room s in the m ain building of the M edical College (Just a c ro ss a court from the K ettering L aboratory), is in charge of the teaching of m edical Btudents in preventive m edicine, public health and occupational m edicine (the staff of the K ettering la b o ra to ry provides the teaching in the la tte r and in certain m atters - a ir and w ater pollution and a few other problem s - derived from industry). D r. P h air, on the o th er hand, engages in the re se a rc h work of the L aboratory and d irects its epidem iological and sta tistic a l w ork as the D ivision of Preventive M edicine of the D epartm ent as a whole. The new head of the D epartm ent, on m y retirem en t, m ay com e from o u r group, o r from the outside, dependent upon how w ell we a re m anned a t that tim e. The general re se a rc h program of the D epartm ent, excluding som e independent resea rch on the p a rt of P h a ir's group and som e independent re se a rc h by indi viduals, is c a rrie d out in the K ettering L aboratory, which is also the cen ter (adm inistrative and academ ic) of the graduate and p o st-g rad u ate train in g (in Industrial M edicine, Industrial Toxicology and Industrial Sanitation and Hygiene) program s of the Institute of Industrial H ealth (the nam e of the teaching organi zation com posed of teach ers of m any disciplines in the various colleges of the U niversity of Cincinnati under the authority of the G raduate School of A rts and Sciences). The g re a te r portion of the re se a rc h program is in the nature of organized re se a rc h in industrial toxicology, contributed to by the various other Divisions of the D epartm ent (Pathologic, Industrial Hygiene Technology, C linical, Bibliographic and Preventive M edicine, i.e . Statistical, e tc .), but directed by the head of the Toxicologic D ivision. A t p resen t, in the absence of an active head, the work is under the d irectio n of a com m ittee com posed of the heads of the principal D ivisions. The graduate and post-graduate work of the Institute is the other m ajor respon sibility of the D epartm ent. F ran k P rin ci is the head of our clinical Division and i3 a lso in c h arg e of o u r g rad u a te w o rk . There is also general adm inistration, under the D irecto r of the D epartm ent with re sp e c t to finances and g en eral policies of re s e a rc h and education. To a considerable extent, I have been directing the re se a rc h not only in a general way but also in som e detail, during the period of D r. H eyroth's illn ess. A ccordingly, because this could not continue, the C om m ittee, known am ong o urselves as the Executive C om m ittee, under the chairm anship of John P h a ir, has taken over and re lie v e d me* in p a r t , of an in to le ra b le b u rd e n . This le tte r would be unduly long if 1 w ere to go into the details of ou r in v esti gative, consultative, and educational a ctiv itie s. Suffice it h e re to say that these a re all coordinated, to a considerable extent, to serv e the purposes of aiding A m erican industry, on a fa irly broad base, to achieve the m axim um of j j g' G0C5S67 ' D r. W ayland J . Hayes* J r . - (3) July 12, 1956 - in d u strial health through the knowledge gained fro m re se a rc h , through the experience with the problem s of industrial health that has been gained from num erous and varied d irect contacts with industry, and through the training of personnel com petent to step into m edical and engineering posts in industrial and governm ental organizations At the sam e tim e, our professional efforts a re coordinated with those of professional societies, governm ental organizations, and other university groups, through m em berships, com m ittee assignm ents, consultations and other professional and personal associations. I have undertaken, through the y e a rs, carefu lly to cultivate our professional relationships with industry and w ith all of the related professional groups, but alw ays under the aegis of this U niversity. I have draw n the facilities of this U niversity into industry, with the idea that a u niversity can serv e industry b e tte r th an cam any o th e r a g en c y , in th is f ie ld . I have a ls o b ro u g h t in d u s try , in these m a tte rs, into the university, w ith g reat care to p ro tect the v irtues and the rights of the u n iv ersity , and yet to obtain the support and the confidence of industry. In doing th is I have follow ed what I believe to be the only re a lis tic policy fo r in d u stria l m ed ical re s e a rc h and industrial, m ed ical in stru c tio n . We cannot w ork in this field successfully unless we w ork in industry, and c ertain ly we can teach in d u strial m edicine and hygiene satisfacto rily only if we have the m aterial of industrial health and ill health and of industrial life and activities generally as our lab o ra to ry in which to w ork and le a rn and teach. What I have to offer to you, o r to anyone else who com es into a responsible position in this organization, is an opportunity to w ork to your fu llest p ro fes sional and technological capacity, to sh are with us our efforts to adapt m edical education and p ractice to the needs of o u r com plicated society, and to aid in the solution of what I believe to be the m ost p ressin g se rie s of problem s of public health, m edical practice and m edical education that lie before m edical people in th is c o u n try . " ; ' ' ' : It would be v ery difficult fo r m e to p o rtra y the opportunity which p resen ts itse lf to u s in th is U n iv e rs ity and in th is D e p a rtm e n t, 'a s 1 v is u a lis e i t. It m a y be supposed that I am prejudiced, and I m ight be thought of by som e of m y leas fa m ilia r colleagues as visio n ary , it would be difficult, p erh ap s, fo r m e to be strictly objective in this m atter, but I think 1 am little prejudiced and I think of m yself as being p ractical and re a lis tic ra th e r than visionary and im aginative. In any case, a s I see out situation, we have m any advantages and very few disadvantages, if we can w ard off the disintegrative effects of the ageing p ro cess, as it rela te s to o u r organization, as a-m easurably successful and, th erefo re, potentially sm ug and too easily satisfied group, oh the one hand, and as it involves the personnel - m yself, for exam ple - whose en ergies a re dim inishing, on the o th er. O ur position in this U niversity, from the aspect of access to its m any m inds and facilities, is adm irable; o u r relationships to industry, in te rm s of a cc ess to its problm s and its financial support, is m ost D r. W ayland J . H ayes, J r . - (4) - Ju ly 12, 1956 satisfactory; our participation in the general problem s of this com m unity, through professional and governm ental affiliations is, if anything, on the elaborate ra th e r than the re stric te d side (for exam ple, we c a rry out the professional and technological investigations in the fields of industrial hygiene and a ir pollution for the City of Cincinnati through form al agreem ents between the U niversity and the responsible agencies, and we do the w ork of the county m edical exam iner, as the H am ilton County C o ro n er's pathologic and toxicologic se rv ice s, under a form al ag reem en t betw een the U niversity and the County C om m issioners); and finally, our professional relationships locally and nationally a re of the b e st. These c h a ra c te ristic s of our position, which have been developed by th irty y ears of p e rsiste n t effort provide the spring board* which is yet to be developed in any o th er u n iv ersity 'in the country* fo r launching our fu rth er developm ents in investigative and educational fields and fo r obtaining the fu rth er financial support that will be required. I think I should refer, briefly , at le a st, to one o th er point, . Your question a s to the am ount of "contract resea rch " touched upon a point of considerable im portance, in which the re a l issu e, aside from one of financial o b stacles, is one of point of view. The te rm which you em ployed has a sin iste r im plication in m any m inds. It is not n e ce ssa ry that it should have, and to m e, a fte r long ex p erien ce, it is a m eaningless term * With c e rta in m in o r exceptions, which will continue to.be exceptions as a m atter of what I believe to be wise m edical and social policy, our w ork has been supported by A m erican in d u stry . This .Laboratory and a ll that is in it a re outright gifts of ind u stry to the U niversity of C incinnati. . Industry pays fo r the w ork we do.currently, and in the m ain, it considers itself privileged to do so. It is our purpose to plan and c a rry out investigations of problem s of industrial health in accordance with our own plans, and at the expense of the industry o r group of indu stries concerned, to the end that we can give them sound advice and guidance in th e ir op eratio n s. We w ork through th e ir m edical people so fa r as possible, and if they dp not have com pe tent m edical people, we try to get them to obtain such people, so that when we have shown them the way, they can th e re a fte r look a fte r them selves fo r ev ery thing except re s e a rc h . In a ll of these m a tte rs we m aintain the position of public responsibility of this U niversity. < r . r : - < In doing such w ork fo r in d u stry , no job is too la rg e f o r us in p rin c ip le (we m ay have to obtain the help of o th er com petent people) and none is beneath o u r notice, w hether it is a single sick m an, o r a very m inor industrial m aterial or product, so long as we a re concerning o u rselv es with a m edical and not a technical o r co m m ercial problem . T h e re fo re , in o u r philosophy th e re a re two kinds of m edical resea rch , nam ely, poor and unproductive rese a rc h , and sound and useful re s e a rc h .. If, as often happens, we have an opportunity to delve into biological m echanism s, as o ur principal effort, we do o u r best* But if, as often happens, we a re concerned to develop a m eans fo r avoiding o r controlling a th reat to hum an health, we a re .m erely doing a d o c to r's duty. T his, I b eliev e, is the b a sis on which 1 would lik e you to think of th is job. No doubt you w ill w ish to look into it a t firs t hand, if what I have said intrigues your in te re s t. If and when you com e to th isp o in t, before the f ir s t of August * f' '< s. f D r. W ayland J . H ay es, J r . - (5) - July 12, 1956 o r a fte r the end of A ugust (I sh a ll be on vacation u n til the f i r s t of S eptem ber o r thereabouts} pay us a v isit at our expense, and look over the situation in such d etail a s you m ay w ish. If you have specific questions betw een now and A ugust 1, le t m e know, and I 'll tr y to a n sw e r them p ro m p tly . Sincerely yours, Robert A . Kehoe, M. D. RAK ef Enc. P .S . I enclose herew ith an announcem ent of the Institute, which also gives som ething of the h is to ric background and th e a c tiv itie s s.nd p o lic ies of the L aboratory. T his, perhaps, will supplem ent my le tte r. y (1 i I. X 00G5S70