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| Vol. 20, No. 20 |
| November 1, 1998 |
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He's a True Scientist
It has been delightful to see both the satisfaction Fred has gotten from this recognition as well as to see the tremendous satisfaction the whole family here - the faculty, staff and students - has found in this award. It has just been a tremendous uplift to everybody. One of the major issues I identified when I became dean was somewhat of a stagnation of our basic science effort here at the Medical School. It wasn't that we didn't have good people, but growth and development had been somewhat sluggish given the concerns and complexities about the clinical arena and managed care. Of our five basic science departments, we had three chair vacancies. I decided to fuse two of the departments - the departments of integrative biology/physiology and the department of pharmacology. On bringing those two departments together, we would create a larger group of scientists and a bigger opportunity for someone. So we decided to recruit for the chair of that combined department. Fred was the person I wanted to recruit. The reasons for choosing him related to my respect for what he had accomplished as a scientist. He had just won the Lasker Award, which is the most prestigious award in U.S. science. He is an M.D., Ph.D., and one of my goals here is not only to promote basic science, but also clinical investigation. He's had experience in both academia and in the pharmaceutical industry. Our needs and timing meshed with his needs and timing and that led to his coming here. The Nobel honor is going to be tremendously positive for recruitment at a number of levels. Fred has made the point that he is really excited about what he has accomplished in training young scientists. The game plan in rejuvenating basic science was to recruit the leaders and have them, in turn, recruit junior faculty, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students. I think that this honor will enhance the quality of the kind of people we can recruit here. Fred's stature will also help with the recruitment of medical students, and, in particular, M.D./Ph.D. students. He's a true scientist, a true experimentalist. You can tell by the way he talks about the importance of science and the fulfillment he gets from it. Fred and I agree that this is the core engine for our entire enterprise at UT-Houston. One of the fundamental points we're trying to make to the community is that the U.S. has a series of precious jewels - our academic medical centers. It has taken a tremendous amount of time and effort to nurture them to where they are now. There is a lot in the environment right now about cost-cutting and managed care that can be detrimental to maintaining this excellence. The very best teachers and the very best doctors are ones driven by a burning passion for discovery. That's the essence of what we are all about, and Fred represents the best of this mindset.
- Dr. L. Maximilian Buja, dean of
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