Silva Junior, Orlando Castro e

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Cadernos Espinosanos (E-Journal)

EDITORIALThe Divisions or Disciplines andthe functions of the UniversityAs Divisões ou Disciplinas e as funções universitárias435ORLANDO DE CASTRO E SILVA Jr.Editor da Revista MedicinaProfessor T itular do Departamentode Cirurgia e Anatomia da FMRP-USPIn the present Editorial, I would like to consideragain the teaching function within the University. Is it possible to expect that a professorwill be a good investigator, will teach good graduate andpostgraduate classes, will be an eminent surgeon or cli-nician and also an excellent administrator? The reply is:it is possible and such a professional may exist, but it isdifficult for one person to have all of these qualities.Today, with all the scientific and technological sophisti-cation, with the democratization of knowledge, with thevariety of pedagogic resources and the professionalizationof the administration, it would be difficult for a humanbeing to exercise the four functions with the same effi-cacy and brilliance.However, it was always my opinion that involve-ment in the production of knowledge is an absolutely nec-essary prerogative of anybody with professional ties tothe University, especially those holding teaching posi-tions. I also believe that the extrapolation of attitudesand practices typical of scientific work to the remainingfields of academic work contributes to the improvementof higher education, of the extension of services to Soci-ety, and of the administration of the University itself.The result of involvement in research activities, inaddition to its major purpose of contributing to the gen-eration of knowledge, can be demonstrated in three otherareas of professional activity. One of them refers to thecontribution to the training of people in projects of sci-entific initiation and  of postgraduation sensu strictoand  sensu lato.  Egaging in research may represent a lotin terms of the acquisition of attitudes and skills thatwill favor any field of professional activity.Another one refers to the creation of conditionsthat will permit persons or groups of investigators to carryout work of their interest using methods  implementedwithin the Institution for the creation of Centers of clini-cal or experimental excellence.  A result of this, for exam-ple, could be the creation of research laboratories withina Division or Department.A laboratory promotes working independence es-sential for the development of research lines, with conse-quent benefits for the scientific production of the profes-436Castro e Silva Jr. O. Editorial.Medicina (Ribeirão Preto) 2009;42(4): 435-6http://www.fmrp.usp.br/revistasors. This attracts a sizable financial investment on thepart of Financing Agencies. For example, the method forthe study of mitochondrial function developed in the De-partment of Surgery and Anatomy (DSA), together with itslater modifications carried out in collaboration withphysicists and engineers of the "Instituto de Física" ofSão Carlos (IFSC-USP), favored the development of vari-ous projects by advisors and their students which culmi-nated in various publications at all levels.  This biochem-istry laboratory set up in the DSA has satisfied for sev-eral years the requirements of research and assistance,with perspectives of continued future work over manyyears. Another important aspect of scientific investiga-tion is the possibility of implementing specific methodsthat, after appropriate standardization, can be used inthe health care field, in diagnostic evaluation and in thetherapeutic definition of special cases. Fitting this inter-pretation of research activities are the PhotodynamicTherapy (PDT) technique for the treatment of tumors ofvarious organs, and Laser Fluorescence Spectroscopy. Thismethod, developed and refined in collaboration with theInstitutes of Physics of Moscow and of São Carlos, notonly provides the diagnosis of tumors, but also definesthe safety margin for surgical resections. Obviously, theparticipation of scientific initiation and postgraduatestudents, of residents, assistants and professors ulti-mately determines the rhythm of activity of the entireGroup, whose repercussions can be evaluated on the ba-sis of the scientific production of the Group and of  theprofessor in particular.Another objective of Professional activity in scien-tific investigation is to contribute to the generation of newknowledge that, once disseminated, can be used for theproduction of further knowledge or for the improvementof other human activities. It is clear that, on the basis ofthe above comments, the involvement of professors in sci-entific investigation influences the level of care practiced.However, it is difficult to imagine that a professor willpossess the same skill required by the four aspects ofuniversity function, and therefore another view should beadopted. It is the task of the chief of the Division  or of theDiscipline to identify the individual vocations of its mem-bers and to invest in each one of them, aiming at the uni-form growth of the Group and doing what each professorin most cases is unable to do individually.The chiefs should be concerned about developingstrong Disciplines within the ensemble of university func-tions, so that each faculty member will benefit accordingto his best vocation, consequently maintaining the excel-lence of the University.

The Divisions or Disciplines and the functions of the University

https://www.revistas.usp.br/rmrp/article/download/239/240

As Divisões ou Disciplinas e as funções universitárias

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Cadernos Espinosanos (E-Journal)