A leading psychiatrist at Emory University has been reprimanded by the school in connection with outside work he was doing for pharmaceutical companies.
Dr. Zachary Stowe, director of the Women's Mental Health Program, received a letter of reprimand regarding his "unreported activities" and his "failure to abide by Emory policies," according to an Emory statement Wednesday.
School officials declined to elaborate on the nature of Stowe's infraction or provide a copy of the reprimand letter, which was made public this week. The university said in its statement Wednesday that Stowe has been ordered to eliminate all conflicts of interest on any grants.
Also on Wednesday, the National Institute of Mental Health said it is reviewing Stowe's activities, prompted by a letter from a U.S. Senate committee that said Stowe received $253,700 in 2007 and 2008 for "essentially promotional talks" for the drug maker GlaxoSmithKline.
Stowe told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Wednesday that he was reprimanded for not allowing Emory officials to review his contracts for speaking engagements and other outside activities.
Stowe acknowledged that he has accepted money for speeches from a drug company while he was also conducting research that touches on the use of the company's drug in pregnant women. But he said such relationships are not uncommon in the research world.
He said this relationship in particular does not represent a conflict of interest, and he said Emory officials have reviewed his activities and found no such conflicts. The university on Wednesday would not comment specifically on its findings.
Stowe said he studies mental health issues during pregnancy. That can include the effects of antidepressants and psychotherapy, but he said one company's drug is a small part of all that.
Stowe is the second Emory researcher to be disciplined for disclosure issues concerning financial relationships with drug companies. Dr. Charles Nemeroff resigned as chairman of Emory's Department of Psychiatry in October after issues were raised about potential conflicts of interest. Emory found that Nemeroff failed to disclose to school officials that he had earned some $800,000 from the drug company GlaxoSmithKline, a company whose products he had researched.
Nemeroff is being investigated by the inspector general's office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Earlier this month, Emory adopted stiffer policies to rein in conflicts of interest. Those rules bar faculty from receiving any money from a company for speaking at a company-sponsored promotional event.
The National Institute of Mental Health, which said it is reviewing Stowe's work, is an arm of the National Institutes of Health, which provides millions of dollars for research to Emory.
Agency spokeswoman Marsha Love said Stowe's funding continues for now but said, "We don't know what's going to happen."
The agency's review was prompted by a letter from Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, the ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. Grassley has been investigating medical conflicts of interest nationally and played a key role in disclosing issues regarding Nemeroff's activities.
Grassley sent a letter June 2 to Emory President James Wagner outlining concerns about potential conflicts of interest and disclosure issues regarding Stowe.
"My investigators were told by NIH officials that Emory informed the NIH last summer that Dr. Stowe has some financial conflicts of interest," Grassley wrote.
Grassley pointed to the $253,700 in 2007 and 2008 that Stowe received from GlaxoSmithKline, "which were essentially promotional talks."
Grassley also said Stowe performed research on the antidepressant Paxil, made by Glaxo, and its presence in breast milk.
Stowe said that research was done 10 years ago. He also said he has never been reprimanded for failing to disclose the amounts he receives from outside activities.
Stowe said his work is not in any way affected.
About the Author
The Latest
Featured
