Black Dog Institute

The Black Dog Institute "is an educational, research, clinical and community-oriented facility offering specialist expertise in mood disorders - a range of disorders that include depression and Bipolar Disorder (formerly called 'manic depression'). The Institute is attached to the Prince of Wales Hospital and affiliated with the University of New South Wales.

"The Institute was formally launched in February 2002. The Institute builds on the work of its predecessor, the Mood Disorders Unit, established 17 years earlier as a state-wide clinical research facility."

Funders

 * Pfizer
 * Eli Lilly
 * Australian Rotary Health Research Fund
 * A recurrent grant from the New South Wales Department of Health
 * The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) through the Black Dog Institute's affiliation with the University of New South Wales
 * Black Dog Foundation

Directors
On its website the Institute lists its Board of Directors, as of March 2008, as :


 * Peter Joseph - Chairman, Black Dog Institute
 * James Blomfield
 * Nicholas Cowdery
 * Michael Eyers - Chairman, Black Dog Foundation
 * John Konrads
 * Bill Loewenthal
 * Carmel Niland
 * Gordon Parker - Executive Director, Black Dog Institute
 * Meg Smith
 * Peter Smith
 * Douglas Snedden - Treasurer, Black Dog Foundation and Black Dog Institute
 * Mary Vallentine

The Institute and pharmaceutical companies
The Black Dog Institute has a policy on dealings with pharmaceutical companies which includes the Institute having to list in its Annual Report the national and international appointments and positions held by its medical staff on pharmaceutical company Advisory Boards.

Perceived conflict of interest
Henry Brodaty and Gordon Parker have had membership with the Pfizer Neuroscience Research Grants - Australian Physicians Independent Committee since its establishment in 2002 (Gordon Parker for 2009 is no longer listed as a member of the Committee but he was listed as a member in 2008 .)

Henry Brodaty became Chairman of the Committee in 2006.

Sample of Pfizer grants received by Institute researchers while Institute staff were on the Pfizer Neuroscience Research Grants - Australian Physicians Independent Committee :
 * 1) A 2003 funding statement from the Institute indicates Pfizer has given it a seeding grant to two Institute researchers.
 * 2) A press release dated June 16, 2004 from the media section of the Black Dog Institute announced that one of their psychiatrists has received a research grant from the Pfizer Australia Neuroscience Research Grants program.
 * 3) A 2004 funding statement from the Institute indicating Pfizer Neuroscience Research Grants has given two grants to Institute researchers for this year.
 * 4) Pfizer Neuroscience Research Grants gave AUD$40,000 to an Institute psychiatrist in  2006.

Contact
Hospital Road Prince of Wales Hospital Randwick NSW 2031 Phone: (02) 9382 4530 Website: http://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au

Related Sourcewatch articles

 * Drug industry
 * Philip Mitchell

External articles

 * Melissa Fyfe, Carol Nader and Richard Baker, ""Conflict of interest problem endemic: specialist," The Age (Australia), August 7, 2006.