We must continue to provide high-quality care … services that are more efficient, more effective, and maybe even more economical. This is a new era, and we must adopt a new attitude.
Dr. Pasnau was born in Mason City, Iowa. His family moved to Chicago before World War II. He attended the University of Illinois on full scholarship, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and went on to the University of Illinois Medical School, receiving his M.D. in 1959. He later received his M.S. degree in psychiatry from the University of California in 1963. He interned at the University of California in San Francisco and served his residency at the University of California in Los Angeles (1960–64). He then served two years in the U.S. Navy, stationed in San Diego.
Dr. Pasnau returned to UCLA after his service, achieving full professorship (1978) in the Department of Psychiatry at the Neuropsychiatric Institute. He first served as Coordinator, then Director of Residency Training, and was also Director of Residency Training at the Veterans Affairs Psychiatric Hospital in Los Angeles.
Dr. Pasnau has been active in many psychiatric organizations. He was a founding member of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the American Association of General Hospital Psychiatrists. He was a Fellow of the American College of Psychiatrists (President and later on the Board of Regents) and was an active member of the American Psychosomatic Society, from which he received their Gold Medal (1963).
Dr. Pasnau’s activities with the APA are numerous. In 1975, he was elected president of the Southern California Psychiatric Society. He was a member of numerous committees, including the Council on National Affairs and Internal Organization, the Joint Reference Committee, and the Board of Trustees. He has written many books and articles and served on editorial boards.
Dr. Pasnau was elected Vice President in 1982 and served as President of the American Psychiatric Association (1986–87).