Chair
Helene Langevin, MD, CM - Chair
Director
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
07/31/2025
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Dr. Langevin is Director of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
(NCCIH). Prior to that, Dr. Langevin was Director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine and professor-in-residence of medicine at Harvard Medical School. She also served as a visiting professor of neurological sciences at the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine, Burlington. As the principal investigator of several NIH-funded studies, Dr. Langevin's research interests are centered around the role of connective tissue in chronic musculoskeletal pain and the mechanisms of acupuncture, manual, and movement-based therapies. Her more recent work focused on the effects of stretching on inflammation resolution mechanisms within connective tissue. She has authored more than 70 original scientific papers and is a fellow of the American College of Physicians. Dr. Langevin received an M.D. from McGill University in Montreal.
Federal Members
Elisabeth Kato, MD, MRP
Medical Officer at the Center for Evidence and Practice Improvement
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
7/31/2025
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Dr. Elisabeth Kato is a Medical Officer at the Center for Evidence and Practice Improvement at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). As Medical Officer, she coordinates opioid-related activities across AHRQ, including chairing opioid workgroup meetings, internal and external reporting, and representing AHRQ on intergovernmental working groups and conferences.
Walter J. Koroshetz, MD
Director
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
Bethesda, MD
07/31/2024
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Dr. Koroshetz became the Director of NINDS in June, 2015. Previously, he served as Acting Director beginning October, 2014 and Deputy Director of NINDS under Dr. Story Landis. Together, they directed program planning and budgeting, and oversaw the scientific and administrative functions of the Institute. He has held leadership roles in a number of NIH and NINDS programs including the NIH’s BRAIN Initiative, the Traumatic Brain Injury Center collaborative effort between the NIH intramural program and the Uniformed Health Services University, and the multi-year work to develop and establish the NIH Office of Emergency Care Research to coordinate NIH emergency care research and research training.
Before joining NINDS, Dr. Koroshetz served as Vice Chair of the neurology service and Director of stroke and neurointensive care services at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). He was a professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and led neurology resident training at MGH between 1990 and 2007. Over that same period, he co-directed the HMS Neurobiology of Disease Course with Drs. Edward Kravitz and Robert H Brown.
A native of Brooklyn, New York, Dr. Koroshetz graduated from Georgetown University and received his medical degree from the University of Chicago. He trained in internal medicine at the University of Chicago and Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Koroshetz trained in neurology at MGH, after which he did post-doctoral studies in cellular neurophysiology at MGH with Dr. David Corey, and later at the Harvard neurobiology department with Dr. Edward Furshpan, studying mechanisms of excitoxicity and neuroprotection. He joined the neurology staff, first in the Huntington’s Disease (HD) unit, followed by the stroke and neurointensive care service. A major focus of his clinical research career was to develop measures in patients that reflect the underlying biology of their conditions. With the MGH team he discovered increased brain lactate in HD patients using MR spectroscopy. He helped the team to pioneer the use of diffusion/perfusion-weighted MR imaging and CT angiography/perfusion imaging in acute stroke.
Active in the American Academy of Neurology (AAN), Dr. Koroshetz chaired the professional organization’s Public Information Committee, led the AAN’s efforts to establish acute stroke therapy in the US, founded the Stroke Systems Working Group, and was a member of the AAN Board of Directors.
Rigoberto Roca, MD
Director, Division of Anesthesiology, Addiction Medicine and Pain Medicine
Office of Neuroscience, Office of New Drugs
Food and Drug Administration
07/31/2024
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Dr. Roca is the Division Director of the Division of Anesthesiology, Addiction Medicine and Pain Medicine, Office of Neuroscience, Office of New Drugs at the FDA. He has been with the FDA and involved with development and regulatory activities related to drug products since 1994. Dr. Roca is a member of the Analgesic, Anesthetic, and Addiction Clinical Trials Translations, Innovations, Opportunities, and Network (ACTTION), a public-private partnership of the FDA. He received an M.D. from Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine.
Friedhelm Sandbrink, MD
Director, Pain Management Program
Washington VA Medical Center Department of Neurology
07/31/2024
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Dr. Sandbrink is the National Program Director for Pain Management for the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and leads the comprehensive pain program at the Washington D.C. VA Medical Center. He is a clinical associate professor at the Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, Maryland, and assistant clinical professor at George Washington University. He participated in the VA/.S. Department of Defense Clinical Practice Guidelines Workgroups for Opioid Therapy for Chronic Pain and for Diagnosis and Treatment of Low Back Pain, both in 2017, and in the Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force established by the Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Sandbrink's interests include collaborative pain care, interdisciplinary pain management, opioid safety, neuropathic pain, and the study of neuroplasticity and placebo/nocebo effects related to pain. He received an M.D. from Hannover Medical School.
Scientific Members
Tamara Baker, PhD
Professor
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
7/31/2025
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Dr. Baker is a Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to this, Dr. Baker served as the Director of the Gerontology Program at the University of Kansas, which trained graduate students from a variety of social and behavioral disciplines. She is known internationally for her work examining racial differences in the expression of pain in older adults. Dr. Baker is on the editorial boards of several major scientific journals and has served as the Chair of the Gerontological Society of America Behavioral and Social Sciences Section. Her scholarly work focuses on understanding factors that influence health outcomes and well-being among older adults and addressing issues of equality and equity among older adults from global majority (often described as “minority”) groups. Dr. Baker’s current research focuses on the pain experience in older Black male adults, a severely understudied area of pain research. She received a Ph.D. from The Pennsylvania State University in 2001.
Beth Darnall, PhD
Professor
Stanford University School of Medicine
7/31/2024
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Dr. Beth Denise Darnall is a Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine. In 2019, she became Chief Science Officer at AppliedVR, a digital health company. She is a pain psychologist and scientist, international speaker, and respected author. Her primary interest is helping people with chronic pain to optimize their mind-body connection to reduce their own symptoms, improve health and function, and enhance response to medical treatments (placebo response).
Scott Fishman, MD
Professor and
University of California, Davis
07/31/2025
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Dr. Fishman holds the Jacquelyn S. Anderson Endowed Chair in Wellness at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis), where he directs the UC Davis Center for Advancing Pain Relief. He is also the Charles & Patricia Fullerton Endowed Chair in Pain Medicine, and the Executive Vice Chair and Professor for the Department of Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine at UC Davis. Prior to this, Dr. Fishman was Professor of Anesthesia and Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He has collaborated with, and/or led major initiatives on behalf of the National Academy of Medicine, the Federation of State Medical Boards, and the United States Medical Licensure Examination. Dr. Fishman has also worked with and advised several organizations concerned with implementing systems to monitor and detect prescription opioid abuse in collaboration with law enforcement. He has been recognized worldwide for his expertise in pain management and his efforts to educate primary care providers and trainees to improve the field of pain management. Dr. Fishman received an M.D. from University of Massachusetts Medical School in 1990.
Renee Manworren, PhD
Chair in Nursing Research
Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago
07/31/2025
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Dr. Manworren is the Posy and Fred Love Chair in Nursing Research, Director of Nursing Research & Professional Practice, and Director of the Lurie Children’s Pediatric Research & Evidence Synthesis Centre at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. She is also an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University. Prior to this, Dr. Manworren was an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and Nurse Scientist in the Division of Pain and Palliative Care Medicine at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine and Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. Dr. Manworren has conducted educational research of pediatric healthcare providers and students’ knowledge and attitudes regarding pain since 1998. She has been an advocate for improved dissemination of research and training information to improve the care of pain patients and their support systems. Dr. Manworren received a Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Arlington in 2010.
Christine Nai-Mei Sang, MD, MPH
Associate Professor of Anesthesia
Harvard Medical School
07/31/2024
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Christine Sang, MD, MPH is Associate Professor of Anaesthesia at Harvard Medical School. She is a pediatric and adult anesthesiologist and an acute post-operative/post-traumatic and chronic pain specialist. Dr. Sang is the founding director of the Translational Pain Research Program at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, where they conduct Phases 1a (First-in-Human) through 2a (proof-of-concept) clinical trials in a variety of acute/post-traumatic and chronic pain indications. Her focus is on approaches to and relevant designs for clinical translation.
Public Members
Paul Arnstein PhD, RN
Past president
American Society for Pain Management Nursing
07/31/2025
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Dr. Arnstein is a Clinical Nurse Specialist for Pain Relief at Massachusetts General Hospital. Prior to this, he was a Nurse Practitioner/Consultant at Elliot Hospital. Dr. Arnstein is working to expand the capacity to provide opioid-sparing pain control methods across age groups, diagnostic categories, and the continuum of care. He has been an active participant in non-profit organizations, serving as past president for the New Hampshire Cancer Pain Initiative, the New England Pain Society, and the American Society for Pain Management Nursing.
Maggie Buckley, MBA
Board of Directors
The Pain Community
01/31/2025
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Ms. Buckley is a board member of The Pain Community (TPC), an organization whose overarching goal is to improve the overall health, well-being, and quality of life of people with pain. Prior to being on the board of TPC she was Director of the Ehlers-National Foundation, President of the Northern California Chapter of EDS, Board member of the American Pain Foundation, Patient Liaison to the Board of Directors of the Academy oflntegrative Pain Management, Board of Directors of the American Pain Foundation, and the Board of Directors with the Pain Community. She has been published in a variety of venues including EhlersDanlos. com, USA today, The Western Pain Society newsletter, Pain Community News, and Pain Practitioner Magazine. Ms. Buckley earned an M.B.A. in Accounting from Golden Gate University. She also holds a Patient Advocate Board Certification.
Monica Mallampalli, PhD
Chief Executive Officer
Alliance of Sleep Apnea Partners
07/31/2025
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Dr. Mallampalli is CEO of the Alliance of Sleep Apnea Partners and Founder and President of the Institute for Women’s Health Strategies. Prior to this, she served as Senior Scientific Advisor to the nonprofit HealthyWomen and Vice President of Scientific Affairs at the Society for Women’s Health Research. She is a subject matter expert on women’s health and sex differences, and a women’s health advocate and thought leader on issues pertaining to all aspects of women’s health across the lifespan. Dr. Mallampalli received a Ph.D. from the University of Utah in 2002.
Kate Nicholson, JD
President and Founder
The National Pain Advocacy Center
07/31/2025
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Ms. Nicholson is the President and Founder of the National Pain Advocacy Center (NPAC), a national non-profit dedicated to advancing the health and human rights of people in pain. NPAC is a policy-focused alliance of scientists and clinicians, civil rights advocates, and people with lived experience working to change the mindsets, systems, and policies that pose barriers to the health of people living with pain. Ms. Nicholson is a civil rights attorney and a nationally recognized expert on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Previously, she served in the U.S. Department of Justice for 18 years, where she litigated and managed cases, coordinated federal disability policy, and drafted the current ADA regulations. Ms. Nicholson received a Juris Doctorate, with Honors, from Harvard Law School in 1992.
Irma R. Rodriguez
Chair of the Board of Directors
Interstitial Cystitis Association
07/31/2024
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Ms. Irma R. Rodriguez is the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Interstitial Cystitis Association (ICA}. The ICA Board guides strategic planning and organizational direction. Board members offer support for and spur interest in programs and services and provide fiduciary oversight of organizational activities. Ms. Rodriguez is a patient and longtime supporter of the ICA and has experience with advocacy, research funding, and education in interstitial cystitis. She maintains an active leadership role in professional organizations and the community.
Ex-Officio Members
Rena D'Souza, DDS, MS, PhD
Director
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
Nora D. Volkow, MD
Director
National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, MD
Shannon N. Zenk, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN
Director
National Institute of Nursing Research