John V. Prunskis, MD, founder and co-medical director of the Illinois Pain Institute in Elgin, was appointed to the new Pain Management Best Practices Inter-Agency Task Force.
Here are four things to know.
1. HHS, along with the VA and U.S. Department of Defense, will oversee the Task Force. Vanila M. Singh, MD, CMO of the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, will serve as Task Force chair.
2. The Task Force was authorized by section 101 of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016. Task Force members are charged with:
- Determining whether there are gaps or inconsistencies in pain management best practices among federal agencies
- Proposing updates to best practices and recommendations to addressing gaps or inconsistencies
- Providing the public with an opportunity to comment on any proposed updates and recommendations
- Developing a strategy for disseminating best practice information
3. In addition to Dr. Prunskis, public members of the task force include:
Sondra M. Adkinson, PharmD, clinical pharmacist at the Bay Pines (Fla.) Veterans Administration Healthcare System.
Amanda Brandow, DO, associate professor of pediatrics at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee.
Jianguo Cheng, MD, PhD, anesthesiology professor and director of the Cleveland Clinic Multidisciplinary Pain Medicine Fellowship Program.
Daniel Clauw, MD, director of the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Jonathan C. Fellers, MD, medical director of integrated medication-assisted therapy at the Maine Medical Center in Portland.
Howard L. Fields, MD, PhD, professor emeritus of neurology and physiology at UC San Francisco.
Rollin M. Gallagher, MD, director of Pain Policy Research and Primary Care at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
Halena M. Gazelka, MD, chair of the Mayo Clinic Opioid Stewardship Program and director of inpatient pain services at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
Nicholas E. Hagemeier, PharmD, PhD, research director of the East Tennessee State University Center for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment in Johnson City.
Michael J. Lynch, MD, medical director of the Pittsburgh Poison Center and assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.
John J. McGraw, Sr., MD, medical director of OrthoTennessee and county commissioner of Jefferson County, Tenn.
Mary W. Meagher, PhD, professor and coordinator of the Clinical Health Psychology Program at Texas A&M University in College Station.
Mark Rosenberg, DO, chair of emergency medicine at St. Joseph's Healthcare System in Paterson, N.J.
Molly Rutherford, MD, certified addiction specialist and founder of Bluegrass Family Wellness in Crestwood, Ky.
Bruce A. Schoneboom, PhD, chief learning officer of the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists in Park Ridge, Ill.
Cindy Steinberg, national director of policy and advocacy for the U.S. Pain Foundation and policy council chair of the Massachusetts Pain Initiative in Lexington.
Andrea Trescot, MD, interventional pain physician and director of the Pain and Headache Center in Eagle River, Ala.
Harold K. Tu, MD, DMD, associate professor and director of the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis.
Sherif Zaafran, MD, president of the Texas Medical Board in Austin.
4. In addition to Dr. Singh, federal members of the Task Force include:
Steven Daviss, MD, senior medical officer in the HHS Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Scott Griffith, MD, director of the National Capital Region Pain Initiative and program director of the DoD's National Capital Consortium Pain Medicine Fellowship.
Sharon Hertz, MD, director of the FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research division of anesthesia, analgesia and addiction products.
Jan L. Losby, PhD, lead of the CDC's Opioid Overdose Health Systems Team.
Linda L. Porter, PhD, director of the NIH National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke Office of Pain Policy.
Friedhelm Sandbrink, MD, director of the VA's Pain Management Program.
Cecelia Spitznas, PhD, senior science policy advisor for the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
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