NCCIH Research Blog

My colleagues and I at the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) welcome you to join us for the upcoming open session of a meeting of the National Advisory Council for Complementary and Integrative Health (NACCIH) on Friday, May 17, 2024.

The open session will be livestreamed on NIH VideoCast from 11:10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, and the recorded video will be posted several days later. Registration to watch the livestream is not necessary, and all are encouraged to attend online. There is limited space available to attend in person (details are available on the NCCIH website).

The NACCIH is charged with advising, consulting with, and making recommendations to the director of NCCIH on matters relating to the Center’s research activities and functions. In the open session of the meeting, NCCIH staff provide updates on the Center’s activities, policies, and funding priorities, and one or more speakers from outside NCCIH may be invited to present on topics relevant to the Center.

We are planning to offer the following presentations at the meeting, which will then be discussed by Council members:

• Dr. Helene M. Langevin, the NCCIH director, will present an update on news about NCCIH and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in general, as well as on events and activities NCCIH has been involved with since the last Council meeting in January 2024.
• Dr. Angela Arensdorf, health science policy analyst in the NCCIH Office of Policy, Planning, and Evaluation (OPPE), will present an analysis of the NCCIH research portfolio. This analysis is a part of the groundwork for development of the next NCCIH strategic plan for the years 2026 to 2030. Ms. Mary Beth Kester, director of OPPE, will provide an update on NCCIH’s strategic planning process.
• Dr. Langevin will present an update on the major role NCCIH is playing in the Helping to End Addiction Long-term® Initiative, or NIH HEAL Initiative®, an NIH-wide agency effort focused on improving prevention and treatment strategies for opioid misuse and addiction, and enhancing pain management.
• Dr. Helene Benveniste, the Anthony N. Brady Professor of Anesthesiology at the Yale School of Medicine and a member of the NCCIH Council, will introduce and discuss the charge to and focus of a new Council Working Group on Spiritual Health. On occasion, special working groups may be formed by or at the request of the Council to examine and address critical scientific or policy issues of importance to NCCIH and its constituencies.
• Dr. Wendy Weber, branch chief, Clinical Research in Complementary and Integrative Health Branch, NCCIH Division of Extramural Research (DER), will present an overview of the recently reissued suite of NCCIH's mind and body intervention funding opportunities.
• Dr. Lanay Mudd, deputy branch chief, Clinical Research in Complementary and Integrative Health Branch, and program director, DER, will present an update on a recent concept clearance for reissue of the Research Across Complementary and Integrative Health Institutions (REACH) Virtual Resource Centers.
• Dr. Alexander H. Tuttle, program director, DER, will also present an update on a concept clearance for the HEAL Research Enhancement Award Program.

Current Procedure for Public Comment

As always, public comment is welcome. Comments must be provided in written form (up to 750 words) and emailed to me by Friday, May 3, in time to be shared with Council members before the meeting. My email address is SchmidMa@mail.nih.gov.

We hope that you can join us for all or part of the open session!

• View the agenda for the May 17 Council meeting.