Scientific Teams and NIH Program Officials

Helping to End Addiction Long-term^® Initiative, or NIH HEAL Initiative^®, research projects are divided into six teams based on scientific topic. NIH scientific leadership and program officials for each of these topics communicate NIH HEAL Initiative research funding and research plans. At the direction of the NIH HEAL Initiative Executive Committee, these plans are shared with the Multi-Disciplinary Working Group and with NIH Advisory Councils, when appropriate, before final approval by the NIH HEAL Initiative Executive Committee.

Teams and their co-chairs are as follows:

Novel Therapeutic Options for Opioid Use Disorder and Overdose

• Ivan Montoya, M.P.H., M.D., National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Kentner Singleton, Ph.D., National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Translation of Research to Practice for the Treatment of Opioid Addiction

• Tisha Wiley, Ph.D., National Institute on Drug Abuse 
• Wendy Weber, N.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health

New Strategies to Prevent and Treat Opioid Addiction

• Alexander M. Talkovsky, Ph.D., National Institute on Mental Health 
• Geetha Subramaniam, M.D., National Institute on Drug Abuse

Preclinical and Translational Research in Pain Management

• Christine Colvis, Ph.D., National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
• Michael Oshinsky, Ph.D., National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Clinical Research in Pain Management

• Jane Atkinson, D.D.S., National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
• Linda Porter, Ph.D., National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Enhanced Outcomes for Infants and Children Exposed to Opioids

• Caroline C. Signore, M.D., M.P.H., Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
• Michelle Freund, Ph.D., National Institute on Drug Abuse