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Members of the media, please direct questions and interview requests related to the NIH HEAL Initiative^® to National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) who are co-leads. For inquiries on research related to improving the prevention and treatment of opioid misuse, addiction, and overdose email media@nida.nih.gov. For inquiries on research related to improving the understanding, management, and treatment of pain email nindspressteam@ninds.nih.gov.

New results from NIH-funded study help people with dialysis-dependent kidney disease manage their chronic pain.

People with dialysis-dependent kidney disease often experience chronic pain yet have limited pain treatment options. New results from the NIH-funded Hemodialysis Opioid Prescription Effort (HOPE) consortium found that training people with dialysis-dependent kidney failure on how to manage pain reduced the extent to which pain affected their work and social activities, mood, and relationships. Additionally, results show that the training also improved other effects of pain, including the intensity of pain, depression, anxiety, and quality of life.

Rebecca G. Baker, Ph.D., was the director of the Helping to End Addiction Long-term^® Initiative, or NIH HEAL Initiative^®  between 2018-2023.