NIH Director Monica Bertagnolli with Senator Shelley Moore Capito (left), and Dr. Ming Lei, Vice Dean of Research at the WVU School of Medicine (right), during a visit to West Virginia University Health Sciences Campus on March 27, 2024. Credit: all photos courtesy of The Office of U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.).
I was pleased to welcome Senator Ben Cardin to NIH last week for a lab tour and an update on NIH’s progress in minority health research. To my left is Dr. Tara Schwetz, NIH Acting Principal Deputy Director and Dr. Gary Gibbons, Director of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. To my right is Dr. Monica Webb Hooper, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, and Dr. Gregory G. Germino, Deputy Director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Credit: Chiachi Chang, NIH
It was an honor to welcome the First Lady of the United States Dr. Jill Biden and Ms. Jodie Haydon of Australia to NIH last week. We shared NIH’s progress in pediatric cancer research during a visit to the NIH Clinical Center. Also pictured (left to right): Children’s Inn CEO MS. Jennie Luca, Clinical Center CEO Dr. James Gilman and NCI Director Dr. Monica Bertagnolli.
Credit: Chiachi Chang, NIH
On Sept. 20, 2023, I attended Research!America’s National Health Research Forum held at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. Here I am pictured with Mary Woolley (right), President and CEO of Research!America. We had a great discussion on a number of topics, including NIH’s RECOVER initiative to address long COVID, plans to update the NIH mission statement, how to communicate science and how we can prepare the next generation of researchers for the challenges ahead.
Dr. Karina Walters, Ph.D., director of NIH’s Tribal Health Research Office and I were pleased to welcome Tribal leaders and representatives to the NIH campus on Aug. 16 and 17. These Tribal officials provide input and recommendations on NIH research policies, programs, priorities and other activities that affect American Indian/Alaska Native populations. In addition to many productive discussions, the Tribal officials toured the NIH Clinical Center where they spoke to researchers from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Left to right: Alicia C. Mousseau, Ph.D. (Oglala Sioux); Stephen Kutz, M.P.H. (Cowlitz Indian); me; Karina Walters, Ph.D. (Choctaw Nation) Director, Tribal Health Research Office; Debra Danforth, R.N., B.S.N. (Oneida Nation); Herminia Frias, M.P.H. (Pascua Yaqui Tribe), TAC Chairperson; Brittany Jock, Ph.D. (Mohawk); Donna Galbreath, M.D. (Ahtna Athabascan). Credit: Chiachi Chang, NIH
It was my pleasure to welcome Arati Prabhakar (2nd from right) during her visit to NIH on August 3. Dr. Prabhakar is director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and assistant to the President for Science and Technology. Joining her on the visit was Travis Hyams, senior policy advisor for Health Outcomes Division, OSTP (to my left). While on campus, Dr. Prabhakar met with me and NIH Institute and Center directors and toured two labs in the NIH Clinical Center. In this photo, John Tisdale, senior investigator at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (far right) talks to Dr. Prabhakar about sickle cell research. Also pictured is Courtney Fitzhugh (far left), who leads NHLBI’s Laboratory of Early Sickle Mortality Prevention. Credit: Chiachi Chang, NIH
It was a pleasure to be in Kansas City and join U. S. Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas to celebrate progress toward the construction of a new building for the University of Kansas Cancer Center. The facility would centralize its current seven unique sites. As I witnessed firsthand, the strong community support for the new facility illustrates the power of a vibrant public-private partnership to enhance cancer care within the state.
That afternoon, I gathered with some of the event participants for this photo. Starting in the back row (l-r), you see Senator Moran; Rachel Pepper, chief nursing officer, Kansas City Division, The University of Kansas Health System; Roy Jensen, director, The University of Kansas Cancer Center, Kansas City; Bob Page, president and CEO, The University of Kansas Health System, Kansas City. In the front row (l-r) are Joseph McGuirk, Division of Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapeutics, University of Kansas Cancer Center, Kansas City; Britany Leiker, nurse manager, The University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City; Tammy Peterman, president, Kansas City Division, The University of Kansas Health System; Doug Girod, chancellor, University of Kansas, Lawrence; and I’m next standing at the end of the row.
The event was held on June 27 at The University of Kansas Health Education Building, Kansas City. Credit: Elissa Monroe, The University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City.
So glad to take part in the May 16 groundbreaking for the Surgery, Radiology and Laboratory Medicine (SRLM) wing of the NIH Clinical Center. The expansive new wing will house: the Department of Perioperative Medicine; Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Department of Laboratory Medicine, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s Cardiovascular Intervention Program; several National Cancer Institute laboratories; and patient service areas. As shown here at the podium, we were honored to be joined by Andrea Palm, deputy secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Also pictured (left to right): Dan Wheeland, NIH associate director for Research Facilities; Nina Schor, NIH deputy director for Intramural Research; James Gilman NIH Clinical Center CEO; me; Steven Rosenberg, chief, Surgery Branch, National Cancer Institute; and Alfred Johnson, NIH deputy director for Management. Modernizing the Clinical Center will help to ensure that this amazing facility continues to provide high quality patient care alongside cutting-edge biomedical research. Credit: Chia-Chi Charlie Chang, NIH
On May 4, I testified on Capitol Hill regarding the President’s FY 2024 Funding Request and Budget Justification for NIH. My testimony was delivered before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. Also testifying were several other member of the NIH leadership. They included Doug Lowy, principal deputy director, National Cancer Institute; Josh Gordon, director, National Institute of Mental Health; Richard Hodes, director, National Institute on Aging; Nora Volkow, director, National Institute on Drug Abuse. The hearing took place at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. Credit: NIH
What a pleasure it was to hold a roundtable discussion with the 2022-2023 class of White House Fellows during their recent visit to NIH. They asked some very good questions. Afterwards, we gathered for this photo. It shows me and Tara Schwetz, NIH’s Acting Principal Deputy Director (r, standing next to me) with all the fellows. The fellows also visited the NIH Clinical Center and toured two labs in the National Cancer Institute’s Pediatric Oncology Branch. The NIH visit took place on April 20. Credit: NIH
