NCCIH Research Blog

I hope you can join us virtually on Friday, May 12, 2023, for the open session of the next meeting of the National Advisory Council on Complementary and Integrative Health (NACCIH).

The open session will be livestreamed from noon to 3:30 p.m. ET on NIH VideoCast, and the recorded video will be made available at the same site several days later. Registration is not necessary, and everyone is welcome to attend online.

The NACCIH is charged with advising, consulting with, and making recommendations to the director of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) on matters relating to NCCIH’s research activities and functions. In closed sessions, council members provide secondary review of grant applications. They discuss NCCIH scientific program priorities as well as program balance and provide feedback on applications needing special consideration. The open sessions of Council meetings feature updates on NCCIH’s activities, policies, and funding priorities.

The May 12 meeting will include the following presentations and their discussion by Council members:

• Dr. Helene M. Langevin, director of NCCIH, will present an update on news, events, and activities at NCCIH since the last Council meeting in January 2023.
• Dr. Wendy Weber and Dr. Peter Murray of the NCCIH Division of Extramural Research will provide an update on the clinical research programs and projects that NCCIH is leading as part of the Helping to End Addiction Long-term® Initiative, or NIH HEAL Initiative®. Two HEAL grantees will present on HEAL-funded research. Dr. Nina Cooperman will discuss research on Mindfulness Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE) and Dr. Natalia Morone will share insights from trials engaging stakeholders through a community advisory board.   
• Staff from the NCCIH Division of Extramural Research will present three concepts to Council for review, comment, and approval. A concept is an early planning stage in the development of a new research initiative. The concepts to be considered at this meeting involve (1) an initiative for whole person research, (2) a resource center for cannabis and cannabinoid research, and (3) mechanistic research on precision probiotic therapies. 

As always, comments from the public are welcome. Because members of the public can only attend this meeting virtually, comments will be accepted in writing only and shared with council members. You may submit a comment of up to 750 words within 15 days after the meeting. Please email your comment to SchmidMa@mail.nih.gov by Saturday, May 27. The minutes will be posted on the NACCIH portal within 90 days after the meeting.

• View the May 2023 Council meeting agenda.
• Watch on NIH VideoCast.