Barbara J. Stussman

Associate Investigator, NCCIH

Barbara J. Stussman joined the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) more than 10 years ago. Currently, she serves as an associate investigator at NCCIH and leads the qualitative components of several National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center protocols. Drawing upon more than 30 years of experience in qualitative research and questionnaire development, she provides guidance on qualitative studies to NIH staff and grantees. She also conducts interviews with patients experiencing postacute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection, also known as “Long COVID.”

Previously, Ms. Stussman conducted focus groups and qualitative interviews for a large multiagency study on myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome. For a study on fibromyalgia and pain responses, she conducted interviews with participants about their pain ratings. In 2014, she interviewed leaders in the fields of complementary and integrative health to provide qualitative information for NCCIH’s name change.

In addition to conducting qualitative research, Ms. Stussman has extensively analyzed quantitative data from national health surveys and authored numerous peer-reviewed scientific publications. Before joining NIH, Ms. Stussman worked for the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 20 years, where she led the development of large questionnaires fielded on the National Health Interview Survey and conducted cognitive interviews for NCHS’s Questionnaire Design Research Laboratory.