Audit Committee
Joshua Rittenberg, MD - Chair
Vinil Shah, MD

Conflict of Interest Committee
Lisa Huynh, MD - Chair
Adrian Popescu, MD
W. Evan Rivers, DO
Yakov Vorobeychik, MD, PhD
Ronald Wasserman, MD

Executive Committee
Joshua Rittenberg, MD - Chair
Zachary L. McCormick, MD
Vinil Shah, MD
Alison Stout, DO

Finance and Budget Committee
Zachary L. McCormick, MD - Chair
David J. "D.J." Kennedy, MD
Alison Stout, DO

Nominating Committee
Alison Stout, DO - Chair
Richard Derby, MD
David J. "D.J.” Kennedy, MD
Vinil Shah, MD

Mission/Purpose

To provide feedback from early-career interventional pain physicians to address the unique challenges facing those just entering our field.

Early Career Council (ECC) Membership Tiers

• Executive Council: The Council’s Leadership Caucus performs governance, steering, and administrative functions, provide input, and maintain communication with the executive leadership of IPSIS.
• Ambassador: Council Ambassadors perform the functions of Members and serve on an IPSIS Committee or Division in a non-voting capacity, provide early career viewpoints on the Division/Committee that they serve on, and report to the rest of the Council on their Committee/Division’s activities.
• Member: Council Members are all active IPSIS Residents, Fellows, and all other Members in their first two years of practice. Council members have direct contact with the ECC Executive Committee, have access to exclusive early career member benefits, and are invited to networking events at IPSIS in-person meetings.

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Staff Contact

Katrina Varenyi
Membership Manager

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Executive Council
Alexandra Fogarty, MD -  Chair
Derick Davis, MD
Jonathan Paris, MD
Edward Pingenot, DO
Christopher Radlicz, DO

Ambassadors
Audrey Adler, MD (Research Mentorship Committee)
Michael Andrew, MD (Advocacy Committee)
Ofure Asikhia, MD (Research Mentorship Committee)
Daniyal Bashir, MD (Standards Division)
Austin Boos, DO (Education Division)
Zheyan (Jenny) Chen, MD, PhD (Patient Safety Committee)
Hye-Jin Y. Clark, MD (Member Engagement Division)
William T. Daprano, MD (Research Spotlight Committee)
Ghazaleh Ebrahimi, MD (Research Funding Committee)
Rachel Esparza, MD (Member Engagement Division)
Leigh Graziano, DO (Instructor Development Committee)
Michele Luu, MD (Standards Division)
Ted Micalu, MD, MS (Coding and Reimbursement Committee)
Roslyn Migdale, MD (Coverage Committee)
Amelia Ni, DO (Patient Safety Committee)
Daniel Persson, DO, MBA (Coverage Committee)
Sidharth Sahni, DO (Research Spotlight Committee)
Derek Schirmer, DO (Systematic Review Committee)
Sahil Shah, MD (Advocacy Committee)
Kirk Sheplay, MD (Coding and Reimbursement Committee)
Nuno Ferreira Silva, MD (International Division)
Katharine Smolinski, DO(Education Division)
Cameron Strong, MD (Research Funding Committee)
Alan Stupnitsky, MD (Abstract Review Committee)
William Tang, MD (Systematic Review Committee)
Youssef Tfaili, MD (International Division)
William "Hank" Tobener V, DO (Abstract Review Committee)
Sean Weber, DO (Annual Meeting Program Committee)

Mission/Purpose

To foster evidence-based physician education for optimal patient outcomes.

Charges

1. Create live and online CME activities according to the IPSIS Guidelines and all ACCME accreditation Criteria and Standards for Commercial Support.
2. Instruct physicians in appropriate methodologies for precision diagnostic and therapeutic spine intervention procedures at our ACCME-accredited bio-skills labs and conferences.
3. Facilitate the instructor advancement process and administer new instructor examinations for the IPSIS instructor panel.
4. Provide the IPSIS core curriculum to countries around the world without formal interventional spine education programs.
5. Promote safe, effective, scientific practices in the specialty.

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Staff Contact

Anne Rounds, CMP, HMCC
Senior Director of Meetings and Education

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Members

Allen S. Chen, MD, MBA - Chair
Lisa Huynh, MD - Vice Chair
Jonathan Kirschner, MD - Vice Chair
Benoy Benny, MD
Austin Boos, DO*
John A. Carrino, MD, MPH
Fred DeFrancesch, MD
Michael B. Furman, MD, MS
Nolan Gall, MD
Stephen C. Johnson, MD
Bunty Shah, MD, MBA
Vinil Shah, MD
Katharine Smolinski, DO*
Patrick H. Waring, MD
Ronald Wasserman, MD
Rui Zhang, MD

2026 Annual Meeting Program Committee (Annual Meeting)
Benoy Benny, MD - Chair
Vance Lehman, MD - Vice Chair
Kevin Barrette, MD
Lauren Chambers, DO
Allen S. Chen, MD, MBA
Eric Holder, MD
Jonathan Kirschner, MD
Joshua Levin, MD
Ryan Meral, MD
Bunty Shah, MD
Eric Shoemaker, DO
Kevin Vorenkamp, MD
To-Nhu Vu, MD
Patrick H. Waring, MD
Sean Weber, DO*
Zirong Zhao, MD, PhD
Patricia Zheng, MD

CME Committee
Ronald Wasserman, MD - Chair
Jennifer Ault, DO, MS
John Chan, MD
Weibin Shi, MD

Instructor Development Committee
Fred DeFrancesch, MD - Chair
Michael T. McCann, MD - Vice Chair
John Carrino, MD, MPH
Isaac Cohen, MD
Nicholas Fuller, MD
Leigh Graziano, DO*
Stephen C. Johnson, MD
Rodney Jones, MD
Robert Kinne, MD
Adrian Popescu, MD 
Zeeshan Tayeb, MD

Mission/Purpose

To preserve appropriate patient access to quality spine interventions through working with private payers; government, legislative, and regulatory entities; as well as other medical societies, in order to assure proper level of reimbursement, appropriate coverage criteria and optimal practice environment for qualified practicing physicians.

Charges

1. Work with government and private payers to promote appropriate coverage policies for these vital procedures at the national, state, and local level.
2. Educate payers and government entities about the benefits of spinal interventions and conscientious application of evidence.
3. Promote appropriate coding and reimbursement by actively participating in panels developing CPT codes and payment values for each procedure.
4. Provide input on regulations, legislation, and rules that impact the field of spinal interventions.

The Health Policy Division oversees the International Pain and Spine Intervention Society's initiatives related to health policy, coverage, reimbursement, practice management, and scope of practice issues related to spine interventions.

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Staff Contact

Sarah Cartagena, MS
Director of Health Policy

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Members

W. David Mauck, MD - Chair
Akhil Chhatre, MD
Kate Sayeed, MD
Virtaj Singh, MD

Advocacy Committee
Kate Sayeed, MD - Chair
Michael Andrew, MD*
Antigone Argryiou, MD
Kristina Barber, MD
Richard Chang, MD, MPH
Rosalynn Conic, MD, PhD, MPH
Durga Ghosh, MD
Terry Hunt, MD
Thomas Oh, MD
Nilesh Patel, MD
Christopher Robinson, MD, PhD
Brian Rosenberg, MD
Michael Salas, MD
Sahil Shah, MD*
Jasvinder Singh, MD
Virtaj Singh, MD
Amol Soin, MD, MBA
Jayesh C. Vallabh, MD, MBA
Kevin Vorenkamp, MD
Peter Yeh, MD

Coding and Reimbursement Committee
Akhil Chhatre, MD - Chair
Antigone Argyriou, MD
Richard G. Chang, MD, MPH
Tim Curtis, MD
Enrique Galang, MD
Naeem Haider, MD
Wesley Ibazebo, MD
Anand Joshi, MD
Mihir Joshi, MD
Ted Miclau, MD, MS*
David O’Brien, Jr, MD
Michael Salas, MD 
Yusef Sayeed, MD
Kirk Sheplay, MD* 
Saulo Teixeria, MD
Kevin Vorenkamp, MD
Graham E. Wagner, MD

Coverage Committee
Virtaj Singh, MD - Chair
Alexandra Adler, MD
Kevin Barrette, MD
Richard G. Chang, MD, MPH
Akhil Chhatre, MD
Tim Curtis, MD
Jakob Dovgan, MD
Durga Ghosh, MD
Andrew Goldblum, DO
Terry Hunt, MD
Roslyn Migdale, MD* 
David O’Brien, Jr, MD 
Daniel Persson, DO, MBA*
Robin Raju, MD
Christopher Robinson MD, PhD
Brian Rosenberg, MD
Brett Stacey, MD
Gene Tekmyster, DO
Kevin Vorenkamp, MD
Peter Yeh, MD

Mission/Purpose

To promulgate IPSIS involvement and growth outside of the United States.

Charges

1. Serve the international member community by reviewing, categorizing, and prioritizing concerns and needs from various regions and bringing appropriate matters to the Board of Directors as information, discussion, or action.
2. Implement and manage an open call for IPSIS Outreach Course proposals, review the proposals, and provide report along with a ranking to the Board of Directors.
3. Develop and implement international membership growth efforts.
4. Form the European Congress Program Committee to prepare each year’s program, utilizing collaboration and guidance from the Education Division.

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Staff Contact

Anne Rounds, CMP, HMCC
Senior Director of Meetings and Education

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Members

Christine El Yahchouchi, MD - Chair
Javier De Andrés Ares, MD, PhD - Vice Chair
Halil Algan, MD
Ajeeth Baburajan, MD
Armando Barbosa, MD
Sadiq Bhayani, MB BS
Serdar Kesikburun, MD
Giuliano Lo Bianco, MD, PhD
Alejandro Félix Martínez Caamaño, MD
Heidi Mylenbusch, MD, PhD
Michiel Schepers, MD
Nuno Ferreira-Silva, MD, MSc*
Geoffrey Speldewinde, MB BS
Youssef Tfaili, MD*

2026 European Congress Planning Committee
Serdar Kesikburun, MD - Chair
Ajeeth Baburajan, MD
Javier De Andrés Ares, MD, PhD
Christine El Yahchouchi, MD
Giuliano Lo Bianco, MD, PhD
Michiel Schepers, MD

Staff Contact

Katrina Varenyi
Senior Manager of Membership

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Members
Scott Naftulin, DO, Chair
Jayesh C. Vallabh, MD, MBA, Vice Chair 
Abenezer Amare, DO
Abhinav Arora, DO
Kevin Barrette, MD
Brenda Beck, DO
Bradley Bierman, DO
Hye-Jin Y. Clark, MD*
M. Scott Draper, DO
Rachel Esparaza, MD*
Kush Goyal, MD
Naeem Haider, MD
Mihir Joshi, MD
Benjamin Marshall, DO
Ryan Meral, MD
Minh Nguyen, MD, MPH
Renee Rosati, DO
James Snyder, MD
Santhosh Thomas, DO, MBA

Mission/Purpose

Oversee the International Pain and Spine Intervention Society's initiatives related to fostering research.

Charges

1. Comply with the strategic plan as adopted by the International Pain and Spine Intervention Society Board of Directors and ensure that the organization-wide goals of integrity and promotion of best evidence are considered in all activities.
2. In collaboration with the IPSIS Board of Directors, define high priority research topics and promote submission of grant applications on these topics.
3. Provide guidance and mentorship to IPSIS members seeking assistance with research protocol development.
4. Appraise research grant applications submitted by IPSIS members and make recommendations to the Board relative to funding.
5. Oversee and provide feedback to principal investigators of the International Pain and Spine Intervention Society-funded research projects.
6. Review and select abstracts for presentation at educational meetings such as the Annual Meeting.
   
7. Develop course curriculum related to evidence-based medicine.

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Staff Contact

Belinda Duszynski
Senior Director of Policy and Practice

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Members

Patricia Zheng, MD - Chair
Joshua Levin, MD - Vice Chair
Kevin Barrette, MD
W. Jeremy Beckworth, MD
W. Evan Rivers, DO

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Abstract Review Committee

Mission/Purpose

Reviews and selects abstracts for presentation at the Annual Meeting, Winter Seminar, and European Congress.

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Members
Joshua Levin, MD - Chair
Abenezer Amare, MD
Evan Berlin, MD
Randall Brewer, MD
Carsen Cash, MD
Justin Chau, MD
Ramzi El-Hassan, MD
Nuno Ferreira-Silva, MD, MSc
Azadeh Fischer, MD
Sean Fox, MD
Christine Hunt, DO, MS
Matthew Kaufman, MD
John Keel, MD
Shaima Khandaker, MD
James MacKenzie, MD
Charles Odonkor, MD, MA
Christopher Radlicz, DO
Anthony Schwarzer, MBBS, PhD
Eli Soto, MD
Andrew Stephens, MD
Alan Stupnitsky, MD*
William “Hank” Tobener V, DO*
Dajie Wang, MD

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EBM Training Committee

Mission/Purpose

Develops EBM curriculum and facilitates EBM courses.

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Members
W. Evan Rivers, DO - Chair
W. Jeremy Beckworth, MD
Lisa Doan, MD
Reza Ehsanian, MD, PhD
Ramzi El-Hassan, MD
Azadeh Fischer, MD
Vance Lehman, MD
Jaymin Patel, MD
Nathaniel Schuster, MD
Anthony Schwarzer, MBBS, PhD
Clark Smith, MD, MPH
ToNhu Vu, MD
Zirong Zhao, MD, PhD

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Research Funding Committee

Mission/Purpose

Reviews letters of intent and full grant applications, provides feedback to investigators, makes funding recommendations to the Board.

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Members
Patricia Zheng, MD, Chair
Kevin Barrette, MD
Kathy Chou, DO
Ghazaleh Ebrahimi, MD*
Ramzi El-Hassan, MD
Nuno Ferreira-Silva, MD, MSc
Sean Fox, MD
John Keel, MD
Eva Kubrova, MD
Vance Lehman, MD
W. Evan Rivers, DO
Andrew Stephens, MD
Cameron Strong, MD*
Dajie Wang, MD

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Research Mentorship Committee

Mission/Purpose

Provides guidance and mentorship to investigators.

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Members
W. Jeremy Beckworth, MD – Chair
Audrey Adler, MD*
Ofure Asikhia, MD*
Matthew Kaufman, MD
Shaima Khandaker, MD
Zbig Kirkor, MD, PhD
Andrew Stephens, MD 

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Research Spotlight Committee

Mission/Purpose

Publishes the monthly Research Spotlight series.

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Members
Kevin Barrette, MD, Chair
Abenezer Amare, MD
W. Jeremy Beckworth, MD
Randall Brewer, MD
Carsen Cash, MD
Justin Chau, MD
Kathy Chou, DO
William Daprano, MD*
Nuno Ferreira-Silva, MD, MSc
Azadeh Fischer, MD
Sean Fox, MD
John Keel, MD
Eva Kubrova, MD
James MacKenzie, MD
Charles Odonkor, MD, MA
Sidharth Sahni, DO*
Eli Soto, MD
Dajie Wang, MD

Mission/Purpose

Oversee the International Pain and Spine Intervention Society (IPSIS) initiatives related to evidence-based products, such as guidelines and systematic reviews.

Charges

1. Comply with the strategic plan as adopted by the IPSIS Board of Directors and ensure that the organization-wide goals of integrity and promotion of best evidence are considered in all activities.
2. Guide the development of guidelines and systematic reviews.
3. Provide input on topic selection for the International Pain and Spine Intervention Society's guidelines and systematic reviews.
4. Respond to requests for commentary on relevant evidence-based documents, including clinical practice guidelines, systematic reviews and AUCs.

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Staff Contact

Belinda Duszynski
Senior Director of Policy and Practice

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Members
Byron J. Schneider, MD - Chair
W. Evan Rivers, DO - Vice Chair
Daniyal Bashir, MD* 
Aaron Conger, DO
Lisa Doan, MD
Christine Hunt, DO, MS
David J. “D.J.” Kennedy, MD
David Levi, MD
Michele Luu, MD*
David C. Miller, MD, MA
Ameet Nagpal, MD, MS, MEd, MBA
Nathaniel Schuster, MD
Clark C. Smith, MD, MPH
Matthew Smuck, MD
To-Nhu Vu, MD
Patrick H. Waring, MD
Zirong Zhao, MD, PhD

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Patient Safety Committee

Mission/Purpose

Develop and promote best practice recommendations to help ensure the safety of patients undergoing interventional spine procedures.

Charges

1. Comply with the strategic plan as adopted by the International Pain and Spine Intervention Society (IPSIS) Board of Directors and ensure that the organization-wide goals of integrity and promotion of best evidence are considered in all activities.
2. Perform evidence reviews on patient safety topics of importance to IPSIS members and interventional spine patients.
3. Establish and promote best practice recommendations to help ensure safety of patients undergoing spinal interventions.
4. Work with the Education Division to develop course materials and presentations addressing key patient safety issues/best practice recommendations for relevant courses.
5. Collaborate, as appropriate, with other medical specialty organizations and governmental agencies to promote and advocate for best practice recommendations.

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Members
David Levi, MD – Chair
Eric Holder, MD - Vice Chair
Christin Tiegs-Heiden, MD - Vice Chair
Zheyan (Jenny) Chen, MD, PhD*
Reza Ehsanian, MD, PhD
Matthew Gabriel, MD
Kathryn Grace, MD
David Hao, MD
Vikaran Kadaba, MD
Paul Kitei, MD
Ben Laplante, DO, MS
Haewon Jennifer Lee, MD
Amelia Ni, DO*
Mathew Paluck, DO, MS
Adam Romman, MD
Mathew Saffarian, DO
Andrew Walker, MD
Chase Young, MD, MPH

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Guidelines Committee

Mission/Purpose

Responsible for developing and updating IPSIS’s clinical practice guidelines. 

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Members
Ameet Nagpal, MD, MS, MEd, MBA - Chair
Nathaniel Schuster, MD - Vice Chair
Fred DeFrancesch, MD
Mihir Joshi, MD
Stephan Klessinger, MD, PhD
Ryan Mattie, MD
Clark C. Smith, MD, MPH
Patrick H. Waring, MD

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Systematic Review Committee

Mission/Purpose

Responsible for developing IPSIS systematic reviews.

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Members
Aaron Conger, DO, Chair
Reza Ehsanian, MD, PhD - Vice Chair
Christine Hunt, DO, MS - Vice Chair
Marc Caragea, DO
Tyler Clark, MD
Lisa Doan, MD
Allison Glinka-Przybysz, MD, MPH
Christopher Radlicz, DO
Vafi Salmasi, MD
Derek Schirmer, DO*
Paul Scholten, MD
William Tang, MD*
Katherine Travnicek, MD
ToNhu Vu, MD
Yi Zhang, MD, PhD
Zirong Zhao, MD, PhD