North American Neuromodulation Society

North American Neuromodulation Society
Name	North American Neuromodulation Society
Abbreviation	NANS
Formation	1994
Type	Professional association
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois
Region served	United States, Canada, Mexico
Fields	Neuromodulation, Pain medicine, Neurosurgery

North American Neuromodulation Society The North American Neuromodulation Society is a professional association connecting clinicians, researchers, and industry stakeholders in neuromodulation, linking practitioners across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The society operates at the intersection of clinical practice and biomedical innovation, engaging with organizations such as the American Academy of Neurology, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, the International Neuromodulation Society, and the Food and Drug Administration to advance device-based therapies. Leaders and members collaborate with academic centers like Johns Hopkins University, Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Stanford University, and Harvard Medical School while participating in regulatory, reimbursement, and research networks including the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and regional health systems.

History

Founded in 1994, the organization emerged amid growing clinical interest in spinal cord stimulation, deep brain stimulation, and peripheral nerve stimulation, paralleling activities at institutions such as Massachusetts General Hospital, University of Pennsylvania, University of California, San Francisco, and Columbia University. Early leaders drew upon expertise from professional societies including the American Pain Society, the American Academy of Pain Medicine, the International Association for the Study of Pain, and the British Pain Society to create standards aligning with the European Neuromodulation community and regulators like Health Canada and the European Medicines Agency. Over successive decades, the society has interacted with device manufacturers such as Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Abbott, and Nevro while contributing to multicenter trials funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute.

Mission and Objectives

The society's mission emphasizes evidence-based application of neuromodulation therapies for conditions treated at centers such as Mount Sinai Hospital, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, and Toronto General Hospital, coordinating with specialty organizations including the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the Society for Neuroscience. Objectives include developing clinical practice guidelines in concert with journals like Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface, Pain, The Lancet Neurology, JAMA Neurology, and The New England Journal of Medicine; promoting research partnerships with universities such as Brown University, Yale University, Duke University, UCLA, and McGill University; and influencing payer policy through engagement with the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Medicare Administrative Contractors, and private insurers.

Membership and Governance

Membership comprises physicians from specialties represented by the American Board of Medical Specialties, allied health professionals from the American Nurses Association and the American Physical Therapy Association, and scientist members affiliated with the Society for Neuroscience and the American Neurological Association. Governance follows a board structure with roles analogous to those at the American College of Surgeons, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and the Canadian Neuromodulation Society, and includes committees focused on ethics, clinical practice, research, and education that mirror committees within the National Academy of Medicine and the Institute of Medicine. Officers and directors have been drawn from faculties at institutions such as Emory University, Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, and McMaster University.

Education, Training, and Certification

Educational initiatives align with training pathways at residency and fellowship programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, often collaborating with training sites at Baylor College of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, and the University of Toronto. The society offers curriculum modules and hands-on courses comparable to programs run by the American Board of Anesthesiology, the American Board of Neurological Surgery, and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and works alongside credentialing bodies such as the Joint Commission and the American Board of Medical Specialties to inform privileging and certification standards. Collaborations with certification entities echo efforts by the United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties and subspecialty societies including the International Neuromodulation Society Education Committee.

Research and Clinical Guidelines

The society contributes to multicenter research consortia and registries modeled after efforts at the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program, the Vascular Quality Initiative, and the Neurology Quality Improvement Consortium, partnering with academic centers at Rutgers University, University of Pittsburgh, Case Western Reserve University, and SUNY Downstate. Clinical guidelines and position statements are developed with input from journal editorial boards at Pain Medicine, Neurosurgery, Spine, and Annals of Neurology and are informed by randomized controlled trials conducted with collaborators such as Stanford, Columbia, and the University of Michigan, as well as systematic reviews in Cochrane and guideline development organizations including the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review.

Conferences and Continuing Medical Education

Annual meetings and symposia bring together delegations similar to those at the American Neurological Association annual meeting, the American Society of Regional Anesthesia, the Congress of Neurological Surgeons annual meeting, and the International Neuromodulation Society World Congress, hosting plenaries, workshops, and cadaver labs in partnership with academic centers and industry partners such as Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Abbott, and Nevro. Continuing medical education credits are offered in alignment with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education and professional development frameworks used by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the American Medical Association.

Advocacy and Public Policy

Advocacy initiatives engage with federal agencies including the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the National Institutes of Health, and Health Canada and liaise with legislators in the United States Congress, the Parliament of Canada, and state and provincial health authorities to influence reimbursement, device approval, and comparative-effectiveness research funding. The society has participated in stakeholder coalitions alongside patient advocacy organizations such as the American Chronic Pain Association, the Arthritis Foundation, the ALS Association, and epilepsy advocacy groups to shape public policy and access to neuromodulation therapies.

Category:Medical associations in the United States Category:Neurology organizations