Wally R Smith, MD

 

 

Dr. Smith is one of the leading researchers, clinical experts, and opinion leaders internationally in sickle cell disease. He graduated from Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts with a bachelors in biochemistry. He graduated from the University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama with his MD. He trained in internal medicine at UAB and the University of Tennessee, Memphis, TN, obtaining board certification in 1984. He has 40 years of clinical experience in internal medicine, including over 35 years of experience caring for patients with sickle cell disease. He has written over 150 publications and been an investigator in over 50 externally funded grants. He is the inaugural Executive Editor of the Journal of Sickle Cell Disease. He is President of the EE Just Hematology Society, and a Board member of the Foundation for Sickle Cell Disease Research. He was the Principal Investigator of the landmark PiSCES study, the Pain in Sickle Cell Epidemiology Study. PiSCES was the largest and most detailed adult cohort study of sickle cell pain and patient behavior. Its insights launched a new era of research on the neurological and behavioral aspects of sickle cell disease. It resulted in two national consensus definitions, one of acute pain in sickle cell disease and one of chronic pain. Dr. Smith also participated in the development of the first National Pain Plan and oversight of federal research on sickle cell disease.He has lectured on sickle cell disease in the United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia, Jamaica, and Canada.

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Dr Smith’s expertise and experience includes service to federal government agencies and private foundations:

• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (General Internal Medicine Faculty Scholar, inaugural)

• lnteragency Pain Research Coordinating Committee, Department of Health and Human 
  Services (National Pain Plan)

• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (Investigator, Study Section Reviewer)

• National Library of Medicine (Study Section Reviewer)

• Veteran’s Administration Health Services Research and Development (Reviewer)

• Health Resources and Services Administration (Sickle Cell Disease Treatment Demonstration Program)

• National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (Sickle Cell Disease Advisory Committee).

• National Institutes of Health Helping to End Addiction Long-term [HEAL] initiative (Oversight Committee)

• National Institutes of Health Cure Sickle Cell Initiative (Chair, Clinical and Economic Impact Analysis Expert Panel)

• Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (Investigator)

• Institute Of Medicine (Committee on Standards for Developing Trustworthy Clinical Practice Guidelines)

• National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke (Health Equity Strategic Plan)

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Dr Smith’s expertise and experience includes service to organizations:

• American Society of Hematology: 

  • ​Health Professions and Education Task Force (Co-chair)

  • Sickle Cell Disease Centers Workshop (Co-director x 4 years)

  • Health Equity Task Force

• Society of General Internal Medicine(Secretary)

• Sickle cell Adult Provider Network (Board of Directors)

• National Alliance of Sickle Cell Centers (Board of Directors)

 

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Dr. Smith’s expertise and experience also includes service to industry:

• Agios –consultant, investigator

• Alexion-consultant, Investigator

• Bluebird Bio-consultant

• Emmaus Pharmaceuticals—consultant

• Novo-Nordisk-Data Safety Monitoring Board

• Global Blood Therapeutics-consultant, investigator

• Forma Therapeutics-consultant, investigator

• Alexion Therapeutics-consultant

• Glycomimetics, Incorporated-consultant

• Icagen, Inc-consultant, investigator

• Fera Therapeutics-consultant

• Ironwood Pharmaceuticals-consultant

• Novartis Pharmaceuticals- consultant

• Pfizer-consultant, investigator

• Vertex-consultant
   

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Dr. Smith’s Sickle Cell Disease expertise includes:

• Pain, neurobiology, and pain management

• Hematology

• Biology and natural history

• Translation from bench to bedside

• Cost-effectiveness and Economic aspects

• Pharmacological disease modifiers (development and testing)

• Epidemiology

• Cohort studies

• Recruitment

• Clinical Trials

• Allied and community health workers

• Health services organization, efficiency, evaluation

• Pediatric to adult transition

• Disparities and implicit bias (research and training)

• Social determinants of health

• Federal, state policy