LEADERSHIP

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

smiling man in professional attire

PROF. RENÉ-JEAN BENSADOUN
MD MSc HRD, President WALT 2021

Prof. Bensadoun is Professor in Radiation Oncology, and Chairman at the Centre de Haute Energie in Nice, France. He was previously Full Professor and Chairman at the Department of Radiation Oncology, University Hospital of Poitiers in France. His fields of interest are Radiation Oncology, Head and Neck Cancer, Supportive Care in Cancer, Photobiomodulation, New techniques in Radiation Oncology, and Cancer-treatment toxicity. He is WALT Vice-President (2018); was past-Scientific Secretary for WALT

(2015-2017); SFCCF Deputy General Secretary; and Member of APPAC, EMLA, LED Academy. He’s also a Board Member of GORTEC (H & N Cancer French Groups), AFSOS, ANSM Radiation Oncology Expert, Deputy Associate Editor of the JSCC, Member of ESMO Toxicity Working Group and the MASCC-ISOO Mucositis Board and Oral Care Board. He’s the author of more than 190 peer-reviewed papers.

DR. ANN LIEBERT
Ph.D., University of Sydney

Dr. Liebert is a clinician and Coordinator of Photomolecular Research at the Sydney Adventist Hospital in Sydney, Australia and a co-founder and scientific advisor to Symbyx Biome. She has 30 years experience using PBM in clinical practice and has been researching with PBM for the last 14 years in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Sydney University, and the NICM Research Institute at the University of Western Sydney. Her research interests include PBM treatments for chronic headache, oral mucositis, Parkinson’s disease, and diabetic renal disease, as well as mechanisms of PBM and implications for clinical translation. She is currently Chief Investigator on international multi-centre clinical trials using PBM for Parkinson’s disease symptoms.  Leadership positions include: Co-Chair of Mechanisms of Photobiomodulation (SPIE), Research Board of the World Association of Photobiomodulation Therapy (WALT), Research Committee of the North American Association for Photobiomodulation Therapy (NAALT), and Treasurer of the Australia Medical Photobiomodulation Association (AMPA).

PROF. ROBERT BOWEN
M.D. FCCP, Professor of Medicine at West Virginia University

Prof. Robert Bowen is co-director of the Internal Medicine Clerkship and serves as Director of The Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine. He is ICU attending physician, and Medical Director of Sleep Medicine, at Berkeley Medical Center. He is currently the President of the Foundation for Photobiomodulation Research. His research focuses on: medical, surgical, and cosmetic applications of adipose derived regenerative cells, Photobiomodulation, and pulse wave therapy.

David DeJarnett

DAVID DEJARNETT
Esquire, Partner at Bowles Rice McDavid Graff & Love LLP
J.D. West Virginia University School of Law; LL.M Georgetown University

Mr. DeJarnett has more than 30 years serving clients with tax, estate and trust administration counsel. David is an expert on charitable organization governance, including fiduciary duties, IRS compliance, and donor management. He advises businesses on start-ups, mergers & acquisitions, and assets sales. He serves on the West Virginia State Bar Probate Law Committee, University Healthcare, Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation, and the University Healthcare Foundation.

Andrew Meister

PROF ANDREW MESTER
MD, Sansum Clinic, Santa Barbara, California

Dr. Mester is the son of Endre Mester, the inventor of Laser Biomodulation, the inception of Photobiomodulation. He is Board Certified in Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery at the Sansum Clinic in Santa Barbara, California. He has held research fellowships focusing on Laser Biostimulation at the Karolinska Hospital in Stockholm, the University of California-Los Angeles, University of Pennsylvania, and Boston University. He currently is part of the Sansum Clinic in Santa Barbara, California, where he is practicing as a Board Certified Otolaryngologist.

Don Patthoff

DONALD PATTHOFF
DDS, University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry

Dr. Patthoff is general dentist in Martinsburg, West Virginia. He chairs the George Washington Institute of Living Ethics and is a liaison to the International Dental Ethics and Law Society for the American Society for Dental Ethics. He is an ethics consultant to the American Dental Association’s Council on Ethics, Bylaws and Judicial Affairs (CEBJA) and is coauthor of Dental Ethics at Chairside (2018, George Washington Press). He was a principal research investigator at the Martinsburg VA dental clinic and is a past president of the West Virginia Dental Association and the Professional Ethics in Dentistry Network.

Gail Siminovsky

GAIL S. SIMINOVSKY, CAE
Executive Director
BA, Binghamton University (SUNY) – History/Business Management
Certified Association Executive (CAE)

Ms. Siminovsky is an accomplished executive with over 20 years leading nonprofits in the healthcare field. She was named Executive of the Year by the Florida Society of Association Executives. She has served in leadership roles with the Academy of Laser Dentistry (ALD), the National Coalition of General Dental Organizations (NCDGO), and on Advisory Committees for the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE). Ms. Siminovsky leads the PBM Foundation with creative vision, expertise in entrepreneurial leadership, and effective planning with a solutions-oriented approach to problem-solving.

ADMINISTRATIVE STEERING COMMITTEE

RESEARCH

PROF. PRAVEEN R ARANY
BDS, MDS, MMSc, PhD, University at Buffalo, NY

Dr. Arany holds various key leadership positions in Photobiomodulation organizations, including: current President of the World Association for Photobiomodulation Therapy (WALT); immediate Past-President, North American Association for Photobiomodulation Therapy (NAALT); Senior Editor, Photobiomodulation, Photomedicine and Laser Surgery; Chair, Mechanism of Photobiomodulation (SPIE); and Co-Director, Center for Excellence in Photobiomodulation Therapy in Nursing at Shepherd University. His lab is credited with discovery of a key PBM molecular mechanism involved in stem cell differentiation and tissue regeneration. In his current position in Oral Biology and Biomedical Engineering, University at Buffalo, his group is focused on basic and lab studies for safe and effective clinical translation of Photobiomodulation therapy.

INDUSTRY RELATIONS

JAMES D. CARROLL
Electrical Engineer, Founder and CEO at THOR Photomedicine Ltd

James Carroll has been working on Photobiomodulation for 33 years (since 1987). He is a recognized authority on Photobiomodulation dose, and dose rate effects and the measurement and reporting of parameters. He has written or co-authored 22 academic papers and four books on Photobiomodulation. His most recent appointments include: Biomedical Optics Society conference co-chair, Fellow of The Royal Society of Medicine. He is a Board Member of the World Association for Photobiomodulation Therapy. James presented Photobiomodulation to the United Nations Global Health Impact Forum and a Congressional Briefing on PBM for the Opioid Crisis. He recently received the T.H. Maiman Award for Excellence in Laser Research.

Scot Faulkner

EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

HONORABLE SCOT FAULKNER
MPA, American University; BA, Lawrence University
Comparative Government Studies at Georgetown University and London School of Economics

Mr. Faulkner served in Congress, on the White House Staff, and was Global Practice Leader for the American Management Association. His accomplishments earned 26 management awards and four letters of commendation from the President of the United States. He leads the Foundation’s engagement with government, stakeholders, the media, and the public.

Mr. Faulkner is a bestselling author, columnist, television commentator, and a member of the New England Journal of Medicine’s (NEJM) Healthcare Innovation Advisory Council. He serves on various nonprofit boards relating to leadership, innovation, and change.