.png)
INPCS Lifetime Achievement Award
Roop Gursahani, MD, DM, FAAN
Dr Roop Gursahani, MD, FAAN is an attending neurologist at Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai, India. He completed his basic medical, internal medicine and neurology training in India by 1988, with a subspecialty focus on epilepsy. He has been involved in advocacy for Advance Care Planning since 2011. A passionate involvement in Neuropalliative care was a natural progression and he joined the INPCS Board of Directors when the society was formed.
INPCS Outstanding Scientific Contribution Award
Lesli Skolarus, MD, MS
Lesli E. Skolarus, MD, MS, is a Professor of Neurology in the Vascular Neurology Division. Dr. Skolarus also serves as Vice Chair of Faculty Development and as Director of community engagement consultations in the Center for Community Health at NUCATS Institute. Her research focuses on promoting health equity and improving neurologic outcomes using community-based participatory research, health services research, and implementation science approaches. Prior to coming to Northwestern, Dr. Skolarus was Professor of Neurology, Professor of Health Behavior and Health Education, and Co-Director of the Vascular Neurology division at the University of Michigan. Dr. Skolarus also serves on the American Neurological Association's Board of Directors; co-chairs the American Neurological Association's IDEAS (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Antiracism, Social justice) Task Force; and is a member of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Health Disparities Steering Committee where she co-leads the Social Determinants of Health Framework subcommittee.
INPCS Neuropallitaive Care Advocates of the Year Award
Malenna Sumrall, PhD
Malenna Sumrall has a PhD in Educational Research and serves as a Patient/Care Partner Advocate for the University of Colorado Supportive and Palliative Care Clinic. She has been a peer navigator in that clinic for the past seven years. Beyond that, she continues to look for ways to make care partners’ roles a bit more bearable, including currently leading three different Zoom support groups for care partners.
Malenna was her husband’s care partner throughout his Parkinson’s Disease Dementia. He was diagnosed in 2000. In 2014 they were able to see Dr. Kluger, who introduced them to neuropalliative care. During one of their appointments, Dr. Kluger asked Malenna to speak at his first International Working Group in 2015. That was the start of her advocacy journey. Since then she has spoken to various groups, served on advisory councils for two of Dr. Kluger’s completed research projects, and is currently serving on two more advisory councils. With Dr. Kluger’s help, Malenna started the peer navigator program in the neuropalliative care clinic. Things she learned there prompted her to start a Zoom support group for care partners that has been active for five years. Within INPCS, Malenna served on the Membership Committee for three years and is now leading a Family/Advocate Task Force. Great strides have been made in neuropalliative care in the last 10 years, including the formation of INPCS, but there is still a lot to do.
Kirk Hall, MBA
Kirk Hall, MBA, is a Parkinson’s patient, advocate, author, and speaker. Kirk and his movement disorder doctor, Benzi Kluger, discovered a shared vision of a patient-centered approach to PD care in 2014. This evolved into Dr. Kluger’s creation of a Palliative Care Clinic at the University of Colorado Hospital (UCH). Kirk and his care partner wife, Linda, have worked on the development and implementation of palliative care clinical studies and international conferences that have helped launch PDPC into the mainstream of modern medicine.
INPCS Tara Cook Award for Innovation in Neuropalliative Education
Piret Paal, PhD
Dr. Piret Paal holds the position of Professor of Palliative Care at Paracelsus Medical University in Salzburg, Austria, and serves as a researcher in Medical Anthropology at the University of Tartu, Estonia. Additionally, she is the Action Chair of the EU funded COST Action Initiative, CODE_YAA@PC_EDU. Born in Estonia, her professional journey has included significant contributions to global healthcare and end-of-life care in Finland, Germany, and Austria.
As a passionate advocate for palliative care education, Dr. Paal believes it is essential for everyone to have a comprehensive understanding of palliative care. To her, palliative care represents a holistic philosophy that ensures individuals with chronic illnesses and their caregivers receive comprehensive support. She is convinced that the strength of our society is mirrored in the manner we care for our elderly and vulnerable populations.
In her professional capacities, Piret serves as the Chair of the Education Reference Group of the European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) and belongs to the Executive Committee of the International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person. Beyond her academic and professional endeavors, she finds solace and rejuvenation in outdoor activities, where nature serves as a personal source of healing and inspiration.
