Leaving NCCIH: Whole Person Health Research in Good Hands

Leaving NCCIH and Whole Person Health Research in Good Hands

After seven years of dedicated service as director of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Helene M. Langevin has announced her retirement from federal service, effective November 30, 2025. Her tenure has been marked by transformative leadership in advancing the concept of whole person health, a paradigm shift that reimagines how we approach research, treatment, and understanding of human health. As Dr. Langevin transitions out of her role, she leaves behind a robust infrastructure and momentum that will continue to drive groundbreaking research in integrative health for years to come.

The Vision of Whole Person Health

At the heart of Dr. Langevin’s leadership has been a fundamental reimagining of how we conceptualize health and disease. Traditional approaches to healthcare have historically compartmentalized health by focusing on individual conditions, organ systems, or specific diseases. Patients are treated for their heart disease, then their diabetes, then their depression—often with interventions that are managed separately and sometimes even contradict one another.

Whole person health inverts this traditional thinking. Rather than treating diseases one at a time after they occur, this approach combines psychological, nutritional, and physical interventions with self-care strategies to address the entire person proactively. This framework recognizes that many chronic diseases share common underlying factors, including poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, chronic stress, and inadequate sleep. By addressing these behavioral risk factors early, research shows that it is possible to prevent and even reverse multiple chronic diseases simultaneously.

Dr. Langevin has emphasized that health and disease should not be viewed as binary states but rather as points along a bidirectional continuum. Understanding this continuum allows healthcare providers and researchers to identify intervention opportunities across the entire spectrum of health, from disease prevention to restoration and resilience.

Key Accomplishments and Infrastructure Development

During her tenure, Dr. Langevin has successfully spearheaded several trans-NIH initiatives that have placed whole person health at the forefront of the NIH’s emerging unified strategy to address the burden of chronic disease in the United States. These accomplishments represent significant progress in establishing the scientific and infrastructure foundations necessary for whole person health research:

Research Infrastructure Initiatives

Whole Person Reference Physiome and Coordination Center: One of the most significant achievements has been the recent funding of the Whole Person Reference Physiome and Coordination Center, led by NCCIH and co-funded by 20 NIH Institutes, Centers and Offices. This ambitious initiative aims to create a comprehensive cross-system network map of healthy physiological function, allowing researchers to understand how different bodily systems interact and contribute to overall health status.

Whole Person Health Index: In collaboration with the CDC National Center for Health Statistics, Dr. Langevin steered the development of the Whole Person Health Index, a novel measurement tool that is currently being deployed in the National Health Interview Survey and the All of Us longitudinal cohort. This index provides critical data infrastructure for tracking and understanding whole person health outcomes at the population level.

Bridge2AI Initiative: NCCIH has been instrumental in leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) through the Bridge2AI initiative to uncover pathways to health restoration. This collaboration demonstrates how cutting-edge technology can enhance our understanding of complex health systems and identify novel intervention strategies.

Research Centers and Collaboration Networks

The establishment of dedicated research centers focused on whole person health has provided focused expertise and resources for investigating integrative approaches. Additionally, the launch of the stakeholder-led NCCIH Coalition for Whole Person Health has fostered meaningful collaboration between researchers, healthcare providers, policymakers, and patients.

Collaboration between NCCIH and NIH’s All of Us Research Program has expanded the reach and diversity of whole person health research, ensuring that findings reflect the experiences and needs of diverse populations across the United States.

Scientific Methodology and Evidence Generation

A workshop on methodological approaches for whole person research has helped establish rigorous scientific standards for investigating complex, multimodal interventions. This work has been crucial in equipping researchers with the methods needed to study how multiple interventions work together—a challenge that traditional research methodologies were not adequately designed to address.

Economic Imperatives and Cost Savings

Beyond the scientific advances, Dr. Langevin has championed research demonstrating the economic value of whole person health approaches. The publication of the ‘Making a Case for Whole Person Health’ case study analysis has outlined the potential cost savings of integrating whole person health approaches into healthcare delivery. This work was prominently discussed during NCCIH’s 25th anniversary lecture event, emphasizing that whole person health is not only good for patients but also economically advantageous for the healthcare system as a whole.

As healthcare costs continue to escalate and chronic disease prevalence grows, the economic case for prevention and health restoration becomes increasingly compelling. Lifestyle interventions addressing diet, physical activity, and stress management have demonstrated potential for significant cost savings when implemented in integrated, coordinated ways.

The Strategic Planning Process and Future Direction

As NCCIH worked to develop its strategic plan for 2021-2025, Dr. Langevin emphasized the importance of strengthening research on multimodal approaches to care. This planning process has involved extensive stakeholder engagement, including virtual town hall meetings and a formal Request for Information that solicited input from the research community.

The strategic planning process has highlighted the importance of investigating complementary whole health systems as well as integrated complementary and conventional treatments in specific clinical contexts, such as cardiac rehabilitation. With 20 years of rigorous scientific methods development in both basic and clinical research, NCCIH was positioned to play a leading role in tackling important research questions in the area of integrative care.

Addressing Current Health Challenges

The whole person health framework has proven particularly relevant in addressing contemporary health challenges. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, it became starkly evident that chronic conditions in various body systems—such as diabetes and hypertension—were important factors in disease severity and mortality, even though COVID-19 is primarily a respiratory infection. This real-world example demonstrated the critical importance of understanding how health conditions across different organ systems interact and influence overall health outcomes.

More broadly, the whole person health approach is essential for addressing the chronic disease burden affecting millions of Americans. Conditions such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and mental health disorders often co-occur and share common underlying factors. Understanding and addressing these common factors through integrated interventions offers promise for improved population health outcomes.

Fostering Inter-Agency and Inter-Institutional Collaboration

Dr. Langevin’s leadership has extended beyond NCCIH to foster conversation on the whole person health framework across NIH Institutes and Centers, as well as other federal agencies including the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. This inter-agency collaboration has been essential for developing a unified federal strategy to advance whole person health research and implementation.

By bringing together diverse perspectives and expertise from multiple organizations, NCCIH has helped ensure that whole person health principles are integrated into federal health initiatives, research funding priorities, and healthcare policy discussions.

The Path Forward: Legacy and Continuity

While Dr. Langevin transitions into retirement, the infrastructure, initiatives, and momentum she has built will continue to drive whole person health research forward. The research community is now equipped with the methodologies, datasets, health models, and AI tools necessary to chart new territory in understanding the causes of disease and drivers of health.

The transition also comes as Dr. Langevin has announced a new role with an academic consortium dedicated to advancing whole person health research. This continued involvement ensures that the principles and momentum established during her tenure at NCCIH will continue to influence the direction of integrative health research.

The Future of Integrative Research

Looking ahead, the whole person health framework will continue to underpin NCCIH’s strategic plan and take root more deeply across the research community. As this framework matures, researchers will be positioned to contribute important scientific evidence on the benefits of using integrative approaches—particularly those combining diet, physical activity, and stress management—to address the needs of the whole person.

By unlocking new tools for addressing the burden of chronic disease, the research community will be better equipped to mitigate the factors that drive declines in health and instead put people on the path to better health and resilience over a lifetime. This represents a fundamental shift from a disease-focused model to a health-promotion and restoration model.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is whole person health?

A: Whole person health is a research and clinical framework that views health holistically, considering how psychological, nutritional, physical, and behavioral factors interact across bodily systems. Instead of treating diseases in isolation, this approach combines multiple evidence-based interventions to address the entire person proactively.

Q: How does whole person health differ from traditional healthcare?

A: Traditional healthcare typically compartmentalizes health by treating individual diseases or organ systems separately, often with interventions that may not be coordinated. Whole person health recognizes that many chronic diseases share common underlying factors and can be addressed more effectively through integrated, multimodal interventions that consider the interconnectedness of body systems.

Q: What are the key initiatives NCCIH has launched to advance whole person health?

A: Key initiatives include the Whole Person Reference Physiome and Coordination Center, the Whole Person Health Index (developed with CDC), the Bridge2AI initiative leveraging artificial intelligence, research workshops on methodological approaches, and the NCCIH Coalition for Whole Person Health bringing together diverse stakeholders.

Q: What evidence supports the economic value of whole person health approaches?

A: Research has demonstrated significant potential cost savings through whole person health approaches, particularly when lifestyle interventions addressing diet, physical activity, and stress management are implemented in integrated, coordinated ways. NCCIH’s ‘Making a Case for Whole Person Health’ analysis provides detailed evidence of these economic benefits.

Q: How does artificial intelligence contribute to whole person health research?

A: The Bridge2AI initiative uses artificial intelligence to help researchers uncover pathways to health restoration and understand complex interactions across bodily systems. AI tools enhance researchers’ ability to analyze large datasets and identify patterns that inform whole person health interventions.

Q: What role do lifestyle factors play in whole person health?

A: Lifestyle factors such as diet, physical activity, sleep quality, and stress management are central to whole person health. Research shows that addressing these factors early can prevent multiple chronic diseases simultaneously and support health restoration and resilience.

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Sneha TeteBeauty & Lifestyle Writer

 

Sneha is a relationships and lifestyle writer with a strong foundation in applied linguistics and certified training in relationship coaching. She brings over five years of writing experience to renewcure,  crafting thoughtful, research-driven content that empowers readers to build healthier relationships, boost emotional well-being, and embrace holistic living.

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