Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
John Gaitanis, M.D., has been named director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), effective August 23, 2026.
As NICHD director, he will oversee an annual budget of approximately $1.7 billion and lead about 1,100 employees who conduct research or support around 2,300 research grants and projects in the U.S. and internationally. His leadership will focus on advancing research in maternal, gynecologic, and child health, as well as on intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Dr. Gaitanis is recognized as a national expert in complex neurodevelopmental disorders, epilepsy, and autism, with nearly three decades of clinical, academic, and leadership experience. He previously served as Chief of Child Neurology at Tufts Medical Center in Boston and Director of Child Neurology at Brown Medical School in Providence, Rhode Island.
Throughout his career, Dr. Gaitanis has advanced access to specialized services, clinical care, clinician education, and evidence-informed approaches supporting the health and communication needs of nonspeaking individuals with autism.
He holds an M.D. from Brown Medical School, completed a pediatrics residency at the University of Rochester, neurology training at Boston Children’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, serving as chief resident, and fellowship training in epilepsy and clinical neurophysiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School.