Services
Stephani brings over 20 years’ experience as a science communicator, working in multiple media formats for a wide variety of audiences. Dr. Sutherland combines her communication skills with a deep understanding of neuroscience and expertise in pain research. Stephani did her doctoral work with Ed McCleskey at the Vollum institute, in which she first described a role for acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs) in pain sensation. Whatever your communications needs, Stephani can apply her unique skill set to address them.
Writing
Stephani has written about science in just about every medium, for every audience. She has spent over 20 years honing the craft of science writing, explaining difficult concepts such as how neurons fire action potentials. Whether it’s patient-facing material or an explainer of your latest research findings, a policy briefing or a literature review, Stephani brings her rich experience to help craft content for your intended audience.
Meetings
Whether you‘re hosting a departmental summit or an international symposium, let Stephani help you make the most of it - and make sense of all you accomplished. Before the meeting: Stephani can assist with organizational details and help maximize communication to ensure a smooth event. During the meeting: let Stephani play a supporting role using interactive software (Slido) to engage your audience and capture their responses in the moment. And it makes the meeting more fun! After the meeting: Stephani will prepare an Executive Summary and assist with any additional custom content you’re looking to produce: a white paper, a journal publication, a commentary. What the final product looks like depends on your goals for your event.
Research
Dr. Sutherland serves as Communications Director for the Acute to Chronic Pain Signatures (A2CPS) study. A2CPS is a bold research initiative - the largest and most comprehensive of its kind - being carried out by a nation-wide consortium of researchers. The findings will help researchers to develop better, more individualized treatments for patients and to better understand the complex biological processes underlying chronic pain. Since 2021, Stephani has helped build and maintain the website; coordinate and track all internal data access and publications; facilitate internal communications; and oversee scientific outreach and communications related to A2CPS, including external sharing of A2CPS data. As the study reaches its completion in 2027, Stephani will be available to serve on another large pain research project. Such consortium-based projects are the future of pain research, and communications and outreach are a crucial component to their success. Make Dr. Sutherland part of your communications team.
Speaking
Dr. Sutherland is adept at speaking with a clear, expert voice on chronic pain. Whether speaking with the media or in front of a live audience, Stephani targets her presentation to the people she needs to reach - be it patients, policymakers, researchers or the public. Critically, Dr. Sutherland is adept at explaining complex scientific concepts using language that reaches people. Stephani is also available to speak and teach on effective scientific communication, and about her journey as a person with lived experience of pain, a pain researcher and a freelance journalist.