RSNA 2026 Outstanding Researcher

An academic leader, physician-scientist and educator, Pina C. Sanelli, MD, MPH, has been dedicated to advancing radiology and improving healthcare through clinical effectiveness research. She is the associate dean for student affairs at the Donald & Barbara Zucker School of Medicine and vice chair of research at Northwell Health, both in Hempstead, NY. She is also a professor of radiology at Zucker School of Medicine and Professor of Health System Science at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in Manhasset, NY.

“Dr. Sanelli’s visionary scholarship has transformed how radiology measures value, advances equitable care and improves patient outcomes,” said RSNA President, Jeffrey S. Klein, MD. “Her sustained research excellence, collaborative leadership and commitment to mentoring future investigators have strengthened our specialty and created enduring contributions to evidence-based imaging and health policy worldwide.”

Over the past two decades, Dr. Sanelli had led a robust research portfolio with continuous extramural funding from the NIH, private foundations and industry, more than 200 scholarly publications, and several textbooks with a focus on advancing imaging strategies in acute stroke, often through the lens of clinical effectiveness and health disparities.

She developed the Imaging Clinical Effectiveness and Outcomes Research program at Northwell Health and the Policy Research and Imaging Effectiveness (PRIME) Center at the American College of Radiology’s Neiman Health Policy Institute, both of which conduct evidence-based research to optimize patient care, inform health policy and improve population health outcomes.

Dr. Sanelli also developed several national educational initiatives, including the Comparative Effectiveness Research Training program, which received multi-society sponsorship from RSNA, American Society of Neuroradiology, Society of Interventional Radiology, and Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging. She also developed the Scholarly Concentration in Healthcare Effectiveness and Economics, an interdisciplinary partnership between the Zucker School of Medicine and Zarb School of Business at Hofstra University.

Dr. Sanelli is a former president of the American Society of Neuroradiology, Radiology Alliance for Health Services Research and Eastern Neuroradiological Society. She is currently Treasurer of the Association of Academic Radiology and on the ascension leadership track to serve as president. She has also served on several boards, including currently on the RSNA R&E Foundation Board of Trustees.

Through leadership, research and education, Dr. Sanelli continues to focus her career on advancing healthcare delivery that is evidence-based, patient-centered and policy-relevant.