Dr. Richard Harris Steps Down as Co-President of SAR & Dr. Lisa Taylor-Swanson Elected as Successor
The Society for Acupuncture Research (SAR) announces a significant leadership transition as Dr. Richard “Rick” E. Harris steps down from his role as Co-President. The Board of Directors has unanimously voted to appoint Dr. Lisa Taylor-Swanson as the new Co-President, effective immediately.
Dr. Harris, a Susan Samueli Endowed Chair and Professor at the University of California, Irvine, has served SAR with distinction, bringing decades of expertise in integrative health, neuroscience, and acupuncture research. His leadership has been instrumental in advancing SAR’s mission to bridge the gap between traditional East Asian medicine and modern scientific inquiry. Dr. Harris is well-known for his academic and research endeavors at UC Irvine, where he leads investigations into chronic pain and the neurobiological mechanisms of acupuncture. Dr. Harris will continue to serve on the SAR Board of Directors.
Dr. Lisa Taylor-Swanson, PhD, MAcOM, LAc, brings a wealth of clinical and academic experience to her new role. An Associate Professor in the College of Nursing at the University of Utah, Dr. Taylor-Swanson is a licensed acupuncturist and seasoned researcher specializing in women’s health, particularly during the menopausal transition. Her work integrates traditional East Asian medicine with conventional medicine, and she is recognized for her innovative research on menopause and application of complex adaptive systems theory in research design and conduct.
“We are deeply grateful to Dr. Harris for his visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to SAR,” said the Board in a joint statement. “We are equally excited to welcome Dr. Taylor-Swanson as Co-President. Her dedication to acupuncture and her collaborative spirit make her an ideal leader to guide SAR into its next chapter.”
Dr. Taylor-Swanson joins Dr. Jun J. Mao, who continues in his role as Co-President, in leading SAR’s strategic initiatives, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, and promoting rigorous research in acupuncture and East Asian medicine.
"Dr. Taylor-Swanson brings her exceptional passion, clinical experience, and research expertise to the field of acupuncture and East Asian Medicine research. I look foward to working with her to grow the reach and impact of SAR in advancing research and evidence-informed practice of acupuncture around the world." Co-President, Jun Mao MD, MSCE
New Members Join the Board of Directors
F. Afua Bromley, DACM
F. Afua Bromley, DACM, LAc, Dipl.Ac (NCCAOM) is a NCCAOM Past Chair (2017-2020) & Board member (2014-2023) and former Co-Chair of the NCCAOM & ASA Acupuncture Medicine Cultural Competency Task Force. In addition to her private practice in St Louis, MO, Bromley worked at CHIPS (Community Health-In-Partnership Services), a multi-specialty clinic for uninsured and underinsured individuals in north St. Louis from 2000-2012. Throughout her career, she has worked to promote equal access to quality integrative medical care to those in underserved and disenfranchised communities. She is founder of Universal Holistic Healthcare Services (UHHS), a nonprofit 501(c)(3), dedicated to promoting integrative healthcare and empowerment life and health education, through such activities as an HIV integrative medicine clinic, STD/HIV outreach prevention education, free nutrition & wellness workshops, women’s support group for those living with HIV/AIDS, and acudetox for substance abuse. UHHS is currently completing a public health clinic in Ettokrom, Ghana, constructing an integrative public healthcare worker training center in Ghana, West Africa and creating a global virtual integrative health educational platform (www.universalholistichealth.org). Bromley is in private practice in St Louis, MO, and an adjunct professor at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.
Molly Candon, PhD
Molly Candon is an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Health Care Management at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Candon studies how insurance design and reimbursement can be leveraged to improve access to and the quality of pain care and behavioral health care. She currently studies trends in insurance coverage and cost sharing for acupuncture therapy. She also co-directs the Evaluation Center, a joint venture between the Penn Center for Mental Health, Community Behavioral Health, and Philadelphia’s Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services, where she leads projects on data-driven suicide prevention and behavioral health crisis services.
Hongjin Li, PhD, BSN, FAAN
Dr. Li is an Associate Professor in the College of Nursing at the University of Illinois Chicago. She earned her Ph.D. in Nursing from the University of Pittsburgh and holds a Master’s degree in Biostatistics from Columbia University. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, and has served as a consultant to the Illinois Joint Task Force of the Illinois Society of Acupuncturists and the Illinois Department of Human Services on Medicaid Reimbursement for Acupuncture. Dr. Li’s program of research focuses on advancing symptom science and health equity among breast cancer survivors. Her work centers on two key areas: applying multi-omics (metabolomics, microbiome) approaches to understand the biological mechanisms underlying the effects of acupuncture on psychoneurological symptoms in breast cancer survivors; and implementing innovative, non-opioid complementary and integrative health interventions—particularly acupuncture—to reduce cancer-related symptom burden, especially in medically underserved populations. Dr. Li has served as a principal investigator or co-investigator on more than four NIH-funded studies and has published extensively in the areas of cancer symptom science, integrative oncology, and biobehavioral research. Her work aims to integrate precision health strategies into supportive cancer care and improve quality of life among cancer survivors.
John Yoo, MBA, SAR Board Treasurer
John Yoo serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Virginia University of Integrative Medicine (VUIM), a private, non-profit institution of higher education dedicated to training healthcare practitioners in Acupuncture, Herbal Medicine, and the principles of whole person health. Under John’s leadership since April 2019, VUIM has significantly expanded its academic and clinical footprint, growing from a single campus to three locations - its flagship in Tysons, Virginia, and satellite campuses in Ridgefield, New Jersey, and Duluth, Georgia - as well as off-campus clinical training sites at Veterans Affairs Medical Centers and large, comprehensive Cancer Hospitals (INOVA Schar Cancer Institute). Under John's leadership, the University, accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine (ACAHM), now offers both Master’s and Doctorate degrees in Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine, with programs available in English, Korean, and Mandarin Chinese, demonstrating a strong commitment to diversity and global engagement.