G-PACT has assembled the first multi-organization Gastroparesis Advocacy Network (GAN), bringing together clinicians, scientists, nonprofits, policy experts, and industry into a unified coalition working on behalf of patients. The network grew out of the March 2026 Gastroparesis Summit, where these stakeholders developed the charter for GAN: a structured initiative that channels the field’s collective expertise into coordinated action and measurable outcomes.
GAN operates through three Action Teams, each working under fixed-time mandates:
- Diagnostic Clarity & Pathophysiology – Addressing variability in diagnosis and closing key knowledge gaps to produce a multi center consensus on disease phenotypes and priority research areas.
- Treatment Access & Regulatory Strategy – Mapping regulatory and payer barriers to improve patient access and guide therapeutic development.
- Research Infrastructure & Data Alignment – Strengthening collaboration across registries, clinical trials, and data initiatives to improve research coordination.
GAN is not a think tank and it does not duplicate existing programs. It is a structured collaboration built to actively advance diagnosis, treatment, research, and policy in gastroparesis.
Interested in getting involved?
Contact Jim Sliney at jimslineyjr@g-pact.org or 717-356-0052.
Gan Members
GAN is overseen by a Clinical & Scientific Advisory Board (full name, “Gastroparesis Advocacy Network, Clinical & Scientific Advisory Board”) made up of the following experts in the field:
Thomas L Abell MD FACG AGAF FASGE FACP The Arthur M. Schoen MD Chair in Gastroenterology U of Louisville KY USA
Eva Alsheik, MD, Henry Ford Health
Helen Burton-Murray, Director, GI Behavioral Health, Massachusetts General Hospital; Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School
John E. Fortunato, M.D., MBA, Professor of Pediatrics, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Kimberly Harer, MD ScM; Neurogastroenterologist at the University of Michigan
Laurie Keefer, PhD, Professor of Medicine and Psychiatry Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
Daniel Keszthelyi, Chief and Professor of Gastroenterology, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, the Netherlands
Kenneth L. Koch, MD, Medical Director EnterraMedical, Inc. Emeritus Professor, Wake Forest School of Medicine
Prateek Mathur, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition University of Louisville
Baharak Moshiree MD, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Professor of Medicine
Ali Navidi, Psy.D. Licensed Clinical Psychologist & Founder/CEO, GI Psychology
Henry Parkman, MD, Professor of Medicine. GI Section. Temple University School of Medicine. Philadelphia, PA.
Pankaj Jay Pasricha, M.B.B.S., M.D., Mayo Clinic Arizona
Rick Pescatore, DO, Emergency Physician; Founder & CEO, BellyMD
Geoffrey A. Preidis, M.D., Ph.D., FAAP, AGAF Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition Baylor College of Medicine & Texas Children’s Hospital
Amol Sharma, MD, MS, FACG, AGAF Donald O. Castell Endowed Chair in Gastroenterology Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology Medical University of South Carolina Department of Medicine
Madison Simons, PsyD, GI Psychologist, Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, Digestive Disease Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Zachary Spiritos MD, MPH (North Carolina)
Abigail Stocker MD, Associate Professor, University of Louisville
Jan Tack, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Medicine, University of Leuven, Belgium
Elyse R. Thakur, PhD, Assistant Professor, Gastroenterology, Internal Medicine (Charlotte)