Our Leadership
Amy Baxter - CEO & CMO
Pediatric emergency physician Dr. Amy Baxter translates neuroscience into disruptive, actionable solutions for pervasive public health problems.
Background
Dr. Baxter's first grant-funded project created and validated a pediatric nausea scale for children with cancer. Now validated in multiple languages, it is used worldwide for clinical assessments and in palliative care, surgical, and emergent research. Her medical research career includes work on PTSD, pain relief for lumbar punctures, a liver enzyme algorithm to time child abuse, identifying inflicted scald burns in children, procedural sedation, and preventing COVID hospitalization and death.
Concerned about public health implications from vaccine-induced needle phobia, she invented "Buzzy", a device to block needle pain. To qualify for her first Fast-Track SBIR, Pain Care Labs was founded in 2006 for formal R&D. The resulting device has now been used in more than 114 million procedures in 28 countries, with over 100 independent peer-reviewed publications demonstrating reduced needle fear and pain. When it was effectively used by a colleague to eliminate oxycontin use after a total knee replacement, she pivoted to full-time research and development of opioid alternatives for low back pain.
Upcoming Appearances
2025 Australian Child Life Conference, June 12, 2025
2025 Harvard Shaughnessy PM&R Research + Education Day 6-6 Cambridge Ma
Previous Appearances & Keynotes
2024 TEDNext Multimodal Pain Management Workshop 10-22 Atlanta GA
2024 Mechanical stimulation to reduce PT pain. European Pediatric Physical Therapy 10-11
2024 Opioids: Friend or Foe: European Society for Pediatric Anesthesia, Athens Greece 9-27
2024 Not Just a Poke: Workshop Director, PROSA Maastrict Netherlands 9-12
2024 Non-Opioid Pain Management Prevent Blindness Georgia 7-14 Atlanta GA
2024 Buzzy to Address Needle Hesitancy – American Red Cross Medical Advisory DC 6-4
2024 Mechanical Stimulation for Neuromodulation – BrainMind NYC June 2
2024 Mind Matters – Empowerment through Neurotransmitters – SHE, Baku, Azerbaijan 5-22
2024 Pediatric Pain Management – 3rd Nursing Meeting, Sao Joao Pediatric Hospital, Porto 5-15
2023 The New Neuroscience of Pain – Society for Pediatric Sedation, Chicago, September 20
2023 How to Hack Your Brain When You’re in Pain – TED main stage, Vancouver, April 20
2023 The New Neuroscience of Pain – USC AI4Health/VIMAL Seminar Speaker LA, CA