Burel Goodin, PhD

Department of Anesthesiology Featured Member: August 2025

Dr. Burel Goodin is a Professor of Anesthesiology in the Washington University Pain Center. He is also the current President of the U.S. Association for the Study of Pain (USASP). Trained as a clinical health psychologist, he began his tenure track faculty career as an assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), rising to the rank of full professor and Co-director of the Center for Addiction and Pain Prevention and Intervention (CAPPI). He relocated to WashU Medicine in 2023.

Dr. Goodin’s career integrates cutting-edge translational pain science with a profound commitment to equity, mentorship, and community engagement. He merges quantitative laboratory methods with social-contextual awareness to inform pain treatment that is inclusive, precise, and culturally competent. Concurrently, his credentials reflect academic excellence through sustained NIH funding, leadership roles in professional societies, and exemplary mentorship of emerging scholars.

When not working, Dr. Goodin can usually be found chasing his two young daughters (ages 4 and 2 years old) while his lovely wife yells at them to “stop running in the house.” He enjoys fishing, cycling, and playing simulated golf, none of which he is actually any good, but mostly he enjoys sharing good food and conversation with the people he loves most.