Norman Gaylis, MD, FACP, MACR, is an internationally recognized physician executive, rheumatology leader, clinical researcher, entrepreneur, educator, and strategic advisor whose career spans more than four decades at the intersection of medicine, life sciences, healthcare operations, and therapeutic innovation. Throughout his career, Dr. Gaylis has combined the perspective of a practicing physician with the strategic discipline of an executive and the curiosity of a researcher. His work has encompassed patient care, clinical research, specialty therapeutics, infusion services, pharmaceutical development, professional governance, physician education, and healthcare entrepreneurship. As he transitions away from the demands of full-time patient care, he is focused on applying this breadth of experience to board, advisory, and strategic leadership opportunities where his knowledge can help organizations innovate, grow, and create meaningful impact.
Dr. Gaylis began his medical education at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, before continuing his postgraduate training internationally and ultimately establishing his career in the United States. He completed his Internal Medicine residency training at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach and his Rheumatology fellowship at the University of Miami Medical School. Board certified in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology, he built a career in South Florida that would ultimately extend far beyond the traditional boundaries of clinical medicine. He also served on the clinical faculty at the University of Miami, teaching rheumatology fellows and medical residents and advancing to the faculty level of Clinical Professor of Rheumatology.
Over the ensuing decades, Dr. Gaylis became a prominent leader in community rheumatology while simultaneously developing significant operational and entrepreneurial expertise. He has led Arthritis and Rheumatic Disease Specialties since 1981 and serves as Medical Director and Principal Investigator of AARDS Research, Inc., as well as Medical Director of the Infusion and Immunotherapy Center of South Florida. These roles have required him to operate across clinical care, research, infusion therapy, organizational administration, and the practical implementation of emerging treatments. His business leadership has also included serving as Medical Director of Rheumatology for Cardinal Health Specialty Solutions, Chief Operating Officer of Rheumatology for Continucare Corporation, and Chief Operating Officer of the Rheumatology Physicians Practice Division at Sheridan Healthcare.
Clinical research has been one of the defining pillars of Dr. Gaylis’s professional life. As Medical Director of AARDS Research, he has served as Principal Investigator in more than 150 clinical trials involving new pharmaceutical products and therapeutic approaches for conditions including rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus nephritis, gout, and Sjögren’s syndrome. His research experience has brought him into collaboration with many leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology organizations and has given him a distinctive understanding of how scientific concepts progress from investigation through clinical evaluation and ultimately into real-world medicine. His career therefore offers boards and executive teams a perspective that bridges clinical evidence, physician adoption, patient needs, commercialization, and the operational realities of healthcare delivery.
Dr. Gaylis has also established a substantial record of scientific authorship and innovation. His published work spans rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, imaging, biologic therapies, biosimilars, Long COVID, neurostimulation, and other areas of therapeutic development. His research includes work published in prominent scientific journals, including The Lancet, as well as extensive presentations at major rheumatology meetings in the United States and internationally. Notably, his work has included research involving vagus nerve stimulation and neurostimulation in rheumatoid arthritis, reflecting his longstanding willingness to investigate emerging technologies and unconventional therapeutic pathways when supported by scientific opportunity.
Alongside his clinical and scientific achievements, Dr. Gaylis has built a distinguished record of governance and professional leadership. He served on the Board of Directors of the American College of Rheumatology and the Rheumatology Research Foundation, and he has held numerous leadership positions within professional organizations throughout his career. He was President of the Florida Society of Rheumatology and Founder, Director, and President of the International Society for Musculoskeletal Imaging in Rheumatology. His professional service has also included committee leadership, editorial responsibilities, and advisory positions, demonstrating an ability to contribute not only as a subject-matter expert but also as an organizational leader capable of helping institutions navigate priorities, stakeholders, and long-term strategic objectives.
His influence within rheumatology has been recognized at the highest levels of the profession. In 2017, Dr. Gaylis was elected by his peers as a Master of the American College of Rheumatology, one of the organization’s most significant professional distinctions. His commitment to advancing research extends beyond his own scientific work: in 2015, he became the first practicing rheumatologist to make a $1 million commitment to the Rheumatology Research Foundation, establishing the Norman B. Gaylis, MD, Research Award for Rheumatologists in Community Practice. The award supports community-based physicians seeking to translate their clinical observations and ideas into innovative research, reflecting Dr. Gaylis’s belief that meaningful advancement in healthcare depends on supporting the next generation of investigators and innovators.
Communication and education have been equally important dimensions of his career. Dr. Gaylis has spent decades presenting medical and scientific information to physicians, researchers, students, healthcare leaders, and international audiences. His engagements have taken him across the United States and to countries throughout Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, while his educational contributions have included lectures, scientific presentations, media appearances, editorial work, and physician training. He hosted the medical radio program Health Talk in South Florida for approximately two decades and has contributed articles and commentary through Rheumatology News. Comfortable communicating both complex science and practical healthcare strategy, he brings the credibility of a clinician-researcher together with the accessibility of an experienced educator.
As an executive and prospective board leader, Dr. Gaylis offers particular value to organizations operating in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, specialty therapeutics, healthcare services, insurance and payer environments, clinical research, nutraceuticals, medical technology, and emerging treatment platforms. He is equally interested in entrepreneurial companies and established enterprises and brings a practical understanding of the challenges that arise as organizations move from innovation toward clinical acceptance, commercialization, scale, and sustainable market adoption. His experience managing physicians and healthcare operations, collaborating with industry, evaluating therapies, conducting research, and participating in professional governance enables him to assess opportunities through multiple lenses rather than from a single functional perspective.
At this stage of his career, Dr. Gaylis is motivated by the opportunity to convert decades of accumulated knowledge into lasting organizational value. He views board and advisory service as a natural continuation of a career built around advancing medicine, mentoring professionals, evaluating new ideas, and helping organizations translate innovation into meaningful outcomes. Having supervised, mentored, educated, and collaborated with hundreds of professionals over the course of his career, he understands that sustainable success depends on combining expertise with curiosity, accountability, sound judgment, and an ability to bring people together around a shared objective. He is particularly energized by organizations confronting consequential decisions—whether involving a new therapy, a developing market, a strategic partnership, commercialization, healthcare delivery, or organizational growth.
Beyond his professional responsibilities, Dr. Gaylis brings an energetic and internationally minded approach to life. He is an outdoor enthusiast who enjoys hiking, biking, swimming in the ocean, and following sports, particularly soccer and football. His extensive international experience has reinforced an appreciation for different cultures, healthcare systems, and ways of approaching complex problems. That sense of curiosity and adventure is consistent with his professional philosophy: remain engaged, continue learning, seek meaningful challenges, and use experience not as a reason to become comfortable, but as a foundation for creating the next chapter of impact.
Norman has built a distinguished career collaborating with, consulting for, and developing lasting relationships with both major pharmaceutical companies and emerging startups. His experience includes contributing to the design and development of studies for new therapeutics, exploring potential new indications for existing products, supporting post market marketing initiatives, and assisting with insurance coverage discussions. Today, Norman is the Founder and President of NTN NViromune, a startup nutraceutical company dedicated to developing natural, GRAS approved products supported by scientific evidence for areas of need including bone loss, osteoporosis, and improved immune resistance. Working collaboratively with scientists and pharmacists from a variety of academic institutions, he remains committed to advancing thoughtful, evidence based solutions that can improve health and wellbeing. Outside of his professional pursuits, Norman is a proud father of two sons and grandfather of five, and he especially enjoys supporting and cheering on his family in their academic, athletic, and recreational pursuits.
Dr. Gaylis’s career ultimately represents the convergence of physician leadership, scientific investigation, entrepreneurship, governance, and service. He has spent decades helping patients while simultaneously contributing to the development of therapies, research programs, healthcare organizations, professional societies, and future leaders. Today, he brings that experience to organizations seeking a board director or strategic advisor capable of understanding both the science behind healthcare innovation and the business realities required to bring that innovation successfully into the world. His objective is not simply to observe from the boardroom, but to contribute informed perspective, thoughtful questions, valuable relationships, and the judgment developed through a lifetime of leadership in a constantly evolving industry.
Character:
Dr. Gaylis demonstrates a deep commitment to service, mentorship, intellectual curiosity, and the advancement of healthcare, values reinforced by decades of clinical leadership and his substantial support of community-based research. He approaches new opportunities with energy, integrity, accountability, and a genuine desire to use his experience to create value for organizations and the people they serve.
Knowledge:
More than four decades across clinical medicine, research, healthcare operations, pharmaceuticals, specialty therapeutics, professional organizations, and entrepreneurship have given Dr. Gaylis an unusually broad understanding of the healthcare ecosystem. His experience as a physician, investigator, executive, educator, and industry collaborator enables him to connect scientific evidence with clinical realities and commercial considerations.
Strategic:
Dr. Gaylis evaluates opportunities through multiple perspectives, considering patient needs, physician adoption, scientific validity, operational execution, market positioning, stakeholder interests, and long-term organizational value. His experience developing healthcare organizations, evaluating emerging therapies, participating in governance, and collaborating across industry equips him to contribute meaningfully to complex strategic decisions.
Communication:
An accomplished international lecturer, educator, media contributor, and physician leader, Dr. Gaylis has spent his career making sophisticated medical and strategic concepts understandable to diverse audiences. He communicates with confidence and credibility while remaining capable of engaging physicians, researchers, executives, investors, industry partners, and other stakeholders in productive dialogue.
