CV
Eileen B. Leary, PhD, RPSGT
Curriculum Vitae
Tenacious sleep nerd with over 20 years of collaborative clinical research experience.
Senior scientist known for inspiring teams to successfully deliver patient‑centric research studies.
- PhD in Epidemiology and Clinical Research from Stanford University
- Rare ability to effectively communicate between diverse stakeholders
- Experience includes 40+ clinical research studies, 90+ scientific publications, and 30+ presentations
Currently exploring clinical and health economics and outcomes research roles/contracts focused on helping people achieve an amazing night's sleep.
Education
6/2020 PhD, Epidemiology and Clinical Research, Stanford University School of Medicine
Thesis: Sleep and Death: The Relationship Between REM Sleep and Mortality
6/2013 MS, Epidemiology and Clinical Research, Stanford University School of Medicine
Thesis: The Association Between Periodic Leg Movements (PLMs) and Sleepiness in the Wisconsin Sleep Cohort
6/1995 BA, Psychology, University of California, San Diego
Provost Honors; Honors Thesis: Effects of Smoking Cessation on Sleep; Education Abroad Program (University of College Cork, Ireland)
Professional Credentials and Memberships
10/2020 – present American Academy of Sleep Technologist Fellow (FAAST)
4/2019 – present World Sleep Society Member
11/2016 – present Basic Life Support (BLS) Provider
2/2012 – present ABSM Registered Sleep Technologist (RST) (# 2791)
7/2010 – present Sleep Research Society Member
11/2007 – present California Sleep Society Member
6/1998 – present BRPT Registered Polysomnographic Technologist (RPSGT) (# 2157)
5/1997 – present American Association of Sleep Technologists Member
Employment and Research Experience
7/2018 – present Sleep Research Design and Analysis, Consultant (San Francisco, CA)
Independent
Provided strategic guidance and clinical research expertise to support study design, trial execution, and addressed knowledge gaps through data‑driven decision‑making.
- Designed clinical trials, authored study protocols and statistical analysis plans, and developed original study questionnaires.
- Analyzed data, interpreted results, and synthesized findings into high‑impact publications and reports.
- Contracts include Project Sleep, Stanford University, Proper Sleep, NeuraHealth, and Jazz Pharmaceuticals.
1/2023 – 2/2025 Axsome Therapeutics (San Francisco, CA - remote)
Senior Director, Clinical Development
Served as Molecule Lead for sleep and neuroscience programs. Responsible for developing and leading an integrated sleep/neuroscience clinical program spanning all phases of research.
- Aligned clinical research activities with core business objectives across 2 molecules and 7 therapeutic areas (narcolepsy, idiopathic hypersomnia, obstructive sleep apnea, shift work disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, major depressive disorder, and binge eating disorder).
- Propelled company visibility as a leading entity in the sleep field through strategic presentations of scientific findings at prominent conferences, securing partnerships with >15 influential key opinion leaders, and orchestrating >30 high‑impact engagements with external experts.
- Served as sleep medicine subject matter expert, driving strategy and decision‑making by staying informed on the latest advancements in clinical research, therapeutic areas, and regulatory guidelines.
- Drove the development/execution of 22 clinical studies from early phase development (hepatic, TQT, and food effect studies) through post‑marketing requirements (pregnancy studies).
- Authored >25 pivotal documents including study protocols, pediatric study plans, clinical study reports, pINDs, briefing books, investigator brochures, and annual reports through close collaboration with regulatory affairs, biostatistics, CMC, medical affairs, commercial and executive leadership teams.
- Led 8 clinical study teams to ensure timely initiation and meticulous execution of high‑quality, cost‑efficient clinical trials in partnership with clinical operations and contracted research organizations (IND submission through Phase 4 and post‑marketing RWE studies).
- Analyzed and interpreted clinical trial data, effectively communicating insights to internal and external stakeholders, including publication of 2 peer‑reviewed manuscripts and 10 original abstracts.
- Championed a culture of scientific rigor, collaboration, and innovation by fostering open communication and providing mentorship to junior colleagues.
7/2020 – 1/2023 Jazz Pharmaceuticals (Palo Alto, CA)
Director, Clinical Scientist Lead
Drove the post‑approval research strategy for Global Medical Affairs. Responsible for identifying and prioritizing data gaps, designing and implementing real world evidence research studies, and articulating to matrix teams and senior leadership how findings can be applied to business and medical decisions.
- Hired, trained, and supervised team of high functioning clinical scientists. Served as mentor to team members and outside colleagues by promoting and prioritizing professional development.
- Designed 5+ studies that were patient centric, feasible to operationalize, and generated evidence of interest to patients, health care providers, and the scientific community.
- Led multiple high‑functioning, cross‑functional teams to successfully develop and deploy research studies with intelligence, compassion, enthusiasm, and integrity.
- Served as sleep and clinical science subject matter expert to matrix teams to ensure scientific rigor in research studies.
- Published 6 peer‑reviewed manuscripts and 13 original abstracts presented at scientific conferences.
3/2009 – 6/2020 Stanford Center for Sleep Sciences & Medicine (Palo Alto, CA)
Senior Manager of Clinical Research
Responsibilities included leading scientific and technical initiatives, writing grants/proposals, performing statistical analysis and power calculations for grant applications/publications, designing research studies/clinical trials, developing budgets, negotiating contracts, and actively building successful collaborations with internal and third‑party organizations.
- Project Director for the Stanford Technology Analytics and Genomics in Sleep (STAGES) study: a prospective cross‑sectional, multi‑site study that collected genetic and phenotypic data on 1,500 adult/adolescent patients evaluated for sleep disorders.
- Project Director for the Alliance Sleep Questionnaire (ASQ): an online questionnaire that uses complex, branching logic to identify potential sleep disorders. Currently standard of care at Stanford Hospital.
- Helped department secure >40 million dollars in funding by directing the submission of 15 grant applications (9 funded).
- Provided guidance and mentorship to >20 Masters and PhD students from Technical University of Denmark taking part in the Transatlantic Sleep Medicine & Technology program.
- Database Architect/Administrator for the Stanford Sleep Cohort and Narcolepsy Cohort. Created system to link clinical, research, and sleep study data on >40,000 individuals. Optimized data security and operational effectiveness by providing technical expertise and developing a schema and data dictionary.
- Program and Technical Director of Stanford's Accredited Sleep Technologist Education Program. Developed A‑STEP's course curriculum (including speakers and materials), managed team of 12‑15 presenters, and presented lectures on various topics ranging from sleep scoring to patient hook‑ups.
- Provided operational oversight for 10 clinical studies with sample sizes ranging from 40 to over 8,000.
11/2002 – 2/2009 Stanford Sleep Research Center (Stanford, CA)
National Coordinator / Central Scoring System Manager
Responsible for overall operations on NHLBI's 14.1‑million‑dollar Apnea Positive Pressure Long‑term Efficacy Study (APPLES): a 6‑month, randomized, double‑blind, 2 arm, sham‑controlled, multi‑center trial to assess the long‑term effectiveness of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with >1,516 enrolled subjects.
- Architect/Administrator of a Central Scoring System used to track >20,000 sleep studies. Hired and managed team of up to 15 remote technicians.
- Ensured high‑level care was provided to the >400 subjects enrolled at Stanford. Recruited, trained, and supervised a diverse team of 12‑16 staff members.
- Collaborated in the creation of a robust data entry and management system that collected and stored >8 million data points, including procedures and tools to foster standardization and data integrity.
- Assisted Principal Investigator in developing/implementing 3 subsequent clinical trials.
7/2000 – 11/2002 SleepQuest Inc. (Redwood City, CA)
Project Manager / Stanford Liaison
Managed projects for Dr. William C. Dement to raise public awareness of the importance of sleep.
- Partnered with Stanford physicians to develop and deploy a successful annual sleep education course for a family practice clerkship (including tests for assessing efficacy).
- Joined forces with third party organizations to incorporate sleep into college and high school curricula.
- Produced educational materials for long‑haul truck drivers to improve their sleep and safety practices.
- Designed research protocol for testing the efficacy of SleepQuest's treatment pathway. Results published and presented at 2006 SLEEP conference.
- Improved CPAP adherence for over 100 patients through one‑on‑one appointments.
12/1997 – 7/2000 San Francisco VA Medical Center (San Francisco, CA)
Contractor
Key contributor on research team examining the effects of Post‑Traumatic Stress Disorder on sleep.
- Analyzed and scored sleep studies per project‑specific metrics.
- Performed patient hook‑ups and calibrated data collection software.
4/1997 – 7/2000 UCSF Mt. Zion Sleep Disorders Center (San Francisco, CA)
Registered Polysomnographic Technologist
Conducted MSLT, MWT, and overnight sleep studies (PSGs) including full apnea hook‑ups, PAP/BiLevel titrations, TCCO2, and PES calibration and monitoring.
- Scored >150 sleep studies for sleep stages, breathing events, arousals, and leg movements.
- Improved patient health by developing/implanting a proactive PAP adherence program.
Teaching / Invited Lectures
Publications
Peer Reviewed Articles
Book Chapters
Abstracts
I'm always interested in collaborating on new sleep science projects. Just started brainstorming or ready to analyze results, let's connect