UNC Wilmington Speaker to Share Patients' Perspectives on Dying with Healthcare Professionals Nov. 10

Monday, November 01, 2010

Guest speaker Tiffany Christensen, a Certified Respected Choices instructor, will speak on "finding your voice as a caring health care professional" from 9 to 11:50 a.m., Nov. 10 in the School of Nursing Auditorium, Room 1005, at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. She will share insights with health care professionals into patients' perspectives on dying.

The event is free and open to the public. The information presented will be of value to anyone coping with a serious illness or assisting a loved one who is, as well as those in the health care professions.

Christensen was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 6 months old and has undergone two double lung transplants. She uses her personal experience as a patient as the foundation for her presentations on modern healthcare. Christensen has presented more than 100 workshops and lectures on topics such as the patient's perspective, patient advocacy, advance directives and organ/tissue donation. In 2007, she published the book Sick Girl Speaks!, based on her patient experiences and lessons she learned from them. She is chair of Duke Health System's Patient Advocacy Council and a board member of the Second Wind Lung Transplant Association.

For more information on Christensen, go to her website, www.sickgirlspeaks.com.

Media contact: Dana Fischetti, media relations manager, 910.508.3127 or fischettid@uncw.edu