Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA, is an award-winning broadcast journalist, health educator, HEALTH DESIGNER™, health/lifestyle expert, international speaker, medical blogger, consultant, and writer. Barbara is a featured writer on Huffingtonpost. She is founder of BarbaraFicarra.com, a lifestyle destination site. She is a registered nurse active on the front lines of health care, and she is an administrative supervisor at a level 2 trauma center and covers multiple medical and surgical units, critical care, oncology, cardiology and step-down units, the psychiatric in-patient unit, the women's and children's units, and the emergency department. Her clinical experience ranges from oncology to general medicine and surgery. Barbara is a leading voice in health and she focuses on consumer and patient engagement and empowerment, health care social media, healthy living, and health care technology-telemedicine, telehealth, mHealth, and gamification. Barbara offers practical advice for consumers by focusing on health and wellness. Her trademark is simple and useful information from a trustworthy source to help people to take charge of their health. Read more about Barbara.

Speaking Events: PIAA International Conference-Amsterdam, Presentation-Social Media: Friend or Foe in 21st Century Medicine, October 2014, Past Speaking Events: Women's Health Conversations September 2013 Pittsburgh, PA, Presentation-Consumer Engagement: How Social Media and Digital Technology are Changing Health Care, Treatment Centers of America, Moderating Physician Social Media Panel, March 2013, HIMSS SoCal Annual Health Care IT Conference, Los Angeles, CA, Speaking/Moderating Social Media Panel, April, 2013. Novartis Internal Event- Presentation, Social Media is Changing the Landscape in Health Care. Ivey Global Health Care Conference - Measuring What Matters: Cost vs. Value November 27-28, 2012-Metro Toronto Convention Centre Toronto, ON Canada-Panel Session: Needs, Wants and Values in Health Care: The Public Perspective and Barbara's presentation will focus on patient-centric health care and the patient experience. Cayman Islands National Healthcare 20/20 Conference October 18-20, 2012- Presentation Title: "The Rise of Digital Technology for Better Patient Engagement; e-Patient Connections 2012 Conference September 24, 2012, Philadelphia, PA - Title: "Using Gamification as a Tool to Engage e-Patients Effectively, BlogHer ’12 | HealthMinder Day-August 2, 2012 New York City, Cleveland Clinic - "Patient Experience: Empathy and Innovation Summit" May 19-22, 2012 - Cleveland, Ohio - Title: Social Media in Health Care and Arkansas HIMSS - "H.I.T. it to the Green with Leadership" June, 1, 2012 - Little Rock, Arkansas - Title: Using IT to Engage the Patient

Health care isn’t just what happens between you and your medical professionals. It’s about taking care of yourself, in and out of the doctor's office, and it's about maintaining your well-being and achieving spectacular health. In her blogs, Barbara shares a nurse's inside perspective on healthy living and personal health, as well as the latest legal and political health care issues making all the headlines. Barbara sorts through latest research and provides you with relevant information without any of the confusing medical jargon. Barbara is dedicated to delivering you accurate, balanced, reliable and trustworthy health and medical information. She'll help guide you so you can make informed decisions about your health. Take charge of your health and enjoy every day!

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The Treatment Advocacy Center is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating barriers to the timely and effective treatment of severe mental illnesses. The center promotes laws, policies, and practices for the delivery of psychiatric care and supports the development of innovative treatments for and research into illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Award-winning actor and activist Martin Sheen is working to raise awareness of the need improve treatment for severe mental illnesses. To learn more, watch a recent television interview in which Sheen discusses the challenges and struggles facing those living with these diseases.

The Health Care Blog (THCB) shares insights about the health care system from leaders in the field. It has a reputation as one of the most respected independent voices in the industry. The Wall Street Journal calls it "among the most widely read insider publications in the field." WebMD describes it as "a free-wheeling discussion of the latest healthcare developments."