Compassionate Conversations: Talking About the Impact of Obesity on Overall Health

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The Compassionate Conversations series is aimed at highlighting effective techniques and answering questions on having sensitive conversations around difficult topics. For our first webinar in this series, we will be focusing on patient-centered discussions regarding obesity and how best health care professionals in obstetrics and gynecology can document obesity. Obesity affects millions of Americans and continues to be a leading chronic disease. In this webinar, we hope to provide obstetric and gynecologic health care professionals and their patients with the tools to be confident in discussing obesity in a sensitive and respectful manner.

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Contributors

Louise P. King, MD, JD, Moderator

Louise P. King, MD, JD, is an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology at Harvard Medical School and a Surgeon within the Division of Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery at Brigham and Women's. Dr. King completed her juris doctorate at Tulane Law School before attending medical school at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. She completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Parkland Hospital in Dallas Texas and her fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery with Dr. Camran Nezhat at Stanford University. Her areas of interest in medical ethics focus on questions of informed decision making and assisted reproduction as well as equitable access to advanced gynecologic surgery.
Michele Tedder, Panelist

Michele Tedder is a charismatic connector with a passion for public health issues. She is the founder of three ventures, Bariatrically Blessed, Joy for Life Coaching and Village Empowerment Solutions Consulting all of which are focused on supporting health and wellness outcomes of individuals and communities.

Michele has more than 30 years of knowledge and experience from the health and mental health arena with expertise in community outreach, strategic partnership development, community engagement and health education. She was employed for 18 years at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic (WPIC) in Pittsburgh, PA., one of the largest behavioral health care providers in the country affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She went on to lead community engagement efforts as the Community Outreach Director for an asthma program at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and Project Manager for the Crying Baby Program at A Child’s Place at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh.

Michele served as the Project Manager for the Health Professions Opportunity Grant, a multi-million dollar, federally funded program that trained students in various health professions at Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC). Michele recently took on a new role as the Senior Project Manager for the Black Women’s Health Imperative (BWHI) Distance Learning Lifestyle Program Evaluation project. BWHI is a national organization dedicated to improving the health and wellness of the nation’s Black women and girls physically, emotionally and financially.

She is also a professional life coach trained by the Life Purpose Institute in San Diego, CA and board certified by the Center for Credentialing and Education. An inspiring and impactful public speaker, Michele has also published numerous articles on health and wellness issues and is the author of Don’t Let Grief Steal Your Joy, a spiritual self-help book.

Additionally, Michele introduced and led Parish Health Nursing ministries for two local congregations and established a Family Wellness Center for Reach Up, Inc., a faith-based non-profit organization affiliated with Union Baptist Church of Swissvale.

A native of Pittsburgh, Michele holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Degree from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master of Science Degree in Nursing Education, from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Amber Huett Garcia , Panelist

Amber is the Director of Business Development with Lemonada Media, a women-run and founded podcast network with over 27 shows aimed to “make life suck less”. She is passionate about obesity care and is an active emeritus member of the National Board for the Obesity Action Coalition (OAC) after nine years of service, including two years as its chair. She frequently lobbies on access issues and is a founding member of the Global Obesity Patient Alliance (GOPA), where she represents the United States. Amber is a 2018 recipient of Medtronic’s Bakken Invitation, an award given to individuals who’ve used their “extra life” to advocate. Amber maintains a 245-lb weight loss, which she achieved through combination therapy, including revisional revision metabolic surgery patient (sleeve to SADI-S). Amber is a Memphis-Shelby County Schools board member in Memphis, TN (District 8), the 25th largest school district in the United States with 110,000 pre-K-12 students. Amber lives in Memphis with her husband Matt and their daughter Parker and enjoys traveling, cooking, writing, and politics. You can follow her on Instagram at @obesitycareadvocate where she discusses her journey with obesity care.
Pam Davis, Panelist

Pam Davis is the Bariatric Program Director for the Springfield Clinic in Illinois. As an experienced servant leader, Pam has served in multiple professional and volunteer leadership roles including Chairman of the board of the Obesity Action Coalition, President of the Eating Disorders Coalition of Tennessee, and on the Executive Council of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery.
Pam is the 2015 recipient of the ASMBS Integrated Health Circle of Excellence award. In 2019 Pam launched Bariatric University, providing online education and training for healthcare providers focused on expanding their knowledge in the field of obesity and metabolic health. Pam believes a good cup of coffee, a little red lipstick, and the right pair of shoes can prepare you for darn near anything.

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Description

Contributors

Louise P. King, MD, JD, Moderator

Michele Tedder, Panelist

Amber Huett Garcia , Panelist

Pam Davis, Panelist