Deeply moving, inspiring, hopeful and practical, Rachel delivers keynotes that are revolutionising how people perceive and respond to difference and diversity.
“A great leveller of people, Rachel touches the hearts of all that hear her speak and leaves a lasting impression. She tangibly brings the audience back to that thing which bridges diverse backgrounds, beliefs and drivers: love. ”
Combining her right brain perspective as an artist and as an award-winning photographer, together with hundreds of hours of experience with both healthcare professionals and parents the world over, Rachel provides keynotes that are holistic, hopeful and which impart deeply actionable strategies for effective communication and transformation.
Rachel provides the following keynotes:
Life, Love and Awesomeness: The Impact and Implications of Language
Life, Love and Awesomeness focuses on the impact and implications of language. Rachel shares her story as the mother of Evie, a daughter with complex medical needs, and her years as a patient (and Rachel’s as a parent) in the healthcare system. Rachel unpacks the Health Language Matrix, showing how different communication styles affect patients, parents and healthcare professionals in their efforts to collaborate.
This keynote is perfect for parents/carers of children with rare conditions/disability, Patient Advocacy Services, Rare Disease Services, Paediatricians, Paediatric staff, Doctors, Nurses, Allied Health Staff, Hospital Executive Staff, General Practitioners, Disability Services, Midwives, Sonographers, Medical Students, Genetics Services including Clinical Geneticists, Genetics Counsellors, Special Education.
"Health professionals with better communication and interpersonal skills are able to detect problems earlier, can prevent medical crises and expensive intervention, and provide better support to their patients. This leads to higher-quality outcomes and better satisfaction, lower costs of care, greater patient understanding of health issues, and better adherence to the treatment process.”
- Ochsner J. 2010 Doctor-Patient Communication: A Review www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3096184/
The Life Saving Art and Science of Effective Communication
The Life Saving Art and Science of Effective Communication focuses on how healthcare professionals can partner with patients and parents more effectively. Rachel shares her story as the mother of Evie, a daughter with complex medical needs, and her years as a patient (and Rachel’s as a parent) in the healthcare system.
Rachel then unpacks the Health Language Matrix, with an emphasis on reframing language, and delivers strategies around utilising empowering communication to provide a compassionate, patient-centric experience.
This keynote is perfect for Hospital Executive Staff, Patient Experience Executive Staff, Paediatricians, Paediatric staff, Doctors, Nurses, Allied Health, General Practitioners, Parents/carers of children with rare conditions/disability, Disability Services, Patient Advocacy Services, Rare Disease Services, Genetics Services - including Clinical Geneticists and Genetics Counsellors.
“Parents and patients are more trusting of, and committed to, health professionals who adopt an empowering communication style with them.”
- Robyn Ouschan, Jillian Sweeney, Lester Johnson, (2006) “Customer empowerment and relationship outcomes in health- care consultations”, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 40 Issue: 9/10, pp.1068-1086.
Forging Meaning and Finding Identity: When Life Suddenly Looks Very Different To What You Were Expecting
Rachel shares her story as the mother of Evie, a daughter with complex medical needs, together with the stories and perspectives of hundreds of other parents of kids with disabilities.
Rachel helps parents reframe how they’re making meaning and finding identity, particularly in the wake of having a child with a disability. She empowers parents to healthily engage with the fullness of their unexpected experience - both the beautiful and the difficult parts - and to feel less alone.
This keynote is perfect for Parents/carers of children with rare conditions/disability, Disability Services, Patient Advocacy Services, Rare Disease Services, Genetics Services, Paediatricians, Paediatric staff, General Practitioners.
But not only creativity and enjoyment are meaningful. If there is a meaning in life at all, then there must be a meaning in suffering. Suffering is an ineradicable part of life, even as fate and death. Without suffering and death, human life cannot be complete. ... The way in which a person accepts their fate and all the suffering it entails gives them ample opportunity-even under the most difficult circumstances- to add a deeper meaning to his life.”
- Viktor Frankl
Follow the Sparks- Lessons of Creativity
This uplifting, inspiring and energy filled message, busts some of the many myths about creativity . That some of us do not have a “single creative bone in our body” that it is a “waste of time”, “creativity is only for artists” and that people should “ leave it to the experts”.
As humans-we are creativity. If we have the ability to ask questions of ourselves, of our environment, of others, of our systems… if we can ask ourselves questions and have an attitude of curiosity- that is creativity.
This spirit of curiosity is vital in all areas of our life, from our relationships, to our work, to our wellbeing, to every part of our world. Creativity is the energy that drives innovation, change and invigoration.
This keynote is powerful for businesses and teams needing an energy and inspiration boost, art students, artists, healthcare professionals, educators and leaders.
See Rachel in action
What the audience has said…
“In the 25 years that I have been organising and involved with the ASA, yours was the best opening address I have ever seen. And we’ve had politicians and celebrities and all sorts of people. We look at medicine in a very narrow way, we label and categorise everything and everyone. It is so good to be reminded that there is another way of looking at things. Thank you!”
— Andrew Martin, former President of the Australasian Sonographers Association
“Rachel’s message about what patients and parents hear, and the need to focus on abilities rather than what’s “wrong”, should be required for every doctor in training and practice. This was one of the best, most useful and powerful talks I’ve ever attended.”
— Christina Ohnsman, MD Senior Clinical Development Lead at REGENXBIO Inc.
“I feel privileged to have heard you talk today. Thank you for sharing. I am going to strive to be that understanding Paediatrician that communicates in an empathetic, empowering way to parents.”
— Paediatrician, DFTB17 conference
“Your presentation was truly inspiring – thank you so much for sharing your experiences with us. We have so much to learn as clinicians from our families, and breaking down some of the barriers of medical language, through things like the ‘Awesomeness Report’, go a long way towards improving the experiences of the families we hope to help.”
- Physiotherapist, Hummingbird House
“Rachel’s talk should be compulsory for all medical students!”
— Dr Simon Rowley, Neonatologist Auckland District Health Board
“I wanted to tell you how profoundly moved I was by your opening address. The talk around reframing disability and the problematic usage of medical language lays the foundation for much of my advocacy work. I was lucky enough to receive a copy of the Super Power Baby Project and this is a book that I refer to constantly. Even for somebody who was already “part of the choir” and believed firmly in the power of language, your presentation offered new insights and challenges.”
- Researcher, Cerebral Palsy Society of New Zealand
Rachel has worked with
