THIRD ANNUAL JOHNS HOPKINS WOMEN’S HEALTH CONFERENCE COMING TO PALM BEACH

January 13, 2010-The latest findings on women’s health issues and new advances in preventing, detecting and treating diseases in women will be presented Thursday, Jan. 21, at Palm Beach’s third annual “A Woman’s Journey” symposium sponsored by Johns Hopkins Medicine. The one-day conference, at the Palm Beach County Convention Center, begins at 9:00 a.m. and concludes at 2 p.m.

“As women, it is important that we gain the knowledge about gender-based differences in diseases and empower ourselves to make wise decisions about health care for us and our families,” says Susan Keenan, a member of the Johns Hopkins Medicine Regional Board of Governors for Palm Beach and an honorary co-chair of the program. “Although much attention has been focused on men’s health issues such as prostate cancer, progress in detection and treatment of heart disease and other disorders in women highlight the need to discuss women’s health.”

Conference attendees will enjoy a Johns Hopkins heart-healthy breakfast, two seminars of their choosing and lunch with members of the Hopkins faculty. Hopkins doctors and specialists will present 10 hour-long seminars covering new medical treatments and important health issues facing women, such as: getting a good night's sleep to heart disease in women to common symptoms women shouldn't ignore.

Keynote speaker for the event is Lillie D. Shockney, RN., BS., MAS, a nurse, author and administrative director of the Johns Hopkins Avon Foundation Breast Center, who returns to West Palm Beach to share her personal story about becoming a cancer survivor. Also, this year’s luncheon speaker is Pamela Paulk, the vice president of human resources at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and Johns Hopkins Health System, whose organ donation was part of the nation’s first 16-patient, multicenter “domino donor” kidney transplant. Paulk, a longtime supporter of kidney donation, who donated to a friend and colleague who lost function of his kidneys three years ago, will share her personal story and the motivation that led her to save the lives of strangers.

“A Woman’s Journey” is the creation of two women from Baltimore, Md., Harriet Legum and Mollye Block, who together realized the need to provide women with a forum to gain knowledge about their health concerns. Last year’s event in Palm Beach attracted over 200 attendees.

For additional information on the program, a schedule of the sessions, a list of speakers and registration information, please visit http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/awomansjourney/palm_beach/

Speakers are available for press interviews with the media in advance as well as during or after the event.
FOR MEDIA ONLY: To interview one of the speakers, or to attend the event, contact 410-502-8902 or
[email protected]