Mary Anne Sterling is a Health IT expert with a passion for patient engagement and empowerment. She recently guest authored this great post about Blue Button for the CTH Blog.
Q: In a few words, what does Total Health mean to you?
A: My physical and emotional wellbeing, supported by nutrition, exercise, and alternative medicine.
Q: What’s your first health-related memory?
A: Age 4: chicken pox.
Q: Which person, living or dead, is your health hero or role model?
A: Regina Holliday, who has made it her mission to help everyone have access to their health data.
Q: What is your favorite food?
A: Italian.
Q: What do you value most in your work? What inspires you to continue?
A: Making a difference. People who listen to my presentations and come up to me afterwards to tell me their own stories about struggling to care for a loved one with dementia — they inspire me to keep going.
Q: In your opinion, what is the most underrated way to improve health for individuals?
A: Alternative medicine.
Q: Where would you most like to live?
A: Rocky Mountains.
Q: What do you consider your greatest achievement so far?
A: Bringing visibility to millions of family caregivers struggling to care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s or other form of dementia.
Q: If you could have dinner with any three people, living or dead, who would you pick?
A: Jackie Kennedy, Mother Teresa, and Joan of Arc.