Advisory Committee
- Leah Gramlich, MD (co-Chair), Royal Alexander Hospital - View bio
- Vanessa Lewis (co-Chair) - View bio
- Darsh Bains, Patient Rep BC
- Dianne Cooper, Patient Rep AB
- Francis Davoie, Patient Rep AB
- Gerry Kimmel, Patient Rep BC - View bio
- Catherine Richardson, Patient Rep BC
- Camille Sagun, UHN/ON HPN Program
- Rebekah Sandhu, MAN, RD, PhD Student
- Sandy Scagliano, Patient Rep ON
- Patti Thompson, MB HPN Program
In Memoriam
Kathleen Gag.jpg)
non, Patient Rep NB
October 9, 1996 ~ August 13, 2022
Kathleen was born and raised in Saint John, New Brunswick, a port city along the bay of fundy, fostering her love for the ocean & the outdoors. A medical mystery for much of her life, in 2016, she was diagnosed with a rare progressive genetic connective tissue disease which affected her whole body, significantly, causing intestinal failure. After a few years of trying and failing enteral nutrition, nearly 6 years ago, Kathleen was started on TPN which saved her life. Living in a small province with a rare disease that was mostly unfamiliar to her medical team and being one of a handful of adult HPN patients in NB, Kathleen realized the importance of being an educated patient in order to best advocate for her needs. The ability to work collaboratively with her physicians lead to better care and, to her surprise, empowerment.
CPPENA was so fortunate to have Kathleen as an original member of our first Advisory Committee. We learned so much from Kathleen and were always in awe of her positivity, sensitivity and her ability to make those around her feel special. We are going to miss her terribly and are evermore committed to moving the CPPENA mission forward. Kathleen was the designer of our CPPENA logo that will live on in her memory.