Voices of Discovery talk to focus on health – March 30

Barbara Bancroft, the final Voices of Discovery speaker for the 2008-09 academic year, comes to campus March 30 for an evening discussion on health care advancements and how the public has been flooded with confusing, complex information about new medical products and services. Bancroft is known for her sense of humor in presentations that summarize and interpret that new information.

Monday, March 30, 2009
Whitley Auditorium
7:30 p.m.

“Health Matters … from the A’s to the ZZZ’s

Barbara Bancroft, RN, MSN, PNP
Executive Director and President, CPP Associates, Inc.

During the past century, advances in science have brought a greater understanding of human health than the world has ever known. People now hold the potential to maintain and enhance their health in ways their ancestors did not. At the same time, an increasingly health-conscious public is flooded with confusing, complex information and a plethora of new medical products and services.

Most of us desire a deeper understanding of how our bodies function and why they malfunction. We also want to comprehend the results of our medical tests, evaluate our medical options and practice intelligent prevention and health maintenance. But products and procedures are developing at such a rapid rate that even health-care providers sometimes struggle to keep up with the latest information. And many of them seem to have little time to bring the rest of us up to speed.

Barbara Bancroft, a registered nurse and pediatric nurse practitioner, has spent her career helping others understand complex health and clinical topics. As executive director and president of CPP Associates Inc., she devotes her time to providing continuing education for corporate groups and health-care professionals. She has led more than 2,000 seminars and discussions for groups as diverse as Smith Barney, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and the National Association of Biology Teachers. Whether the topic is understanding basic pharmacology or conquering cancer, Bancroft is widely acclaimed for her ability to summarize and interpret recent findings, make complicated issues understandable, and present information in a way that is appealing and funny.

A former health-care provider and university instructor, Bancroft is the author of several books, including Medical Minutiae, Live a Little, Laugh a Lot and An Apple a Day: The ABC’s of Diet and Disease. In 2004, she received the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of Biology Teachers.