Hiya ─ Patient Advocacy Was Her Calling and Salvation

A product of a poor gene pool, Hiya endeavored to live beyond her physical limitations and intellectually excel beyond those around her. She lived a life of constant discovery, research, learning, and teaching, which was complicated frequently by doctors, hospitals, treatments, insurance companies, and the law. After serving as the "go to" research driven caregiver for family and friends for most of her adult life, Hiya found herself in critical need of medical attention. Living on the brink of poverty and without family support, she did what she'd always done for others and became her own advocate. Written as an inspired biography, the story of Hiya and the epilogue were written as a legacy to an amazing woman who epitomized patient advocacy and why it has become a critical determining factor in the quality of healthcare that an individual may receive. What readers have said The book was very well written and I found the Epilogue to be particularly compelling and strong. The story itself kept me interested and motivated to keep reading. I have known patients like Hiya in my years in healthcare and I could well see how you became very attached to her. Anonymous professional caregiver Hiya's story is illustrative of the key messages involving patient advocacy and the healthcare system. For others, perhaps they'd like to read the Epilogue first, they then would read Hiya's amazing story of tenacity. Lorraine Stiehl, patient advocate coordinator, California Institute for Regenerative Medicine