Claire Wasserman
Advocate for medical innovation and families touched by congenital heart defects.
Claire’s story
24 hours after giving birth, Claire’s son Raphael was diagnosed with severe congenital defects, undergoing a grueling 10-hour open heart surgery a few days later. There were complications during the surgery, and Raphael was put on life support. (He’s now a thriving eight-month-old having a blast with his twin sister, Antonia.) When describing his decision-making process, Raphael’s surgeon said something that struck Claire:
“I found another way in.”
This simple phrase inspired her to see what was happening through a different lens, reframing the experience as an opportunity to witness caregiving at the highest level, and humanity at its best. The innovation that happens when teams work together to trust themselves and each other, including the FDA approval of a groundbreaking stent a mere two days before her son’s procedure.
Claire and her wife went from “Why is this happening to us?” to “How can we use this to help others?”, which includes leveraging her talents as a motivational speaker to spread the message of resilience, hope, and humanity.
Keynote:
Another Way In
Drawing from her experience mothering her son through a medical crisis, this inspiring keynote will rally any audience to find opportunities in their challenges and use them to empower themselves and others. Claire provides a framework to reframe their experience so they can take ownership of their next steps. This is not “think positive”, but rather an opening of their minds so they can open up possibilities. It will also serve as a reminder to those in the healthcare field of the very real human impact of their work and the power of innovation to change lives, starting with their own.
Clients include:
Medical History in the Making
Claire and her family are proud to be the first family to receive a groundbreaking new stent made for infants (the FDA approved it two days before his procedure was scheduled!) Forty thousand babies every year are born with congenital heart defects and thanks to the amazing team at Renata Medical, this incredible new technology will spare so many kids like Raphael multiple invasive surgeries as they grow up.