"One Day Pass" patients at TEDMED painting 12

This is the final painting of TEDMED 2012.  It is entitled “One Day Pass.”  It represents all the patients who proudly and happily attended the Friday session.  They had special badges they wore around their necks and they were so honored to be there.

I based this little happy patient on my son Isaac who lost his father when he was only 3.  And for the past few days has barely seen his mother as I painted 14 hours each day in an attempt to create 12 paintings in a little less than four days. 

Yet he smiles. 

He holds his balloon of hope with a gracious joy. He is so happy to play with you. He is so glad for his one-day pass.

In one chubby hand he holds the golden ticket: Admit One. 

Around his neck his badge says TEDMED Patients included.  That is a rather important label.  That means TEDMED invited patients to help design this conference, put patients on the stage and invited patients to attend.

And do you know what?  They did.

Shirley Bergin and I shared over 100 emails planning how to incorporate the patient voice through paint and twitter at TEDMED.  Did you see Shirley on the stage the final day of TEDMED?  She ran virtually everything, but still made time for patients.

We saw several patients on the stage at TEDMED 2012, and hopefully in coming years we will see many more.  We will see more because some patients famous for their advocacy will cross this stage.

But we will see them in another way. It is a way The Walking Gallery members are all too familiar with.  People are often surprised to hear ¾ of The Walking Gallery is made of providers, techies and governmental employees who self define from the patient view.

There will be more patients on this stage as we each embrace our patient self.  We need to take time to hug that little guy inside of each and every one of us.

At the close of TEDMED CEO Jose Suarez thanked us all.  He asked me to come upon stage and bestow these paintings to the 12 major sponsors for TEDMED. In the next 15 minutes a half-circle of patient art formed upon that stage and was shown on 2,000 screens across this nation.

I say thank you to all the amazing hardworking folks at TEDMED from Jay to Jose to Shirley to Courtney and oh, so many more many more...

“One Day Pass” was given to Johnson &Johnson for their support of TEDMED.





11. "The First is Last" for Steelcase/Nurture




10. "Flight" for The California Endowment




9.  "Sacred Cow"  for SIEMENS




8.  "The Unmentionables" for Robert Wood Johnson Foundation




7.  "Drones" for Booz Allen Hamilton






6.  "Fire" for PHILIPS






5.  "Spit" for the Cleveland Clinic




4.  "Death" for XEROX




3.  "The Missing Ingredients" for GE




2.  "Space" for MAR





1.  "The Dance of Care" for AAMC