Healthcare

Terry helps teams build resilience, gain confidence, and fuel growth. Terry shares inspiring stories about how healthcare professionals improve patient outcomes.

Recent Testimonials

“Terry is a captivating and entertaining speaker that brings humor and heart to the stage. He was our most popular speaker of the day. Absolutely well earned!” Joseph Ryan Tebo, MSN, RN, CNS, OCN, President, Oncology Nursing Society | San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, October 24, 2026

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"Terry is a captivating speaker sharing his cancer and resiliency journey. Nursing Resilience practice can be pivotal to our nursing career and retention. It was educational and inspiring to hear Terry's perspectives on resiliency and the impact of his healthcare team."  Jennifer Bordean, MSN, RN, OCN, CNIII, UC San Francisco, Palliative Care Resource Nurse (PCRN) Parnassus Infusion Center, October 24, 2026

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"Inspiring! Feeling very uplifted after listening to Terry. Our entire team was excited, engaged, and walked away really happy having Terry as our speaker. Looking forward to ordering Terry’s new book for the team."  Kite Pharmaceuticals, a Gilead Company, June 20, 2025

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“Terry's story will leave you inspired to embrace vulnerability, build resilience, and connect with others on a deeper level.” Julie Atkinson, RN, Host, A Nurse’s Journey Virtual Summit, June 2, 2025

the pressures of the medical field

Terry helps medical professionals make greater patient impact by reminding them how vital their work is.

Speaker Review: A New Nurse's Journey Summit June 2025 - Julie Atkinson

High workloads, stress, and burnout have strained the current U.S. nursing workforce, compounding observed attrition over the past two years. Half of all nurses feel emotionally drained, used up, fatigued, and burned out a few times a week to every day. 29% reported feeling at the end of their rope at similar intervals. Looking ahead, 984,000 RN’s and LPN’s/LVN’s indicate they are likely to leave nursing by 2027. Younger, early career nurses account for 24% of the RN total due to burnout and stress. But many of our younger nurses last two years or less in their occupations. But, there is hope. These projections can be altered based on decisions policymakers make today and in the near future. Inspiring current and next generation nurses and physicians is key to preventing attrition and driving recruitment. That’s where Terry comes in!

Moral injury and distress are paramount in the medical system today, and no medical professionals are immune from the challenges and constraints it has on their professional and personal lives. Terry shows administrators and clinicians the importance of balance in the workplace to ultimately improve patient outcomes and help prevent burnout.

Terry reminds medical professionals why they entered their field to begin with – to make a difference in patients’ lives. Beyond medicine, it’s equally important to understand what makes each patient tick and what they might respond to that can change their attitude and shorten recovery. Terry employs personal storytelling to illustrate tactics and approaches used by nurses and doctor’s that can change the trajectory of their patients in a positive way – outside of the medical treatment they are receiving. These inspirational tactics and approaches are great ways to learn resilience and renewal, and drive medical professional satisfaction.

Speaking Topics and Workshops Include

Navigating Disruption in the Workplace with the ReBAR Resilience Framework – Keynote

Terry shares how the resilience catalyst stemming from his life-threatening battle with an aggressive and disfiguring form of cancer became the framework for how he built a successful high-tech sales and marketing leadership career.  His ReBAR resilience framework helps individuals and organizations find new methods to build resilience by developing new habits and creating new muscle memory that can change the trajectory of one’s life and career. Audiences learn ways to build a positive mindset personally and practice a growth mindset personally and professionally.

Building Resilience During Change - 2.5 - 4 Hour Workshop

Terry utilizes his ReBAR resilience framework to set the stage for our capacity to build resilience. After clear framing of what individual and organizational resilience is, audiences and teams complete a resilience assessment. Terry discusses findings and resilience gaps in terms of what’s possible, which leads into interactive discussions framed by his ReBAR resilience framework. Audience members will develop game plans and actions to take with them to make progress toward key priorities and objectives.

Navigating Life's Roadblocks and Building Resilience – Keynote

Terry shares survival techniques from his life-threatening battle with an aggressive form of cancer that left him with a permanent facial difference at age twenty-one. He shares how he found a way to harness daily inspirations and transform them into four guiding principles that became a framework for facing adversity and building a resilient and fulfilling life. Terry takes you through his harrowing personal ordeal and what enables him to build a positive mindset and practice a growth mindset. He shares ways to take control, overcome challenges, build trust and teams, face adversity and change, build resilience, and gain confidence.

Workplace Sensitivity: Approaches to Celebrating Visible Differences - Keynote

Based on personal experience, Terry shares how organizations can create ways to celebrate people with facial differences. Terry discusses methods to embrace those with visible differences, celebrating them for the value they can bring to the workplace, and ultimately help to differentiate your organization for an improved public image and a recruitment and retention advantage in the market.

 

testimonials

Reviews from the Healthcare Industry

Terry’s message is a powerful reminder that one can grow through adversity

He presents a challenge to the listener that is compelling, and if embraced, has the potential to be life changing. Thank you, Terry, for sharing your journey in such a profound manner, our team left both inspired and empowered to own the change they desire.

Kimberly Popovits Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer & President, Genomic Health, Inc.
An inspirational message to help lead

Every company in every industry is faced with adversity at one point of time or another. Terry delivers such an inspirational message to help lead during those times through the messaging of teamwork, focus and positive thinking. I can’t recommend a more insightful speaker who makes you see the bigger picture to get through any challenge. Terry inspired the entire room to want to do better with their lives, as he has done. Well done, Terry!

Molly Lewis Senior Regional Manager, Genomic Health, Inc.
A powerful reminder that one can grow through adversity

Terry’s message is a powerful reminder that one can grow through adversity. He presents a challenge to the listener that is compelling, and if embraced, has the potential to be life changing. Thank you, Terry, for sharing your journey in such a profound manner, our team left both inspired and empowered to own the change they desire.

Kimberly Popovits Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer & President, Genomic Health, Inc.
Your presentation scored the highest level of all our presenters.

Your presentation was an uplifting highlight for all of our patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals. Our review of our participants’ responses showed that your presentation scored the highest level of all of our presenters.

John R. Saunders, Jr., M.D. Medical Director, Greater Baltimore Medical Center.
Terry delivered an inspiring message during the 25th Year End Celebration of the Heartland Study Club.

His presentation was uplifting and encouraging to all the healthcare providers in the room. From a healthcare provider perspective, Terry’s experience was extraordinary. He has been through extensive challenges and has come through them all amazingly. The courage which Terry displayed during his healthcare challenges, as well as his willingness to share them with others, is truly inspirational.

Michael J. Noffze DDS, MD, Director of Heartland Study Club, Fargo, ND.
His story of recover, resilience, and rediscovered purpose will move you deeply

Terry's story will leave you inspired to embrace vulnerability, build resilience, and connect with others on a deeper level.

Julie Atkinson, RN Julie Atkinson, RN, Host, A Nurse’s Journey Virtual Summit, June 2, 2025
Terry consistently delivers!

"Terry is an exceptional speaker — organized, intentional, and deeply thoughtful about selecting topics that truly resonate with and inspire his audience. Whether helping listeners heal and grow on their own personal journeys, or equipping others with resilience 'tools' to share with their patients, friends, or clients, Terry consistently delivers content that makes a lasting impact." July 18, 2026

Gini Marquette President, California Society of Medical Assistants
An inspirational, real, and honest reflection!

“An inspirational, real, and honest reflection of personal adversity and overcoming through strategies of resilience.”

Megan B. RN, Oncology Nursing Forum, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, October 24, 2026
He connects with the audience!

"Terry connects with the audience on so many levels and does so with kindness and understanding." January 20, 2026

Eileen Sexton Program Director, Head and Neck Cancer Alliance
To hear Terry speak is to witness a rare glimpse into true, unwavering strength.

To hear Terry speak about his experience with cancer is to witness a rare glimpse into true, unwavering strength. While many might cling tightly to that hard-won resilience, fearing they may need it again, Terry takes a different path. He transforms his journey into a source of power not just for himself, but for others—recycling his hard-earned insights to uplift, empower, and inspire. Whether in struggle or in recovery, in sickness or in health, Terry helps others discover their own strength and reclaim their lives. September 24, 2025

Libby Eppinga Development Director, Cancer Support Community San Francisco East Bay
Your presentation was entertaining, enlightening and informative.

You addressed the issues of acceptance, tolerance, growth and healing. You brought a sense of optimism and hope not only to others affected with cancer, but to all people. Thank you for sharing your story with the UCSF community.

Jenny Broberg University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Public Affairs.
He is an excellent speaker and presenter.

Terry was the motivational speaker at our first-ever Leadership Kickoff Meeting. His personal story of strength and courage was very well received by our management team, especially after some intense business planning sessions. He is an excellent speaker and presenter, and his message of overcoming obstacles and taking risks was particularly inspiring and appropriate for our group. We are looking forward to having him return to speak at future events for our Health System.

Paige Nebeker Director of Marketing and Media Relations, Tahoe Forest Health System.