Breast Cancer Survivor, Patented Inventor, Healthcare Journalist & Author

Lisa Crites is one of the most credentialed and compelling voices in women’s health and healthcare innovation speaking today — and her story is one your audience will carry with them long after the event is over.

When journalist Lisa Crites was diagnosed with breast cancer and faced a bilateral mastectomy, she did what problem-solvers do — even from a hospital bed. She noticed something. A gap in patient care that millions of people face every single day, that no one had bothered to solve. And instead of simply getting through it, she invented a solution.

The result was The SHOWER SHIRT™ — a patented, award-winning, water-resistant garment designed to protect chest surgery patients during showering. Before Lisa came along, the standard answer was a plastic trash bag. Today, her product is available at more than 1,000 mastectomy boutiques across the United States, sold internationally in markets worldwide, and has helped thousands of patients heal with dignity, safety, and confidence.

That’s a keynote speaker.

A health and medical broadcast journalist for more than 30 years, Lisa spent her career interviewing patients, surgeons, and healthcare executives before becoming one herself — first as a patient, then as an entrepreneur. She brings that rare inside-out perspective to every keynote: she has sat on both sides of the hospital bed, navigated the healthcare system as both a professional and a vulnerable patient, and built something globally meaningful out of the hardest season of her life.

In 2026, Lisa released her memoir, Beautifully Unbroken: A Life-Changing Invention Born of Loss, Cancer, Courage, and Faith — available on Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble — celebrated with a Times Square billboard. Her story is reaching new national audiences, which means your attendees may already know her name before she takes your stage.

Lisa is available for booking through The Speak Well Being Group for breast cancer awareness events, women’s health conferences, nursing and healthcare leadership events, nurses appreciation programs, corporate wellness events, and women’s leadership conferences.

Recognition & Credentials

• InnovateHER Challenge Winner — sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Administration, The Washington Post, and Microsoft
• Patient Innovation Award — University of Lisbon School of Business & Economics, Portugal
• Florida Inventors Hall of Fame — nominee
• World Government Summit — Dubai (invited exhibitor, Edge of Government exhibit)
• London Science Museum — innovation exhibit, toured multiple European countries
• Honorary Doctorate in Media Communications — Kennedy University
• MBA — European School of Business, Barcelona
• BS in Journalism — Murray State University
• Featured in Forbes, Huffington Post, Readers Digest, FOX News, CBS, NBC, CNN, and Lifetime TV’s The Balancing Act
• Global Success Review — International Women’s Day Special Edition, 2026
• Building Business News, Limitless Magazine, Canvas Rebel — recent features
• Board member, multiple philanthropic organizations including Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse, Digital Arts for Autism, and Driven By Heart

What Lisa Speaks About

Lisa tailors her keynotes to each audience. She speaks to breast cancer awareness events, women’s health conferences, nursing and healthcare leadership events, corporate wellness programs, nurses appreciation programs, and women’s entrepreneurship and leadership events.

Signature Keynotes:

Breast Cancer Keynote Speaker

Beautifully Unbroken: Strength, Survival, and the Power of Purpose

Ideal for Cancer Survivor / Healthcare Audiences

When Lisa Crites was diagnosed with breast cancer, her life changed in an instant. What followed was not only a double mastectomy, but a series of unexpected complications that tested her physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
In this deeply moving and empowering keynote, Lisa shares her journey from diagnosis to recovery—and ultimately, to rediscovering purpose through adversity. With honesty, grace, and resilience, she reveals how one of the most challenging seasons of her life became the catalyst for transformation, faith, and impact.
Through powerful storytelling, Lisa inspires audiences to reframe hardship, embrace inner strength, and find meaning even in life’s most difficult moments. Her message resonates deeply with cancer survivors, caregivers, and healthcare professionals alike.

Audience Takeaways:

• Renewed sense of hope, strength, and resilience
• Tools for navigating uncertainty and life transitions
• The role of mindset and faith in healing
• Inspiration to find purpose beyond adversity

Resilience & Innovation Speaker

From Setback to Breakthrough: The Power of Purpose-Driven Innovation

Ideal for Women / Leadership / Entrepreneurship Audiences

Lisa Crites never set out to become an inventor—but one life-changing moment led her to create a product now used by patients around the world.

After a breast cancer diagnosis and difficult recovery, Lisa identified a critical gap in patient care. What began as a deeply personal challenge became the inspiration behind The SHOWER SHIRT™, an award-winning, patented product that has helped thousands of people heal with dignity and confidence.

In this engaging and empowering keynote, Lisa shares how she transformed adversity into innovation—navigating fear, uncertainty, and the unknown to build a globally recognized solution. Blending storytelling with practical insight, she challenges audiences to rethink what’s possible and to act on the ideas they feel called to pursue. She’s the ideal healthcare speaker for audiences needing a boost in their confidence to act on their innovative ideas.

Audience Takeaways

• How to identify opportunity within challenges
• Courage to act on ideas—even without a clear roadmap
• Lessons in resilience, reinvention, and perseverance
• Inspiration to lead with purpose and create meaningful impact

Healthcare Leadership Speaker

Beautifully Unbroken & Unstoppable: From Cancer Survivor to Global Innovator

Ideal for Women’s Conferences / Healthcare Leadership Events / Corporate Resilience Programs

Lisa Crites’ journey is a powerful testament to what’s possible when resilience meets purpose.

After a life-altering breast cancer diagnosis and a series of challenging complications, Lisa found herself navigating uncertainty, fear, and recovery. But within that experience, she recognized a problem that no one had solved—and took the courageous step to create a solution.

What followed was the invention of The SHOWER SHIRT™, an award-winning, patented product now used by patients around the world.

In this deeply inspiring and high-impact keynote, Lisa weaves together her personal story of survival with her journey into unexpected entrepreneurship. She shares how adversity can become a catalyst for innovation, how to take action in the face of uncertainty, and how purpose can emerge from even the most difficult life experiences.

This keynote is ideal for audiences seeking both emotional inspiration and practical insight—leaving them not only moved, but motivated to think differently, act boldly, and create meaningful impact. If you’re looking for a unique motivational healthcare speaker, Lisa is the one.

Audience Takeaways:

• How to reframe adversity as an opportunity for growth and innovation
• The courage to act on ideas, even without a clean path forward
• Strategies for building resilience during times of uncertainty
• Inspiration to align personal purpose with professional impact
• A renewed mindset focused on possibility, action, and contribution

Healthcare & Nursing Speaker

Caring for the Caregiver: Resilience, Healing, and the Heart of Nursing

Ideal for Nurses / Healthcare Professionals

Nurses are the backbone of patient care—but too often, they are running on empty.

After experiencing the healthcare system not only as a professional but as a breast cancer patient, Lisa Crites gained a rare dual perspective: she understands both the emotional weight nurses carry and the profound impact they have on patient healing.

In this heartfelt and energizing keynote, Lisa shares her journey through cancer, complications, and recovery—and the moments where compassionate care made all the difference. She offers a powerful message about sustaining empathy without burnout, reconnecting to purpose, and prioritizing self-care without guilt.

This keynote is both a reminder and a reset—helping nurses rediscover why they chose this profession and how to continue showing up with strength and heart. Lisa is a nurse resilience speaker your nurses will remember for years to come.

Audience Takeaways

• Strategies to prevent burnout and compassion fatigue
• Tools to maintain empathy while protecting personal wellbeing
• Renewed connection to purpose and patient impact
• Permission to prioritize self-care without guilt

Read More in Barbara’s Blog about Lisa:

She Invented Something That Helped Thousands of Patients — From Her Hospital Bed