Patricia Smith is the founder of the Compassion Fatigue Awareness Project. As a certified Compassion Fatigue Specialist, she has been writing, speaking and facilitating workshops on the subject throughout the USA for the past 20 years. As the training and development manager for Humane Society Silicon Valley, she created a shelter-wide compassion fatigue training that led to consulting and training nationwide for American Humane.
With a background in journalism, she was a correspondent for the San Jose Mercury News for 20 years, and has written a number of training manuals and books on the subject of compassion fatigue. Her book "To Weep for a Stranger : Compassion Fatigue in Caregiving" received the 2010 Pinnacle Book Achievement Award presented by the North America Bookseller's Exchange. Patricia is also the recipient of the "Excellence in Writing Award," presented by the National League of American Pen Women.
As program director at Ronald McDonald House at Stanford, she received the 2005 "Best Bets" award for its "Healing Arts" program. Additionally, in 2012 and 2013, she was named a Whiteley Scholar, which provides a writing/study grant funded through the Helen R. Whiteley Foundation at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington. As a consultant for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) in New York City, she assisted in creating and rolling out a nationwide compassion fatigue program for their 800-plus employees.
In September 2016, Patricia presented a TEN talk entitled : "Navigating the Path to Wellness : Compassion Fatigue in Caregiving". Inmaculada Pérez Madrigal obtained her degree in veterinary medicine from the University of Córdoba (Spain) in 1992 and a Master's Degree in Management of Manufacturing and Service Companies from the Spanish National Distance Learning University (UNED) in 2002. She also earned a diploma in veterinary acupuncture in 2009.
She is currently studying for a degree in psychology at the Open University of Catalonia (UDC). Inmaculada works as a manager of a veterinary hospital and a veterinary clinic in Cádiz, which she combines with her work as a small animal clinician. She is a member of numerous veterinary business associations such as the Spanish Association of Veterinary Management (Ages-vet), the Cádiz Veterinary Business Association (AEVECCA), the Spanish Veterinary Business Corporation (CEVE), and the Spanish Small Animal Veterinary Association (AVEPA).
Her interests have led her into the world of veterinary clinic management and neuromarketing for veterinary companies, a subject about which she has coauthored the book "Charm Your Clients. Neuromarketing for Vets". Her interest in sociology and psychology have driven her to write this new book in collaboration with Patricia Smith.