Moved to Action: Building a Patient Advocacy Group (CE Session)
Includes a Live Web Event on 04/30/2025 at 7:55 AM (PDT)
Description:
This session is part of the Sepsis Alliance AMR Conference 2025.
C. difficile infections have evolved significantly over the past two decades, presenting new challenges in prevention and treatment. In response to gaps in the healthcare system, grassroots organizations have emerged as powerful forces for change. This session explores how patient advocacy groups are established, the driving factors behind their formation, and their essential role in addressing antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Using the real-world creation and work of the Peggy Lillis Foundation as an example of advocacy in action, this presentation highlights the impact of advocacy in shaping policy, advancing research, and improving patient outcomes.
Learning Objectives:
At the end of the session, the learner should be able to:
- Explain the changes in C. difficile epidemiology over the past two decades;
- Describe how grassroots organizations are founded in response to systemic failures;
- Analyze the key role patient advocacy groups play in the AMR ecosystem.
Target Audience:
Nurses, advanced practice providers, physicians, emergency responders, pharmacists, medical technologists, respiratory therapists, physical/occupational therapists, infection prevention specialists, data/quality specialists, and more.
Christian John Lillis
Chief Executive Officer
Peggy Lillis Foundation
Christian Lillis is the Co-founder and CEO of the Peggy Lillis Foundation for C. diff Education & Advocacy (PLF). He has 25 years of experience in fundraising, advocacy, and nonprofit management, including senior roles at NYU Langone Medical Center and the National LGBTQ Task Force.
As head of PLF, Christian has led eight national convenings of C. diff Advocates, built a 60-person volunteer program, coordinated the first-ever C. diff Lobby Day on Capitol Hill, and produced the first-ever public service announcement on C. diff infections. In 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recognized PLF’s work with its Excellence in Partnership award for domestic advocates and organizations.
Christian has presented to state hospital associations, quality improvement organizations, healthcare systems, and industry leaders, including Mount Sinai Health, the National Quality Forum, and the Presidential Advisory Council on Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria. He has also testified at Congressional briefings. Christian’s writing has appeared in the Baltimore Sun, Pharmacy Times, and the CDC’s Safer Healthcare Blog. He has also co-authored articles for journals, including Advances in Therapy and the American Journal of Gastroenterology. PLF’s work has been featured in Consumer Reports, USA Today, and Reuters. Peggy’s story was featured in Dr. Martin Blaser’s 2014 book, Missing Microbes: How the Overuse of Antibiotics Is Fueling Our Modern Plagues and Bryn Nelson’s Flush: The Remarkable Science of an Unlikely Treasure (2022).
Christian holds a B.A. in Political Theory from Brooklyn College-City University of New York. A native Brooklynite, he lives in the Kensington neighborhood with his husband, Chris, and their beagle, Maggie Anne.