Today’s Faces of Sickle Cell Disease: Pat Corley, RN

In 1979, while she was volunteering at a camp for SCD patients, Pat Corley — then a nurse manager at the Los Angeles + University of Southern California Medical Center — caught the attention of a noted hematologist, who was so impressed that he tapped her to become nurse coordinator for an NIH SCD center. Some 38 years later, Corley is still in the game, doing the work she says she loves most — educating health professionals, medical school students, and the public about grave misconceptions about the disease, all while empowering patients to live their healthiest lives.

It’s work she’s received so many honors for that Corley could have rested after retiring two years ago. But she hasn’t let up. She volunteers at her former job and for other SCD advocacy groups, spreading the gospel of SCD awareness almost daily.