A Caregiving Conversation with Patrick Dempsey | Global Conference 2025

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Patrick Dempsey
Actor, Producer and Philanthropist
Actor Patrick Dempsey founded The Dempsey Center in 2008 after his mother’s experience with cancer and as a way to give back to his hometown community of Lewiston, Maine. Today, the Dempsey Center has grown to two locations in Lewiston and Greater Portland, Maine, a hospitality home in Portland, Maine, and has adapted to providing robust support virtually via Dempsey Connects. Their programs provide a wide range of holistic support that address the physical, functional, social, and emotional well-being of people impacted by cancer. All services are provided at no cost to cancer patients, survivors, care partners, family members, and friends. Dempsey is best known for his starring role on the ABC series “Grey’s Anatomy,” as well as the ‘80s nostalgia films Can’t Buy Me Love and Loverboy. He recently starred in the films Ferrari and Thanksgiving and the Dexter prequel series “Dexter: Original Sin.” Additionally, Dempsey recently made his racing return at the inaugural Porsche Endurance Cup.

Lisa Ling
Award-Winning Journalist and Executive Producer
Lisa Ling is a special correspondent for CBS NEWS where she had produced multi-part series on the Crisis of Caregiving, the Psychedelic Renaissance and the State of Spirituality. For nine seasons, she hosted and executive produced THIS IS LIFE on CNN where she embedded with a notorious biker club, reported on the opioid crisis’ youngest victims and highlighted a unique book club behind prison bars. For five seasons prior, Lisa hosted and executive produced OUR AMERICA for the OPRAH WINFREY NETWORK (OWN) and was the field correspondent for THE OPRAH SHOW. She was also a contributor to ABC NEWS’ NIGHTLINE. Lisa was the first female host of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC’S flagship series EXPLORER where she investigated the deadly MS-13 gang, went undercover inside North Korea and explored the drug wars in South America. She got her start in journalism as a correspondent for CHANNEL ONE NEWS where she covered the civil war in Afghanistan at 21 years of age. She later went on to become a co-host of ABC daytime's hit show THE VIEW, which won its first daytime Emmy during her time there. She is the co-author of “Mother, Sister. Daughter, Bride: Rituals of Womanhood,” and “Somewhere Inside: One Sister’s Captivity in North Korea and The Other’s Fight to Bring Her Home” that she penned with her sister Laura. Lisa sits on the boards of the prison re-entry organization CROP, the California Partner’s Project (CPP), The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) and the Kids Mental Health Foundation (KMHF).