Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Crites

Lisa, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?

I began my career as a health/medical broadcast journalist in the Orlando television market. After many years on air, I decided to move into a media strategy role for a large hospital/healthcare system. I soon was diagnosed with breast cancer and that’s when my career trajectory changed. After seeing a massive need in the-post mastectomy care arena, I invented a product titled, The SHOWER SHIRT, so individuals undergoing mastectomy, or general chest surgery, could easily shower safely after surgery. Sadly, I had nothing to shower in except a trash bag and why I have worked so hard for future breast cancer patients to have a product to protect them while showering.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

I don’t believe anything is smooth when it comes to inventing a product. I spent many hours of research trying to figure out the patent application strategy. Multiple prototypes to get the product absolutely right. Additionally, once The SHOWER SHIRT was introduced to the market, we had to teach consumers as to why it was a needed product. Unless you have gone through chest surgery and had a surgeon tell you that you cannot shower, have surgical drains, chemotherapy ports, or catheters in your chest, one wouldn’t know why a safe, protective garment is needed for showering.

I also remember reading a book titled the “Unstoppable,” and it talked about it being more difficult to bring a product to the market which has never existed, versus a product which already exists, and you try to change it a certain percent and have it re-patented. The SHOWER SHIRT is the epitome of this concept in that this product never existed, so we had to essentially teach chest surgery patients why it was needed to help decrease the chances of water-borne illnesses from tap water, and essentially the same reason we drink filtered water daily as there’s pathogens and bacteria in water, and that can create infection in those who have recently had surgery.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?

The SHOWER SHIRT(R) is considered an award-winning product, the first and only patented (US Patent No. 8,516,613), water-resistant garment to protect chest surgery patients while showering. The patented invention, awarded for ‘design’ and ‘method of use,’ was created after a breast cancer diagnosis and bi-lateral mastectomy surgery. Reduced to showering in a plastic trash bag to keep the surgical drain sites dry (to decrease the chances of a water-borne illness), I was frustrated by the thought of future mastectomy patients being required to do the same; subsequently, I designed, engineered, and now distributes The SHOWER SHIRT® to post-mastectomy and general chest surgery patients all over the world. A Class 1 Medical Device, the garment is available at more than 1,000 mastectomy boutiques nationwide, and a myriad of domestic and international e-commerce sites such as AMAZON, Walmart, Etsy, Health Products for You, and Pink Lotus. The product has been exported to patients in Canada, England, Ireland, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Japan, Austria, Dubai, Spain, Portugal, Cyprus, India, Turkey, South Africa, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and the Seychelles.

Lisa was a 2015 InnovateHER winner for her work and innovation in creating The SHOWER SHIRT®, an initiative to award inventors who create products to enrich the lives of women. The National InnovateHER series, sponsored by the Small Business Administration (SBA), Washington Post, and Microsoft, led her to travel as a guest of the U.S. State Department to present at WE-APEC in Singapore. Lisa also received a 2015 Patient Innovation award from the University of Portugal, Catholica School of Business & Economics, and requested by Dubai ruler, King Sheik Mohammad, to present at the World Government Summit – Edge of Government exhibit in the United Arab Emirates. Additional international honors include a request from the London Science Museum to host The SHOWER SHIRT® for the museums Science Innovation Exhibit, which expands across 78 locations in Europe, where Lisa and The SHOWER SHIRT® are represented as one of the first Patient Innovation award series recipients.

Lisa has been featured in FORBES Magazine, the Huffington Post and Readers Digest; FOX, CBS, NBC, CNN, and Lifetime TV’s, ‘The Balancing Act,’ discussing her invention and the legislative filing of the ‘Post Mastectomy Infection Reduction Act,’ sponsored by United States Congressman Bill Posey (R-FL) and Congressman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-FL).

A Health/Medical broadcast journalist, Elysian Magazine print columnist, corporate healthcare consultant, media strategist, guest speaker and obvious entrepreneur, Lisa has more than 30 years of experience in the field of health/medical journalism, corporate communications, news issue management and media relations. Lisa was the original Health/Medical television anchor/reporter for Central Florida News 13 (Spectrum News & former CNN-affiliate) in Orlando; her background in television also includes anchoring at America’s Health Network (now Discovery Health); reporting for ‘Success Central Florida’ on WKMG Local 6, also in Orlando, and feature reporter for the Travel Channel. Lisa has consulted with Gannett News Service as a broadcast media coach and works for both CNTV and NADA-TV as a medical television correspondent.

Lisa often travels for speaking engagements across the country and internationally discussing The SHOWER SHIRT® and her ongoing initiatives to support breast cancer survivors and related programs. Lisa frequently guest lectures at colleges and universities across the United States discussing ‘Social Entrepreneurship’ and the focus of multiple academic thesis on the topic.

Lisa’s philanthropic work includes being Vice-Chair of The Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse Board of Director’s, Digital Arts for Autism Board of Directors, Space Coast Early Steps, and a National Breast Friends Advisory Council Member. Lisa has volunteered for the Central Florida Second Harvest Food Bank and Central Florida Homeless Coalition for the past 30 years. Lisa earned her Bachelor of Science (BS) in Journalism from Murray State University, Murray Ky; and her Master of Business Administration (MBA) and master’s in digital marketing and eCommerce (MS) from the University of Barcelona, European School of Business, Barcelona, Spain. Most recently, Lisa was nominated as an inductee into the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame for The SHOWER SHIRT invention.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?

Read everything you can. Research, research, research.

Depending on your career goals, it’s important to not only learn the textbook behind certain job criteria, but to attain hands on experience. Internships are so important when it comes to work like I did in television journalism, and the work I still do in health and medical print journalism. I’m a journalist at heart, I just became an accidental inventor after a breast cancer diagnoses and seeing a need for breast cancer patients to better acclimate post-surgery.

In terms of inventing, one needs to look at every US patent comparable to what you are trying to create and/or invent. It’s important to make sure one is not infringing upon other patents. Otherwise, you will waste a lot of money in trying to attain a patent for something which already exists or is comparable too.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.theshowershirt.com
• Instagram: Lisa F. Crites (@crites305)
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/showershirt/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/LisaFCrites
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@lisacrites4887