Dr. Katherine Pettus is the Advocacy Officer for Human Rights and Palliative Care at International Association of Hospice and Palliative Care. She travels to meetings around the world, advocating for improved access to internationally controlled essential medicines such as morphine, as a component of the right to Health. She also addresses palliative care issues for older persons, for children, in universal coverage, for non-communicable diseases (NCDs), and palliative care medications in national essential medicines lists.

She grounds her European and US advocacy work in her visits to partners in Latin America, Africa, and India, where she participates ‘as often as possible’ in home care with colleagues and their teams who work in extremely challenging circumstances to deliver palliative care to the indigent and mentally ill. FInd out more about Katherine’s work at: Hospicecare.com and nhpco.org.

Find out more about the Zestful Aging Podcast at NicoleChristina.com, and become a patron at Patreon.com/ZestfulAging.

Most Recent Episodes

June 27, 2026

Basic Eye Care that We All Need to be Doing

I don't know about you, but I haven't thought about my eye health that much over the years. I've been pretty lucky that I haven't had many concerns. I have begun wearing eye protection for Pickleball...

Listen · 31:43

June 13, 2026

Who Else is a Little Afraid of Death?

Some of us don't mind admitting that we're a little afraid of death. This week's guest says she thinks about her death 20-30 times a day. A psychologist and memoirist who has been on Zestful Aging...

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May 30, 2026

The Healing Power of Laughter (Why We Need This Now)

When is the last time you had a belly laugh? Most of us haven't had a good laugh in recent memory. Our guest this week is Yvonne Conte who is a nationally recognized keynote speaker, bestselling...

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Nicole Christina Podcaster

Nicole Christina is the host of the multi-award winning Zestful Aging Podcast, an interview show heard in 103 countries. It's approaching its fifth year, with more than 300 interviews. She is also the author of “Not Just Chatting; How to Become a Master Podcast Interviewer”. Nicole’s guests are change makers from a variety of disciplines; filmmakers, writers, advocates, poets, musicians, scientists, athletes and entrepreneurs, many of whom are top experts in their fields. The Show has a humanitarian focus, and looks at the importance of leaving your own legacy. Leaving a legacy is a way of contributing to the common good, which has shown to have a significant impact on aging well.