Ilene Corina, BCPA

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Founder & President, Pulse Center for Patient Safety Education & Advocacy

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Ilene Corina is a Board-Certified Patient Advocate and the founder of Pulse Center for Patient Safety Education & Advocacy, Long Island’s leading organization dedicated to improving patient outcomes through advocacy, education, and support.

 

Driven by personal experience and a commitment to healthcare safety, Ilene has spent over 1,000 hours at patients’ bedsides, helping families navigate complex healthcare systems.

Ilene played a key role in the passage of New York State’s landmark Patient Health Information and Quality Improvement Act of 2000, which established a statewide health information system to enhance transparency and accountability in healthcare. In 1996, she founded a support group for patients and families affected by medical harm, which grew into the Pulse Center’s comprehensive programs.

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She has served on the boards of the National Patient Safety Foundation (2002–2017) and The Joint Commission (2005–2018), where she contributed to initiatives on health literacy, cultural competence, and family-centered care. Ilene also co-chaired the Patient and Family Advisory Council and spearheaded the first Patient Safety Awareness Week in 2002, raising awareness about the critical role of patient-provider partnerships in reducing medical errors.

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A trained mediator and educator, Ilene has developed curricula on medical error disclosure and family-centered advocacy used in healthcare training programs and the Pulse Online Course Academy nationwide.

 

She is the author of Teaching Patient Safety: An Educator’s Guide and co-author of Family Centered Patient Advocacy: A Training Manual. Her work focuses on empowering vulnerable populations and promoting healthcare equity.

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Ilene is a recognized expert in patient safety, having been named one of Modern Healthcare’s 100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare (2009) and one of Becker’s Hospital Review’s 50 Experts Leading the Field in Patient Safety (2013).

 

She regularly presents nationally, consults for health systems, and leads community campaigns to educate and activate patients and families as partners in their care.

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Her approach emphasizes that patient safety happens at the bedside, not in the boardroom, and she continues to inspire change through education, advocacy, safety, and compassionate support.