Speaker Details

Meet our speaker!

Cassandra Nayini

Cassie Nayini is an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner at the University of Maryland Medical Center, specializing in Thoracic surgery and Thoracic oncology. She has almost 20 years of practice in healthcare with extensive RN experience in critical care working in San Diego, Baltimore, and New York City.

Cassie utilizes her leadership role and clinical expertise to contribute to the profession of nursing by serving as a preceptor and mentor to nurses and nurse practitioner students. Cassie holds an adjunct faculty position at the University of Maryland School of Nursing, where she is pursuing a certificate in nursing education.

While completing a Master's degree in Palliative Care during the COVID-19 pandemic, she focused on mental health, resilience, and self-care for health care professionals. Cassie is most passionate about early access to palliative care for hospitalized patients with advanced diseases, optimizing quality of life and alleviating suffering.

Cassie earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Stevenson University (2006), Master of Science in Nursing, from UCLA (2014), and Master of Science in Palliative Care from the University of Maryland (2021).

Cassie's hobbies include reading, running, and cooking new recipes. She lives in Baltimore County with her husband and 2 young children.