Cascade Health Palliative Care Team

Laura Helfrich, RN

Director of Hospice Services

While spending the first 11 years in the clinic and hospital setting, Laura learned that people heal better in their homes. Laura joined the home health team 10 years ago. Laura has been a leader and nurse educator in home health, always looking for innovative ways to provide services to patients in their home. Serving the community towards better health is what brings gratification to Laura’s work life. She also enjoys gardening, sewing, spending time with her grandkids.

Sheree Miller, RN

Clinical Manager

Kristi Wallace, FNP

Family Nurse Practitioner

Kristi Wallace has been working in some form of the medical field since the age of 18, starting out as a hospital housekeeper. She graduated from Linfield College with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1990 and spent the next five years working as a nurse in a 14-bed hospital in rural Alaska. She returned to Eugene and subsequently spent 17 years working in correctional medicine.
She earned her MS in Nursing Administration in 2009 and then her Family Nurse Practitioner in 2010. She began working in the field of palliative care and hospice in 2021 and knew then that she’d found the field she was always meant to be in.
In her spare time, Kristi enjoys cooking and baking and doing crafts. She enjoys spending time with her teenage grandchildren and is a devoted dog mom to her Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Hazel, Henry, and Harper.

Sarah Jane Petersen

Medical Social Worker

Pronouns: she/her/hers
Sarah Jane Petersen has been a licensed clinical social worker for patients and families in health care settings since 1994. She has worked at Cascade Health in hospice and palliative care for the last 12 years.. In addition to her work with Cascade Health, Sarah Jane facilitates support groups for the Oregon Cancer Foundation and The Fertility Center and previously for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. She and her husband have twin girls in college and love camping. Sarah Jane also loves running, dancing, reading and spending time with friends.

Debbie Wilson

RN Case Manager

Debbie joined Cascade Health in 2008 in the role of Referrals Nurse and remained is this position for 14 years before transitioning to the Palliative Care department as a Palliative Care Nurse. Debbie earned her AD in nursing in 1986 with an extensive career focused in long term care and home health. This has lead her to an interest in Palliative Care addressing the physical, emotional, social and spiritual needs of patients to improve their quality of life. Debbie’s activities outside of work include gardening, advocating for animal rights, enjoying the beautiful Oregon coast, and spending time with family and friends.