I attended two events last week that each provided comfort as I contemplate our future. The HIMSS14 Annual Conference and Exhibition followed by the Health Administration Case Competition at UAB are both outstanding events from the perspective of our field but in very different ways. The HIMSS Annual Conference, as you know, is a massive event focused on the health IT domain. While much of the technology, consulting and practice expertise involved do not know or care about AUPHA directly, we are foundational to what they do, train an increasing number of their members, and we are beginning to have an impact.
HIMSS14 began with the Train-the-Trainer Workshop Sunday morning followed by the Academic Forum Sunday afternoon. Both provided examples of our impact into the health IT domain. The morning Train-the-Trainer Workshop presented by AUPHA and CAHME, was a partial fulfillment of a grant from HIMSS and Siemens Healthcare. We agreed to develop the HIMSTA curriculum and then facilitate dissemination to our interested members. These curriculum modules will influence the health IT literacy of future generations of healthcare leaders in a variety of settings.
Sunday afternoon, the 9th Annual AUPHA Academic Forum showcased our commitment to the generation of new knowledge. An interesting array of presentations on the workflow related to the introduction of an Electronic Health Record, barriers and facilitators of the use of eHIT, and adopter challenges related to Health Information Exchange filled the afternoon. These were well attended and the afternoon sessions generated significant discussion. On a less formal note, I noticed the engagement and visibility of our faculty and alumni throughout HIMSS.
The Health Administration Case Competition that proved even more stimulating than HIMSS. Once again, the competition among 35 teams provided evidence that the students we are producing are ready to enter the workforce and assume leadership roles. They are smart, poised, creative, confident and prepared. The twelve judges for this competition were in awe of the quality of analysis and sophistication of the presentations across all groups. The impressive set of judges hailed from consulting to hospital leadership, from hospice organizations to startups. Their declarations of our students’ quality provide solid evidence that we are effectively providing appropriate competencies to these students. Congratulations to the top three teams: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Johns Hopkins University and University of Pittsburgh. They provided outstanding analyses and professional presentations. Not taking anything away from the winners but all of the participating teams won by working on the challenging case.
How do faculty continue to produce such high quality output year after year? I think it comes as the primary value added of our Annual Meeting in San Antonio this June. While HIMSS and the Case Competition were wonderful, they can’t replace the opportunities AUPHA offers each year. As a discipline, we have few opportunities to spend quality time with our colleagues from around the country to learn, share ideas and network. The program this year should be outstanding as usual and the setting equally as enjoyable (although warmer) than last year in Monterey. Our keynote speakers, Retired Major General David Rubenstein and Regina Herzlinger, PhD, will bookend our program. David will bring his years of experience leading healthcare delivery units including his experience as Chief of the US Army Medical Service Corps. He also is a board certified healthcare executive who served as a past Chairman of the Board of Governors of the American College of Healthcare Executives. His proven leadership credentials and accomplishments should provide us both inspiration and insight. His presentation “A Young Healthcare Leader's Toolkit: Knowing Oneself in Order to Lead Others” should be ideal for us.
Dr. Herzlinger needs no introduction because of her vast writing on a host of highly salient healthcare management topics. While no stranger to AUPHA’s Annual Meeting, she is a prolific writer who seems to find ways to redefine herself in novel ways. Her academic leadership continues to make us think, reconsider, and grow. Currently, she has a focus on innovation in healthcare with a special emphasis on how to create a curriculum that fosters innovative action among leaders. Many of us know her best through her noteworthy history of being dubbed, among other things, the “godmother” of consumer driven healthcare. She coined that phrase and the concepts she introduced altered thinking in academe, government/policy and practice. Her presentation and engaged discussion for us will prove stimulating for sure.
As important as these keynote presentations will be and as fortunate we are in getting such outstanding speakers for our Annual Meeting, the education sessions should also be vital. Looking at the topics this year suggests that your colleagues have interest in and have expertise in a wide range of topics vital to our future. There is no way to summarize nor is there space to list every topic. You will, however, be exposed to many of the vital issues that help to define our discipline and serve to differentiate us and make us special. Among other topics, we are concerned about creating research expertise for our graduates; fostering ethical behavior; constructing valid exit exams; developing competencies related to ACOs and HIEs; and improving the educational experiences of minority health management students. We will receive ideas about how best to plan for accreditation; use Learning Management Systems; introduce mobile apps; and explore virtual reality. Finally, we will obtain suggestions regarding alternatives to the U.S, News & World Report ranking system and, my potential favorite, suggestions to avoid “death by lecture.”
If this is not enough, you can participate in Faculty Forum meetings, a FishBowl session, CAHME updates, learn about HAMPCAS, explore Upsilon Phi Delta, and much more. For those with more worldly interests, plan to come a day early and attend the Global Symposium on June 17th.
Lest you think that the entire Annual Meeting is intense learning, you will have some air time to network - the time to meet new colleagues, reconnect with long-time colleagues or enjoy the lovely sunshine of San Antonio. Breaks, receptions, lunches and dinners provide ample opportunity to learn, network and rejuvenate.
Hope to see you all in San Antonio June 18 – 21, 2014. Please remember to bring a hat with a brim and plenty of sunscreen.