Get the latest HIMSS13 updates • Annual call for Committee applications open until March 8 • HIMSS to host Meaningful Use regional education

Have a question, comment or idea? Please send them to Matt Schlossberg.

What's New

Annual Call for Committee Applications Open Until March 8
HIMSS opens its annual call for volunteers to serve on a committee for the 2014–15 fiscal years. Service on a HIMSS Committee—focused on specific settings and constituencies within health IT and key industry topics, is an excellent opportunity for professional development, networking and active engagement. Committee participation is open to all individual and corporate HIMSS Members who are not serving in other leadership positions within the Society and have been a member in good standing for at least the past 12 consecutive months. To apply, visit the Committees & Volunteer Opportunities page on the HIMSS website. For questions or more information, e-mail Joan Flagg, HIMSS Executive Assistant, or call 734–477–0862.

HIMSS and ACCE Recognize Paul H. Frisch for Excellence in Clinical Engineering and IT
Paul H. Frisch, PhD, FHIMSS, received the 2012 ACCE-HIMSS Excellence in Clinical Engineering and Information Technology Synergies Award, a joint award sponsored by ACCE and HIMSS. The Boards of Directors of both organizations selected the recipient. The award recognizes individuals who have best demonstrated leadership in promoting or implementing significant synergies between the clinical engineering and information technology professions. Nominees for the award are honored for professional or technical contributions to the professions, such as research, development of a new process or product, a paper of significance, and "trailblazing" work in a new application of clinical engineering and IT. Click the link above to read more.

Don’t Miss IHE USA’s Exciting and Dynamic Program for 2013
Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) USA is proud to announce the IHE Connectathon Conference 2013 on Jan. 30, at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. The conference is the cornerstone of the annual interoperability testing event—the North American (NA) Connectathon. Join us as we discuss the many ways that technology and IHE is enabling the seamless transfer of data across the healthcare continuum. Registration includes a "sneak peak" of the testing floor, a networking reception, and educational sessions focused on advancing patient care through the meaningful use of health IT and IHE. View the full conference agenda on IHE USA’s website, and register today. Admission: $195 per person.

Summer 2013 JHIM to Focus on Clinical & Business Intelligence—Send Your Abstracts
The Summer 2013 issue of JHIM will focus on Clinical & Business Intelligence, and is seeking abstracts on this and other topics in the affecting the health IT profession. JHIM will seek a variety of abstract proposals (case studies, literature reviews, etc.) that explore the health IT-related facets and implications of Clinical & Business Intelligence, including: performance outcomes; data management; Meaningful Use; decision-making; clinical and cultural investments; framework design and implementation of BI across the continuum of care; basic components of business intelligence; and more. Abstracts are due Jan. 18. Please send them in a Word document to Matt Schlossberg, Manager, Publications, at the e-mail link above.

Special Section: HIMSS13

HIMSS13 Preview Available Online
The HIMSS13 Preview issue of the HIMSS Monthly Insider is now available online. First published in the January 2013 print edition of Healthcare IT News, the HIMSS13 Preview features a high–level overview of the speakers, education, exhibition, special events and networking opportunities that await you at the 2013 Annual HIMSS Conference & Exhibition, March 3–7, in New Orleans. Click the link above to read the HIMSS13 Preview.

Summit for Health Information and Financial Technology at HIMSS13: Why You Should Attend
HIMSS Business Edge asked Tom Lloyd, Director, Vanderbilt Center for Better Health , Vanderbilt University Medical Center, why he is looking forward to the 2013 Summit for Health Information and Financial Technology at HIMSS13.  See what he has to say, by clicking the link in the headline above, and register now for this session at HIMSS13.

HIMSS Certifications at HIMSS13 Demonstrate Industry Knowledge
HIMSS is offering two certification exams and two review courses at HIMSS13–CPHIMS and CAHIMS. These certifications allow healthcare information and management systems professionals to demonstrate their knowledge of the health IT industry. Click the link above to learn more about these certifications and how you can register for them at HIMSS13.

Career Services Institute Debuts at HIMSS13
On Tuesday, March 5, HIMSS13 will see the debut of the HIMSS Career Services Institute, a day-long networking and education event open to all attendees. Hosted at the Marriott Convention Center, the Institute is an opportunity for attendees to network and will focus on supporting the various pieces that go into a health IT career–those soft and transferable skills we often hear about.

The program will support attendees of all levels of skill sets—those who are entry–level, intermediate, and advanced–level professionals, currently in the health IT field or wanting to enter the field and who are seeking career guidance on various aspects of career skill support  along with even possible job opportunities.

This one–day event, entitled Is Your Personal Brand Connected…or Unplugged? The ABCs of Authentically Standing out From the Crowd: Appearance, Behavior, Communication, will teach participants the soft and transferable skills they need to move toward the outcomes and actions they need to advance their careers. The session will be presented by Peggy M. Parks, AICI CIP, international image and business etiquette consultant and the founder of The Parks Image Group Inc. in Atlanta.

There is no additional fee to attend the Career Services Institute. However, special registration is required for this event. Register online at www.himssconference.org.  For more information on the HIMSS Career Services Institute, please contact Helen Figge, PharmD, MBA, CPHIMS, Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, Senior Director, Professional Development, Career Services, at hfigge@himss.org.

Meaningful Use Symposium: Transform MU from an IT Project to an Organizational Initiative.
The Meaningful Use Symposium on Sunday, March 3, will address the challenges of becoming a meaningful user, while also exploring success stories, and providing practical takeaways. Speaker Liz Johnson, MS, FHIMSS, CPHIMS, RN-BC, is excited for the "opportunity to network with health IT leaders across a complex set of care environments, all working on achieving Meaningful Use and sharing ideas to make solutions smarter, faster and better." Johnson adds: "Complex organizational initiatives are part of every health IT professional’s work responsibilities. The concepts utilized in achieving Meaningful Use can be reapplied in the diversity of other initiatives."

Says speaker Robin Raiford, RN-BC, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, "The scope is so wide for Meaningful Use. It is helpful there is a ‘one-stop shop’ for discussion and networking about the same goals and challenges. This Symposium has something for everyone—no matter what year or stage of Meaningful Use you are in."

Tools & Resources

HIMSS Meaningful Use Regional Education
What do the Meaningful Use Stage 2 Criteria Final Rules mean for your organization? There is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to meeting Stage 2 requirements. HIMSS has developed compelling regional educational events to help organizations be positioned to meet the new requirements. Please join your colleagues on Feb. 5 in Dallas to explore how meaningful use and health IT implementation can increase the value of your practice—now and in the future. Click the link in the headline above to register.

NEW! Corporate Member White Paper: Implementing a Statewide Health Information Exchange
Like many of the world’s health systems, New South Wales Health faces an array of significant challenges. At the top of the list is a call for continued improvements in clinical outcomes. The system’s aging patient population, however, increasingly presents with chronic and complex disease. Optimal treatment thus requires a level of real–time clinical collaboration that can be difficult to achieve, especially in a cost–efficient manner. Read this Corporate Member white paper from Teramedica by clicking the link above.

Sponsored White Paper: Benefits of Image-Enabling the EHR: MU2 Implications for Hospitals, Imaging Providers and EHR Vendors
Click the link above to access this white paper from Merge. Free registration is required.

Sponsored White Paper: Going Beyond Meaningful Use
With the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, organizations that adopt EMR software in a meaningful way may claim thousands of dollars in incentives for a limited period of time. But getting through over 1,000 pages of Meaningful Use Stage 2 regulations isn’t easy. This informative white paper helps practices understand what they mean and how to respond. Click the link above. Free registration is required.

Sponsored White Paper: Improving Patient Care and Reduce Costs
This white paper discusses how to "cloud-enable" medical imaging and optimize vendor neutral archive investments. It illustrates how EMC Atmos cloud storage consolidates PACS silos, reduces storage costs, uses metadata–driven policies to automate image lifecycle management, and provides instant access to images from EMRs, mobile apps, and any viewer across modalities.

Sponsored White Paper: Creating and Testing Your IT Recovery Plan
Testing at least once per month is important to maintain engineering best practices, to comply with stringent standards for data protection and recovery, and to gain confidence and peace of mind. In the midst of disaster is not the time to determine the flaws in your back up and recovery system. Backup alone is useless without the ability to efficiently recover, and technologists know all too well that the only path from "ought to work" to "known to work" is through testing. Read this white paper to learn more about protecting your data through a proper backup system.

Sponsored White Paper: Taming Complexity—A New Solution for In–House Healthcare EDI
If hospitals and providers are the body of the healthcare industry, healthcare electronic data interchange is the heartbeat. This white paper compares the different solutions and costs for achieving HIPAA-compliant EDI, explains the specific technical challenges in the way of successful implementations, and explores new avenues for bridging the gap to an in–house implementation.

Sponsored White Paper: Size Up Your Cloud Options - Is Now the Time?
Will you be left at a competitive disadvantage if you fail to deliver SaaS–enabled solutions in the Cloud? Read this guide to the rise of Cloud computing in healthcare and learn how to rapidly SaaS-enable your organization today.

Sponsored White Paper: HIPAA Compliant Hosting
Healthcare providers must assure patients the utmost security, confidentiality, and integrity of sensitive information. This means maintaining total HIPAA compliance within their organization, including healthcare IT infrastructure. This white paper elucidates HIPAA compliant IT infrastructure, from physical and environmental controls, to appropriate guidelines between a Covered Entity and data center provider when outsourcing. It also helps clarify key points including service provider qualifications, and why Business Associate Agreements are integral for establishing accountability with partners.

Sponsored White Paper: The Need for Data Loss Prevention Now
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) is powerful technology that can be use to plug the holes in the data leakage dam affecting organizations worldwide. In the healthcare industry the consequences of leakage are particularly dire. This white paper offers an introduction to the topic of DLP, which is one of the most important and powerful tools in the information security industry.

Sponsored White Paper: Blood Systems Expands Remote Access Connectivity to Prepare for Disaster
For more than 60 years, Blood Systems has been offering its life–giving services throughout the Western U.S. Blood Systems wanted to optimize its network for business value, migrating to the latest WAN services. Read this white paper to learn how Blood Systems increased flexibility and now support business continuity requirements so the nation’s blood supply wouldn’t be interrupted in the face of a natural disaster or pandemic.

Calling All Members

HIMSS eConnecting with Consumers Committee Seeks Members
The HIMSS eConnecting with Consumers Committee is now accepting new members for the following Task Forces:

• Patient Engagement Task Force: This group will create a compendium of business cases highlighting best practices and lessons learned from providers’ use of health IT to engage patients. This group meets the third Monday of the month at 12 pm (ET).
• Provider Value Proposition Task Force: This group will be responsible for the identification and creation of resources and tools related to personal health IT for all HIMSS providers, including business cases, best practices and lessons learned for technologies, including (but not limited to) PHRs, portals and mHealth. This group meets the second Tuesday of the month at 3 pm (ET).
• Social Media Task Force: This group will create resources and tools as well as opportunities around social networking at HIMSS, including the Social Media Center at HIMSS13. This group meets the first Thursday of the month at 12 pm (ET).

All groups will meet monthly via WebEx. Participation is open to all active HIMSS members. For more information contact Valerie Knoke.

HIMSS Patient-Centered Payer Roundtable is Accepting New Members
The HIMSS Patient–Centered Payer Roundtable is accepting new members. The vision of the Roundtable is to improve individual patient care, quality, and outcomes in a cost–effective manner by fostering collaboration and trust between providers, payers and vendors through the development of interoperable health IT. The Roundtable serves to provide a vehicle for these and other stakeholders to exchange ideas and dialogue on emerging health IT issues and opportunities. The Roundtable continues to engage on relevant issues with industry experts, and share learning experiences and case studies. Key topics for the year include accountable care/value–based healthcare/care coordination, and "enabling" issues such as HIE, interoperability, funding models, data management, business intelligence, and patient identity. The next meeting of the Roundtable, via conference call, will be Jan. 17, from 4 pm to 5 pm (ET). Join us for the third in a series of four on payer–provider interoperability and data exchange in support of care coordination and new payment models.  Please visit HIMSS Patient–Centered Payer Roundtable web site at the link above for additional information and contact Nancy Devlin to become a member.

HIMSS Clinical & Business Intelligence Community Seeks Members
HIMSS is accepting members for the newly formed Clinical & Business Intelligence (C&BI) Community. The goal of the C&BI Community is to bring together thought leadership and share knowledge that will support the future success of our members by improving their ability to understand and form partnerships to manage C&BI as a part of doing business and providing accountable and quality care to their members. The community will support activities that promote peer-to-peer networking, problem solving, solution sharing and education. Please join the Community on the fourth Thursday of the month, 1-2 pm (ET). Our next meeting will be Jan. 24. Contact Nancy Devlin for meeting information. Participation is open to all current HIMSS members. If you are interested in participating in the community or presenting a use case, join now. For more information, visit the C&BI Community website.

HIMSS Accountable Care Task Force Seeks Members
The HIMSS Accountable Care Task Force is accepting members for this new Task Force. The Task Force will be focused on the adoption and use of Health Information Technology for Accountable Care organizations and will be co–chaired by Paul Oates, CPHIMS, FHIMSS, IT Architecture, Cigna and Lee Lemelson, RPh, System Vice President, Clinical Applications, Banner Health. The Task Force will work to provide valuable tools and resources to the industry, specifically, use cases and best practices for Accountable Care Organizations. The meetings are held on the first Wednesday of the month, 1 pm–2 pm (ET). To sign up for the Task Force, and to help us get to know each other’s background, skill set and interest, please take a moment to fill out this brief survey. The Task Force is open to all current HIMSS members. Contact Nancy Devlin, for further information.

HIMSS Now Accepting Applications for Advanced Membership!
If you have been a member of HIMSS for at least three years, you are eligible to apply for advanced membership. You can become a Senior Member or Fellow Member of HIMSS depending on years of membership and number of points. Points are earned for education and certification; experience and professional responsibility; presenting or publishing on health IT topics; and serving as a HIMSS volunteer on committees, work groups, chapter leadership, etc. See our Member Advancement webpage for more information, or email questions to the e-mail link in the headline above.

Seeking Members for HIE Task Forces and Work Groups
The HIMSS HIE Committee is seeking members to join a number of their task forces and work groups. Click the link above to learn more about these groups and how to join.

Nominations Welcome for the Spirit of HIMSS Award
Established in 2003, the Spirit of HIMSS award recognizes members who exemplify the mission of HIMSS through their recent volunteer efforts within the society. The award is given to a member or group of members every month, at the discretion of the Individual Membership Committee. HIMSS utilizes awards to recognize the special contributions of individuals, groups and organizations to the advancement of the healthcare profession as encompassed by the HIMSS mission. These special contributions may vary widely due to the diverse membership of HIMSS and the broad definition of the healthcare professions represented in our mission. To submit a nomination, click the link above or contact Helen Figge with questions.

Participants Needed for New I&S Committee Work Groups
The new Interoperability & Standards (I&S) Committee is looking for volunteers to serve on a variety of work groups including: HIMSS Interoperability Policy Section (HIPS) Work Group; Enterprise Architecture (EA) Work Group; I&S Section of the mHIMSS Roadmap (ISS mHealth) Work Group; I&S Toolkit & Web Resource (Toolkit) Work Group (TBD); Health IT Standards (Standards) Work Group (TBD); and the Technical Information Exchange (Tech–IE) Work Group (TBD). If you would like to volunteer to serve on any of the I&S Committee Work Groups please contact Mary-Ellen Devitt Johnson at the e-mail link above.

© 2013 Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society
The inclusion of an organization name, product or service in this publication should not be construed
as a HIMSS endorsement of such organization, product or service, nor is the failure to include an
organization name, product or service to be construed as disapproval.