The Windy City will be where the action is this week as more than 35,000 attendees from all parts of the health information technology world gather for theannual meeting of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
The 3 1/2 day meeting, which is being held at the McCormick Place convention center, features several well-known keynote speakers, including former President George W. Bush, who speaks on Wednesday, as well as Karen DeSalvo, MD, MPH, head of the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for Health Information Technology, who speaks on Thursday. This year’s theme is “Harnessing IT. Improving Outcomes. Transforming Health.”
On Sunday, before the conference officially begins, there will be a pre-conference symposium for physicians, which will feature physicians leaders doing work within health IT. “This year, the forum is looking beyond electronic health records and Meaningful Use at what we do with data and how we [use it to] impact population health,” said Wen Dombrowski, MD, MBA, a member of the HIMSS physician committee, in an interview.
The meeting features a track specifically for physicians, and Dombrowski also highlighted several other sessions that might be of special interest, including:
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Monday, 1-2 p.m.: Data-Enabled Strategic Resource Allocation in ACOs
Monday, 2:30-3:30 p.m.: Leveraging Clinical Data for Risk Adjusting Bundled Payment
Monday, 3:30-4:30 p.m.: #IHeartHIT Meetup with social media ambassadors to hear personal stories behind why health information technology matters
Tuesday, 10-11 a.m.: Staying Connected with Patient-Generated Health Data
Tuesday, 2:30-3:30 p.m.: Improved Patient Engagement, Lower Readmissions with mHealth
Tuesday, 4-5 p.m.: EHR-Enabled Chronic Care Management in Spain
Wednesday, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m.: American College of Medical Informatimusicology
Wednesday, 1-2 p.m.: Innovation in Healthcare Delivery: Accelerating New High-Impact Practices
In addition to the conference sessions, the networking opportunities are just as important, Dombrowski said in an interview. “People can network and learn in person about life challenges from other peers,” said Dombrowski, who is medical director for complex care management at North Shore-LIJ Health System, in Great Neck, N.Y. “The networking is a really critical part of HIMSS.”
She also noted that in addition to DeSalvo delivering a keynote address, DeSalvo’s agency will hold “listening sessions” where people can provide feedback to the ONC.
Another attraction at the conference will be the Interoperability Showcase, at which visitors can “tour one of our health journeys to experience a clinically accurate continuum of care that explores multiple use cases for standards-based health information exchange,” according to HIMSS. “More than 100 live clinical information systems will collaboratively demonstrate a wide breadth of innovative ways to improve patient care, clinician workflow, and the bottom line for healthcare.”
There will also be a Cybersecurity Command Center at which participants can test their “cybersecurity IQ” and participate in a forensics exercise.
Those who cannot attend the conference in person can experience some of the conference sessions online. The conference runs through Thursday.
Date: April 12, 2015