Well over 500 members of the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) met for their Fall Forum last week. An attendance record that speaks to the fact that healthcare CIOs are reacting to the need to stay on top of the ever-changing landscape in our industry. For those of you who Tweet (I am not yet one of you), our own Anthony Guerra was at the event and tweeting away!
As always the event was a great opportunity for CIOs and IT leaders to network with, and learn from, their colleagues and key industry players. CHIME debuted a new logo as part of an image rebranding campaign, and launched the new CHCIO program, which is the first program of its kind to recognize the diverse body of knowledge required to perform as a successful HIT executive. The program included excellent educational tracks, and some very engaging keynote speakers.
The opening keynote speaker was the National Coordinator for HIT, Dr. David Blumenthal, who was clearly a major draw for the event. However, I left his presentation feeling like something was missing – He told us all the things we knew about the meaningful use definition, and was clear about what he could not say (which was a lot). I think we all understood those limitations, but were secretly hoping for a wink, or a nod – something to let us know we were not alone – that he understood our pain and concern. In the end I felt like it was an opportunity that was lost. A chance to connect with a core group of the nation’s healthcare CIOs – a chance to create alignment – common vision – a chance to rally and motivate. I guess I was hoping for something like that anyway. I guess we all just have to wait to see what comes out in December…
Remember the Spring CIO Forum will be held the weekend (Feb 28 & 29) before HIMSS in Atlanta!
