HIMSS13: Health IT: Right Time. Right Place. It’s On

The Healthcare Information Management and Information Systems Society (HIMSS) seems to have packed more into the 2013 Annual Conference and Exhibition than ever before. That comes as little surprise when there are so many different initiatives and efforts for attendees to consider.

From ICD-10 to Meaningful Use (MU) to healthcare reform and privacy and security, HIMSS13 attendees can expect a wide variety of offerings. Expert speakers will share their advice, keynotes will discuss the future of health IT and thousands of attendees will network during the educational and social sessions.

This year’s meeting, March 3-7 in New Orleans, features a keynote address by former U.S. President Bill Clinton on Wednesday, March 6 at 1 p.m. Other marquee speakers include Eric J. Topol, MD, West endowed chair of innovative medicine, Scripps Health and professor of genomics, The Scripps Research Institute; and James Carville and Karl Rove who will share a session on Thursday, March 7 at 12:30 p.m.

White House doctor Connie Moriano, MD, will speak on Wednesday, March 6; Karen B. DeSalvo, MD, MPH, MSc, health commissioner of the New Orleans Health Department, will discuss lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina on Tuesday, March 5; and David Kennedy, founder of security consultancy at TRUSTEDSEC, will present “Hacking Your Life,” about the many different risks and exposures of healthcare equipment.

Also not to be missed is a keynote address featuring Farzad Mostashari, MD, ScM, national coordinator for health IT, on Thursday, March 7. Last year, he presented the MU Stage 2 proposed rule, so he’s sure to offer attendees something significant.w symsia

New offerings

While the conference has always offered expert advice from speakers, networking opportunities, social events and lots of education, there are several new offerings this year.  
Several preconference symposia are designed to supplement the general conference educational programming, says JoAnn Klinedinst, vice president of professional development at HIMSS. “We look at the conference as a combination of networking, engagement and education.”  

The Clinical & Business Intelligence Symposium on Sunday, March 3, covers an “important topic,” she says. “With the movement of achieving and sustaining MU, the healthcare community has an opportunity to leverage data being used to deliver patient care. There is a huge opportunity to mine those data and validate documented business decisions around the review and analysis of those data.” This new symposium will cover the measurement and analysis of data, controlling what’s been implemented and ensuring that gathered information and implemented solutions meet the needs of those who use it.

Another new symposium, the Innovation Symposium (Sunday, March 3), will offer “valuable perspective,” says Klinedinst. “We now have the opportunity to talk not just about the science of innovation but also the practice of it.” She promises a robust agenda covering how organizations can support an innovative culture and how to measure the impact of innovative efforts.

Hot topic workshops

One preconference workshop will cover the EHR incentive program from a Stage 2 perspective.

Offerings that address the increasing focus on patient engagement include a preconference workshop on how to build a mobile app. “Participatory medicine and consumer engagement at the fingertips of a mobile device is redefining healthcare delivery,” Klinedinst says. Another preconference workshop on the mHIMSS roadmap, facilitated by the mHIMSS roadmap taskforce, offers guidance for providers on how to build a mobile health ecosystem.

Privacy and security issues are on most providers’ minds and HIMSS13 delivers on that front as well. Consultant Tom Walsh will deliver a “compelling” preconference workshop on preparing for an Office of Civil Rights audit, Klinedinst says.

HIMSS13 also offers the Patient Engagement Forum on Tuesday, March 5. This forum includes three separate sessions focused on meeting MU Stage 2 engagement requirements, proven outcomes of patient-centered strategies and innovative technologies to engage patients.

Exhibit Floor

HIMSS13 presents several new opportunities as well as some old favorites. The MU Experience agenda includes providers who have successfully attested, people working to get there and even those who have decided not to participate in the MU program.  

“We really tried to build educational programming that speaks to those who are far along, as well as those who are just gearing up and trying to demonstrate that they can achieve MU,” says Klinedinst. “A lot of education goes on on the exhibit floor,” she says. In addition to product announcements from the more than 1,000 exhibiting vendors, conference attendees can visit the Interoperability Showcase, which “demonstrates the importance and criticality of moving information seamlessly from one system to another.”

For the first time, HIMSS is presenting the Meaningful User Experience, a section of the exhibit hall where attendees can view all of the different certified solutions in one place.
The Intelligent Hospital Pavilion will be back this year, showcasing the seamless integration of diverse technologies to enhance patient care, optimize workflow and manage resources.

This year’s Knowledge Centers will focus on three hot topics: mobile health, clinical and business analytics and intelligence and ICD-10. Even though the ICD-10 implementation date is Oct. 1, 2014, “it should not be a forgotten topic,” says Klinedinst.

Another new offering this year is Walk & Learn where providers can take free, small guided tours of the exhibit hall outside of regular times. The tours will focus on patient portals, clinical decision support and revenue cycle management and visit vendors who specialize in these areas.  

No matter the topic of most interest to you, there is plenty to keep you busy at HIMSS13. If you can’t make it to New Orleans, you can get instant access to news from the meeting via our live coverage on Clinical-Innovation.net or by signing up for our daily e-newsletter at subs.Clinical-Innovation.com.