AAMI 2013 Conference Kicks Off in Long Beach
More than 1,500 members of the healthcare technology community have gathered in Long Beach, CA, this weekend to catch up with their peers, learn about advances in the field, and get a first-hand look at cutting-edge medical devices—all part of the AAMI 2013 Conference & Expo..
The three-day conference will feature more than 50 informative educational sessions covering a broad range of issues, including the role of human factors in healthcare systems; safety challenges related to the use of electronic medical records; medical device interoperability; cybersecurity, and wireless considerations in both hospital settings and homes.
“We’re excited about the lineup of sessions and speakers at this year’s conference,” said AAMI President Mary Logan. “They reflect our commitment to bringing together the best minds in healthcare, information technology, the medical device industry, the regulatory world, and elsewhere, so that we can all help to advance the safe and effective use of medical technology.”
For the first time, AAMI hosted an opening reception the night before the formal start of the conference. Friday evening saw scores of attendees in a sun-splashed hotel rotunda catching up with old—and meeting new—friends.
During the reception, the topic of many discussions was the future of the profession, with veterans contemplating how to guide the field when so much about medical technology—and how it is used—is changing rapidly.
Meanwhile, those who have been in the field for a shorter period of time had different goals, including learning about “best practices” that they could use back on the job. Carlisle Plante of ARAMARK Healthcare Technologies said he was particularly interested in learning about alarms monitoring, the use of real time location systems and how to teach the C-Suite about the critical role HTM professionals play in modern healthcare facilities.
“I want to be able to go home and show my facility what I’ve learned here,” explained Plante, who is the clinical engineering director at Naples Community Hospital in Florida.
Newcomers also represented a fair number of attendees. And—perhaps unsurprisingly—they were focused on how to position themselves for the future. Mike Martin was part of a large contingent of biomedical equipment technology students from Brown Mackie College in Tucson, AZ. Asked what he hoped to gain from the conference, a smiling Martin replied, “Find a company that I can join and start my career.”
The attendees have much to look forward to—from attending informative presentations to touring an exhibit hall packed with displays of the latest technologies from some of the world’s leading medical device manufacturers and service providers. Featured speakers at the conference include David Bates, MD, chief quality officer and senior vice president at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston; James Mault, MD, vice president and chief medical officer at Qualcomm Life; and Christopher Jerry, president and CEO of the Emily Jerry Foundation. Jerry’s started his foundation after his 2-year-old daughter Emily died following a fatal medication error in 2006. Since then, Jerry has become a dedicated patient safety advocate. To maintain their daily schedules, attendees can download the AAMI 2013 Mobile App for iPhones, iPads, and Androids at ativ.me/aami2013. Attendees also can let your colleagues know what’s going on via Twitter using the hashtag #AAMI2013.
For more information about the AAMI conference, click here.
Posted: 06.01.13