Message from George Reynolds:  On September 6^th, Lieutenant Governor Mike Foley presented members of the Nebraska Chapter of HIMSS with a proclamation declaring October 2-6 Health Information Week. This is the second year we’ve attended this ceremony. It’s a fun event that takes place in the Warner Chamber of the State Capital Building. The Warner Chamber was originally the chamber of the Nebraska House of Representatives when the Nebraska legislature was bicameral. In 1937, the legislature became a unicameral body (the only one in the country), and the Warner Chamber wasn’t needed by the legislature anymore. The names of the last group of representatives in 1937 are still on the voting tote board at the front of the room.

The ceremony takes place once a month. About a dozen different groups representing businesses, charities and public organizations across the state are represented. One by one, a group of people gather around the Governor or Lt Governor, a group member reads a brief statement, the proclamation is presented, and a few pictures are snapped.

From L-R: Lianne Stevens, Cindy Arnold, Wanda Kelley, George Reynolds, Lt. Gov. Foley, Denise Mainquist, Connie Ganz, Krisha Ellinger, Mark Criner

In my very brief remarks, I talked about the role of HIT and the NE HIMSS members in all aspects of healthcare delivery from scheduling to patient portals to decision support and therapeutic reminders to interoperability and access to clinical information across the spectrum of care.  Please remind your teams and co-workers about Health Information Technology week. It’s a great opportunity to recognize them and educate people about all that they do.

Program Committee Update: 

Leaves are falling…kids are back in school…Husker football is in the air…and registration for Nebraska HIMSS 2017 Fall Meeting is open at http://nebraska.himsschapter.org/  This year’s Fall Meeting will be on October 25 and 26, 2017 at the Embassy Suites Omaha-La Vista Hotel & Conference Center in La Vista, Nebraska.

As an added feature for the 2017 Fall Meeting, we will have 2-for-1 pricing. For one paid registration, one other person from your organization can be registered for FREE!

This year’s Fall Meeting will have a strong focus on the clinical application of health IT concepts. Topics include:

• National HIT Landscape

• Behavioral Health Impacts to the Primary Care Setting

• Making Data Driven Decisions

• Patient Engagement in a Digital World

• Clinical Informatics: Are you the CHANGE?

• EHR Usability Project

• Security Awareness & Training: Your First Line Defense

• MU & MIPS Reporting to NDHHS

• Moving MACRA Forward

• Healthcare IT and Management is a Marathon

Nursing contact hours are being applied for this meeting. And, of course, we will have our semi-annual business meeting.

Don’t miss out!

Sponsors please contact me if you would like to participate in this years Fall Meeting!

Wanda Kelley, MSN, RN-BC

Program Committee Chair

Communications Committee update:

Just like the race for the pennat this October, the Communications Committe is in FULL SWING to provide updates on the NE HIMSS web site and social media.  As you may have noticed registration for the NE HIMSS Fall meeting is open through the web site.  I encourge you to register ASAP.  The Committe has been improving the web site and social media experience every week so please interact on those sites!  We look forward to seeing you in October.

Matt Rau

Communications Chair