6 can't-miss sessions at AHRA 2018 in Orlando
It’s that time again! AHRA 2018, the annual meeting of AHRA: The Association for Medical Imaging Management, is just a few weeks away.
AHRA 2018 takes place July 22-25 in Orlando, Florida. And since that is coming up so soon, I am sharing a selection of some can’t-miss sessions that will be taking place during the conference.
There are many interesting sessions available to attendees this year, but these are a few that stood out to me as I looked over the schedule.
1. Grand Opening Ceremony & Keynote – Monday, July 23, at 9 a.m.
Opening ceremonies at conferences tend to be dry and inessential, but AHRA knows how to put on an enjoyable, entertaining show. Attendees will get to catch up with what the association has been focused on for the last year and what it has planned for the future, and then keynote speaker Kevin Brown will deliver his presentation, “Creating a Culture of Heroes at Every Level.”
It’s also worth pointing out that attendees are almost guaranteed to witness a fun dance number or two. At AHRA 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee, the conference’s design team put on cowboy hats and did a little line dancing. At AHRA 2017 in Anaheim, California, they busted out a Beach Boys-like singalong with beach balls and choreography. What will they treat the crowd to this year?
2. AHRA Regulatory Update – Monday, July 23, at 2:15 p.m. & Tuesday, July 24, at 2:15 p.m.
This session takes place twice during AHRA 2018, and attendees should make sure they catch one of those two showings. Sheila M. Sferrella, MAS, CRA, RT(R), chair of the AHRA’s Regulatory Affairs Committee, and Melody Mulaik, MSHS, always do a great job summarizing ongoing policy issues that impact AHRA’s members and radiology as a whole. They’re also great about answering any questions that may come up. Bring a notebook so you can take notes!
3. Patient Experience: How We Did It – Monday, July 23, at 4:15 p.m.
This session sounds like a great primer for imaging leaders who want to take patient care at their facilities to the next level. Michael Jordan, MHA, CRA, RT(R), of and Crystal Parlier, RT(R), (M), will tell attendees how two hospitals within a single healthcare system in North Carolina made significant gains in improving the overall patient experience.
“Do you want to get to the top decile in patient experience?” the session preview asks. “Do you want to finally engage your team to own the patient experience? Let us share with you how.”
4. Success through Servant Leadership – Tuesday, July 24, at 8:15 a.m.
This sounds like another great session for any imaging leaders looking to form better relationships with their employees. Jacqui Rose, CRA, MBA, of Upper Valley Medical Center in Troy, Ohio, will be speaking to attendees about the importance of servant leadership. Rose will go over what she says are the ten principles of servant leadership—listening, empathy, healing, awareness, persuasion, conceptualization, foresight, stewardship, commitment to the growth of people, and building community—and “how emotional intelligence plays a role in our development and practice of servant leadership.”
5. Don't Leave Money on the Table . . . Position Your Practice With Value-Added Initiatives, MIPS and MACRA – Tuesday, July 24, at 4:15 p.m.
Cheryl Loper-Fimreite, CMA, and Christy Ritchie, BA, will be discussing some of the many acronyms imaging leaders need to know, including the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) and the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). The session should also help leaders “understand how radiology practices are managing the four areas of value: quality, service, resource management and professional development.”
6. Plans for CDS Implementation by a Large Multi-Practice Radiology Provider – Wednesday, July 25, at 10 a.m.
A recent survey of AHRA members showed that there is still a lot of confusion and uncertainty about clinical decision support (CDS) implementation. That makes this session—from Michael Mabry, MA—a no-brainer, if you ask me. It should help attendees navigate CMS, CDS and every policy detail in-between.
More information about AHRA 2018 is available here. The full schedule is available here.
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.