What a wonderful, enthusiastic, and enriching HIM week! Lots of social media demonstrating the fun events and promotions of what HIMs and Clinical Coders offer to our employers. Thank you everyone for your participation.
In addition, there were the three webinars hosted by HIMAA, all receiving positive feedback from attendees. The Board was especially delighted to be able to join members in our webinar Meet the Board. It was a great opportunity to share with you a brief overview of the structure of the Board, our governance, roles, responsibilities, obligations, and frameworks by which we work, and that of our Registered Training Organisation. Individual Board members gave a quick insight into their personal experiences and places of employment, which are diverse indeed. A sincere thanks to my fellow Board members for their ongoing passion and commitment to our profession engagement. Any questions not answered on the day will be added to the Members’ Portal.
Of note during our session, we shared the year ahead via our Initiative Roadmap; we will arrange for this to be added to the Members’ Portal as well. Based on our recent assessment of the 2022-2024 Strategic Plan the Board has aligned key tasks against each strategy to be quite intentional about achieving outcomes which aim to advocate and advance our position in the ever-dynamic work environments in which we, as professionals, operate.
Amongst the many matters for our attention, a priority task is the search for a replacement CEO. The position has been advertised widely on social media, as well as using traditional recruitment methods, to find the person who will take on the operational responsibility for head office. If being our next CEO is something to which you aspire this may be an ideal opportunity to pursue. The closing date is 11.59pm Sunday 10 September 2023.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank our member volunteers who support the many committees and working groups, Branch Convenors, Chairs, and Special Interest Groups. The efforts and passion of these groups are the lifeforce of our membership. The structure of the committees, as shared in our HIM Week webinar, can be found on the Members’ Portal. Should you wish to partake please reach out to Sallyanne Wissman to make the connections for you.
In addition to our Initiative Roadmap, our mid-term review of the Strategic Plan has identified that we are tracking quite well in all areas, some more matured than others, but each receiving our attention either directly or through one of our many Committees, Communities of Practice or other forums. One strategy needing more attention is to position our services to enable growth within health information management roles. As the saying goes: two (or more) heads are better than one. The Board invited members to share ideas and innovations which will help advance all strategies on the table. Let us know your thoughts on the aforementioned, or indeed any of our other strategies, and how we can develop them.
Another notable information point during our webinar was the Roadmap for Membership Kara Pollard, Vice President and Board Liaison for the Membership Committee, showed great esprit de corps in addressing the 5-phase approach related to this project. As mentioned, this roadmap will be the subject of further consultation and discussion. I encourage each member to become engaged. Our shared efforts and contributions in this project will be an investment in our future as an Association and as professionals in our workplaces.
We are almost into September so our upcoming IFHIMA/HIMAA combined Congress is fast approaching. We have received an enthusiastic response with our Early Bird registrations and already have an impressive list of registrants. If you have not had the chance to register, I encourage you to visit our HIMAA Membership Portal to take advantage of the various rates for members, individuals, and groups. We are looking forward to a very informative event, with the advantage of local and international speakers, guests, and members.
Our Membership Officer, Jenny Moreland, has been busy assisting members with their renewals. Should you have any questions and require assistance do reach out to Jenny; she will be delighted to chat with you.
Catherine Garvey
President
