Information was Free-Flowing at HIMSS09

Despite today’s economic realities and their implications on the healthcare community, the 2009 Annual Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Conference & Exhibition, held April 4-8 in Chicago, was successful and, once again, Siemens solutions and customers were a focal point of the conference.

Overall attendance at HIMSS 2009 was off slightly from last year with an estimated 27,500 (down from 29,100 in 2008), but thanks to ARRA, the drop off was less than has been seen at other conferences of this type.

“Siemens had a strong showing this year between our booth, customer pod areas, and the many presentations that were delivered by Siemens personnel and customers,” says Roger May, senior director of Marketing at Siemens Medical Solutions. “Despite fewer total attendees at the conference, Siemens saw an increase in the number of private demonstrations, which illustrates that IT remains a critical component to success and, more importantly, how Siemens continues to provide robust, integrated clinical and financial solutions.”

Effectively utilizing and leveraging IT systems was the underlying theme of the conference and was reflected in the 2009 HIMSS Leadership Survey. Of the 304 respondents, 31 percent said the primary focus in 2009 would be ensuring their organization has a full EHR, while an additional 17 percent said installing a CPOE system would be a top priority.

Spotlight Discussions
The conversation that dominated the various breakout sessions was the $19.2 billion designated for health IT as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The ARRA was signed on February 17 and aims to prompt the widespread adoption of health IT and enable electronic exchange of health information through financial incentives.

Another highlight of the conference that prompted excited discussion among attendees was the CHIME Validation session, which featured nine chief information officers from various organizations and focused on the challenges and opportunities during these economic times and the impacts of the stimulus package on their organizations.

“The CIOs noted that they are anxious to have more definition of key elements of the ARRA, especially ‘meaningful use,’” says Andrea Boos, marketing specialist, Health Services for Siemens Healthcare, who led the panel discussion. “In the meantime, they’re working on analyzing the gap between where they are today in the rollout of an electronic health record and where they want and need to be by 2011.”

Siemens Focus
Siemens offered its customers an in-depth look at the technologies that are especially applicable to today’s healthcare environment. Attendees at HIMSS09 were exposed to the latest developments with the following solutions:

• Clinical
• Point of care
• Revenue cycle management
• Ambulatory and community access
• Decision support
• Image and knowledge management

Due to the overwhelming response from last year’s customer pods, Siemens again offered the opportunity for Siemens clinical and revenue cycle customers to present their successes and to answer questions from booth visitors. This year, the Siemens booth also featured a main theater area, which was manned by Siemens solution experts.

Looking to the Future
If there was one message that attendees took home from HIMSS 2009, it was that the future of healthcare IT was strong. More than half — 55 percent — of the HIMSS Leadership Survey respondents indicated that their IT budgets would increase this year and 42 percent said their staffing levels would also increase.

“The keys to success are clinical adoption, operational efficiency, and system optimization,” says Kathleen Kervin, vice president of Marketing and Communications at Siemens Medical Solutions. “Siemens will continue to provide our customers with certified solutions and resources necessary for them to build upon their IT foundation to thrive in this economy, and — more importantly — to meet the meaningful use qualifications in the near future.”

For more information about Siemens presence at HIMSS 2009: www.usa.siemens.com/HIMSS2009