As the first day of the #HIMSS18 exhibit hall dawned, I had mentally prepared myself for a series of meetings where we would be discussing the product updates, client signings and releases of new thought-leadership content. Fortunately, the universe decided to throw a curveball and I ended up with no fewer than five meetings that were completely different than what I expected.
Meeting 1 – Nuance
I had the opportunity to sit down with Nuance at #HIMSS18. I wrote an earlier post about their #AI Marketplace and I fully expected to listen to an update on that effort plus learn details about the company’s recent announcement of a multi-year collaboration with Partners Healthcare. They surprised me by speaking instead about the importance of their work in the area of incidental findings.
Brenda Hodge, Chief Marketing Officer of Nuance Healthcare spoke passionately about the work that Nuance is doing to help ensure incidental findings are brought to the attention of primary care physicians. Through their AI prioritization algorithms and natural-language-processing capabilities, Nuance has plans to capture this potentially vital imaging information and highlight it so that the right clinical interventions can be applied sooner.
It was the fervor and fire with which Hodge spoke that was the not-so-typical part of our meeting. It was fun to share that moment with a kindred spirit, passionate about improving healthcare.
Meeting 2 – Voalte
The good folks at Voalte provided me the opportunity to do something I have never done at HIMSS – moderate a meetup. We assembled a fantastic group of panelist: @ShahidnShah @innonurse @drandrew76 and Angela Kauffman (from @Voalte) had a lively discussion about Physician Communications. The meetup was even better than I expected.
The conversation flowed easily. Online engagement was high. A good sized crowd gathered to listen. It was a fantastic way to start the day. We captured the meetup on video so watch for clips from the meetup on the Healthcare Scene YouTube channel once we recover from #HIMSSanity.
Meeting 3 – TigerConnect (Formerly Known as TigerText)
I stopped by for a quick chat with the team at TigerConnect – the company formally known as TigerText – to talk about their recent rebrand. This meeting was atypical of ones I have had at HIMSS because it was solely focused on their marketing rather than on their products. It was refreshing to have the chance to get a behind-the-scenes view of their recent rebranding initiative.
TigerText is a pioneer in the field of secure communications in hospitals and their brand had become well-established. Unfortunately the “Text” portion of their name was becoming a limitation as their company expanded into adjacent spaces and extended their platform’s capabilities. In just a few months, they made the decision to rebrand and executed it in time for #HIMSS18.
I’ll be writing a more in-depth piece on this after HIMSS, but felt it was worth mentioning because I have never had this type of frank, honest marketing conversation at HIMSS before.
Meeting 4 – Lenovo Health
I stopped by the Lenovo Health booth to see what new things were happening – especially since I had the chance to attend their HealthIT Think Tank event last year. I came for news and I ended up taking a selfie with a custom-made sign. It was energizing to just do something fun in their booth. It was 10 minutes of being creative and capturing a moment in their space. You can see how big our smiles are in the pictures we took.
Meeting 5 – Cerner
The team at Cerner reached out a few days ago and asked to get together. By pure chance, they suggested a time that had recently freed up on my calendar (one of the few open spots I had). I honestly did not read the request carefully before agreeing to it. I thought I was going to be part of a press briefing that was being broadcast. It turned out that the Cerner team wanted to me to be part of their onsite podcast.
We ended up have a wonderful conversation about Day 1 of the HIMSS18 exhibit hall. It was a free-flowing discussion that I was not expecting. You can listen to the podcast here.
It was so much fun that we continued chatting for 20min after we wrapped the recording. At the end I had the opportunity to officially welcome the Cerner podcasting/social media/marketing crew to #pinksocks. Like the Lenovo Health meeting earlier, it was a rare chance to create a lasting memory. I will not soon forget that #pinksocks gifting – the enthusiasm, surprise and good feeling was just incredible.
Welcome to #pinksocks tribe @frecklednfab @Katie_Breadson of @Cerner So much fun doing the podcast with you! #hcldr #HITsm #healthITchicks pic.twitter.com/3WzCfS73zs
— Colin Hung (@Colin_Hung) March 7, 2018
Welcome to the #pinksocks tribe @ksudan Thank you for being an internal social media/marketing championl. Can’t wait to see you at #HITMC18 in NOLA !!! #HIMSS18 pic.twitter.com/feQRAP5g3n
— Colin Hung (@Colin_Hung) March 7, 2018
Day 1 takeaway – small moments, lasting memories
For me, Day 1 of the HIMSS18 exhibit hall was all about creating lasting memories from small moments. It wasn’t about the big splashy announcements, but the open/honest conversation. As I reflect on the day, I can’t help but smile at the how the stars aligned to give me a day at HIMSS that is the ideal we strive for in healthcare. Imagine if all across the healthcare ecosystem, clinicians were able to have small moments with patients that were open, honest, free-flowing as well as conversational and where both left the encounter feeling energized.
We need more days like this.
