It’s always interesting to review the program for the Healthcare Internet Conference . Since the vast majority of the sessions were proposed by those in the industry, it’s really a reflection of what’s happening with the Web strategies for hospitals and health systems.
There’s something that happens anytime a group of hospital and healthcare webmasters get together. You can almost see it in everybody’s eyes: “I’m not the only one going through this. I’m not alone!”
You know what they say about laws and sausages (you don’t want to watch either being made)? The same is kind of true of watching the educational program for the Healthcare Internet Conference being put together. Dozens of proposals, all on seemingly different levels, and the program committee tries to pick the plums to create a coherent and strong program. It’s not easy.
But it’s most definitely enlightening. We see real trends in the submittals each year. This year, for example, it’s become clear that social media is no longer such a great mystery for our industry. In fact, we probably have more proposals to talk about something related to social media than all of the past years combined.
As another testament to the progress our industry has made, the number of proposals on the basics of site redesign, usability, mobile (smartphone) strategies, SEO, SEM, etc., seem to be lighter this year. A few have been bold enough to offer a case study on showing ROI or actual results, and we’d love more of those. More proposals on intranets would be great to see, too.
Actually, if you have not submitted a speaker proposal, we’d love to get one that shares what you have accomplished (if you have a great social media story, don’t let me scare you off). That’s why we’ve extended the deadline for proposals to Wednesday, June 3, 2009.
Share your expertise and get a free conference registration to boot! Click here to download the speaker proposal form
If you’ve ever seen me speak, you can tell I kind of enjoy it. Actually, talking is one of my favorite things. And when I know a little bit about what I’m talking about, it’s even more fun. :’)
You may have been among the 170 or so from across healthcare who responded to our recent survey on how the economy is affecting healthcare. We’d heard a number of anecdotal stories – good and bad – on the impact in our industry, so we thought we’d get a quick snapshot to see what’s really going on.
Those outside of healthcare often refer to it as the “recession-proof” industry. If they only knew. Everybody we talk to is looking at lower revenues, in some cases significantly lower.
The concept of transparency is not a new one for healthcare. Over the last decade, we have all witnessed healthcare organizations embracing new technologies that create new levels of openness between providers, payors, and patients. Evidence continues to show that more information empowers consumers to make better choices about their healthcare, and results in lower costs. Even the federal government has gotten in on the act: this summer, they spent nearly $2 million on newspaper ads around the country that disclose hospital satisfaction rates. While there is still much work to be done, the future of healthcare transparency looks bright. Simply Google “healthcare transparency” to see countless examples of how technology companies and healthcare organizations are coming together to knock down traditional barriers to the flow of information.
The 12th annual Healthcare Internet Conference is now history, and my first time on the “other side of the table” was a blast. I didn’t realize it was possible to be more exhausted and overwhelmed by everything I learned.
Not that you needed another reason to head to Orlando in November, but if you are coming to the 12th Annual Healthcare Internet Conference and you are a Greystone.Net or StayWell client, you are invited to a “pre-conference” on Monday, Nov. 10. The timing is perfect, since we wrap up just in time for the first general session of the Healthcare Internet Conference.
Here are 10 Reasons Why You Should Skip the 12th Annual Healthcare Internet Conference in Orlando in November: Read more…