More than two dozen individuals and groups were honored for their exceptional leadership and commitment to healthcare technology and patient safety during the AAMI 2017 Conference & Expo in Austin, Texas last month.
Each year, AAMI recognizes leaders and innovators whose efforts have moved the industry forward, healthcare technology students who have demonstrated academic excellence, and experts who have written outstanding articles and papers for the association’s peer-reviewed journal, BI&T.
The 2017 AAMI Award winners:
The AAMI Foundation’s Laufman-Greatbatch Award: the late Victoria Hitchins (4), research microbiologist for the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health
The AAMI Foundation & ACCE’s Robert L. Morris Humanitarian Award: Adriana Velazquez Berumen (7), senior advisor on medical devices for the Policy, Access, and Use Unit of the World Health Organization
The AAMI Foundation & Institute for Technology in Health Care’s Clinical Solution Award: Regenstrief National Center for Medical Device Informatics (REMEDI) Infusion Pump Collaborative Project Team (3)
AAMI & Becton Dickinson’s Patient Safety Award: Michael R. Cohen (2), president of the Institute for Safe Medication Practices
AAMI’s HTM Leadership Award: Matthew F. Baretich (5), president of Baretich Engineering
AAMI & GE Healthcare’s BMET of the Year Award: Scott Hall (6), supervisory biomedical equipment support specialist (retired) for U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Lexington VA Medical Center in Kentucky
AAMI’s Young Professional Award: Priyanka Upendra (9), clinical engineering compliance manager for Intermountain Healthcare in Midvale, UT
The Spirit of AAMI Award: Vickie Snyder (8), a consultant for the Veterans Health Administration SOARD project
AAMI’s HTM Association of the Year: Indiana Biomedical Society (1)
The AAMI Foundation scholarship winners, each of whom was awarded $3,000, were:
David Dunham, who is studying technology and management at the Oregon Institute of Technology in Klamath Falls, OR
Nehal Kapadia, who is earning a master’s degree in clinical engineering from the University of Connecticut
Andrea McAuliffe, who is enrolled in a dual degree program at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor that combines a master’s of health services administration and a master’s of industrial and operations engineering
Rostislav Tesler, who is pursuing an associate’s degree in biomedical engineering technology at Penn State New Kensington
Brendan Welch, who is studying technology management and development at St. Petersburg College in Florida
The BI&T award winners were:
Best Article: Shawn Jackman, co-chair of AAMI’s Wireless Strategy Task Force and founder and CEO of Clinical Mobility, Inc., for “Dispelling Wireless Technology Myths and Developing a Roadmap for Success” in the fall 2016 issue of Horizons
Best Commentary: “Reliability-Centered Maintenance: A Tool for Optimizing Medical Device Maintenance” in the November/December 2016 issue of BI&T; written by longtime HTM leader Malcolm Ridgway in collaboration with two other members of AAMI’s Reliability-Centered Maintenance Committee: Matthew Clark and Cheryl Bettinardi, both clinical engineers at Advocate Health in Downers Grove, IL
Best Research Paper: “Use of Monitor Watchers in Hospitals: Characteristics, Training, and Practices” in the November/December 2016 issue of BI&T; written by Marjorie Funk, a professor at the Yale University School of Nursing; Halley Ruppel, a PhD student at the Yale University School of Nursing; Nancy Blake, director of critical care services at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles; and JoAnne Phillips, manager of quality and patient safety for Penn Homecare and Hospice Services
AAMI Journal Recognized for Editorial Excellence
AAMI’s peer-reviewed journal BI&T has won two awards in a national competition recognizing “editorial excellence and achievement in the field of healthcare publishing.” These awards are sponsored by the American Society of Healthcare Publication Editors (ASHPE).
The cover story for the July/August 2016 issue of BI&T, “Choosing Wisely: Trends and Strategies for Capital Planning and Procurement,” received ASHPE’s silver award for Best News/Analysis Article. ASHPE also honored BI&T’s new “Cyberinsights” column, written by cybersecurity expert Axel Wirth, a distinguished technical architect at Symantec, with a bronze award for Best New Department.
AAMI publications have a rich history of recognition and honors, garnering 11 ASHPE awards in the past three years alone. This year’s honors bring that number to 13.