AAMI has turned to a rising healthcare technology management leader to serve as its first vice president of HTM, a move that underscores the association’s commitment to the professionals in that field.
Danielle McGeary, who most recently served as the district manager for Aramark’s northeastern region, joined AAMI on April 23. Her priorities include bolstering the number of qualified HTM professionals and strengthening – and elevating – the field in general.
“I am absolutely ecstatic, humbled, and honored to be selected for this role,” McGeary, 32, said. “Increasing the pipeline of HTM professionals is a problem that I’ve tried to fix in my individual positions, so when I saw that this role had a major focus on solving that issue at a national level, I couldn’t think of more compelling and rewarding work that I could be doing.”
AAMI President and CEO Robert Jensen offered high praise for McGeary, saying she was the ideal candidate to attract a new generation of professionals to the field and to the association.
“Our decision was tough. We had a lot of incredibly talented candidates from a field of more than 250 applicants,” Jensen said. “Through her résumé and a series of interviews, Danielle stood out for her intelligence and creativity. She will also bring a lot of enthusiasm to efforts to attract younger HTM professionals to join AAMI.”
As she starts to settle into her new role, McGeary said her top priority is getting to know AAMI’s members, volunteers and staff.
“My ability to succeed in this position depends on my ability to network with the field and the people within AAMI,” she said. “During my first few months, I plan to talk with subject matter experts from across the country, get to know everyone on AAMI’s Technology Management Council, and really build my network so I can understand their concerns, hear their ideas and formulate a plan from there.”
McGeary began working at Aramark in January 2017. Prior to that, she was the director of clinical engineering and acting health systems specialist for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Boston Healthcare System and VA Bedford Medical Center.
McGeary holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Connecticut. In addition, she has authored articles that have appeared in AAMI’s journal BI&T and the Journal of Clinical Engineering, and has served as president, vice president and webmaster for the New England Society of Clinical Engineering.
McGeary says she is eager to use the skills and experience she’s acquired working in hospitals to tackle the challenges that lay ahead.
“I’m looking forward to being a voice and an advocate for the people supporting healthcare technology on the frontlines and the great work that they do every day,” she said. “I want to make them proud.”
AAMI, CHIME Launch Leadership Academy for HTM Professionals
To help cultivate leaders within healthcare technology management (HTM), AAMI and the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) launched its first HTM Leadership Academy this month at the AAMI 2018 Conference & Expo in Long Beach, California. The academy was specifically developed to address HTM professionals’ day-to-day challenges – and position them to take a seat at their respective organization’s “big” table.
“Becoming a leader is one way an HTM professional can advance his or her career. On a larger level, having well-trained leaders helps the HTM department become a more valued member of the health care delivery team and have a seat at the table when decisions are made,” said Emilee Hughes, director of curriculum development at AAMI. “This training provided an understanding of how to collaborate effectively with other organization leaders and how to develop excellent communication, interpersonal and other skills.”
During the program, which was held June 4, experienced and future HTM leaders explored how they could become fully integrated members of the health care delivery team and have significant influence in the management of all types of healthcare technology. In addition, participants created an individualized action plan to define the specific steps and relationships needed to achieve personal and organizational growth and success.
“HTM leaders need the skills and knowledge to be ‘at the table’ with other health care leaders. This type of course provides both,” said Sue Schade, a member of the AAMI Board of Directors and a principal at StarBridge Advisors who helped developed the program with CHIME. “Leadership development programs that are targeted to a specific industry and role are most valuable since they represent the world you work in with cases you can relate to.”
