With a revamped program and a fresh accent on innovation, AAMI is kicking off its biggest conference ever for professionals working in healthcare technology this June in Cleveland, Ohio.
The AAMI Exchange, as the annual conference and expo is now called, will unfold over four days, June 7-10. It will include more than 80 education sessions, with tracks on healthcare technology management (HTM), cybersecurity, sterilization, regulations and accreditation, artificial intelligence and virtual reality, clinical engineering, data analytics and global trends.
“We’ve reimagined our conference as the Exchange because this event is all about the exchange of solutions and ideas among colleagues in health technology,” said Robert Jensen, president and CEO of AAMI. “We’re creating a dynamic and innovative space in which these professionals can come together to learn from – and challenge – one another, helping their own careers and helping to shape the future of the field.”
Several new features will make their debut at the Exchange, such as the “Xcelerator,” which will include a pitch competition for innovative ideas related to automated support of clinical decisions, whether in the areas of artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, deep-machine learning or automated learning. The competition is being organized in conjunction with BioEnterprise at the Global Center for Health Innovation in Cleveland.
There also will be an Internet of Things (IoT) theater on the Expo floor, where one focus will be an exploration of how to strike the right balance between opportunity and security when it comes to connected medical devices. Stryker and Symantec corporations will be among the organizations presenting at the IoT.
A new Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality (VR/AR) Theater, developed in partnership with GE Healthcare, will showcase the use of these technologies in the health care field, such as its for training HTM professionals.
“We’re inviting people to try on a pair of googles and see what the future holds,” said Sherrie Schulte, senior director of certification and meetings. “Throughout this conference, we want attendees to have an immersive and interactive experience that provides them with insights that enrich and empower them on the job today – and also prepares and inspires them for what’s coming in health technology.”
The selection of Cleveland as the host city for the first AAMI Exchange was deliberate. Serving as home to a high concentration of hospitals and medical research centers, along with hundreds of biomedical companies, the region has health technology innovation in its DNA. That dynamic will help to shape the AAMI Exchange experience.
For example, one of the keynote or Main Stage presentations will come in the form of a conversation, or fireside chat, between Toby Cosgrove, MD, executive advisor and former CEO and president of the Cleveland Clinic, and Jensen, AAMI’s leader.
Cosgrove, who is also the executive advisor for Google Cloud’s Healthcare & Life Sciences, Healthcare, will talk with Jensen about emerging opportunities, as well as challenges and trends in health technology.
The other two Main Stage speakers will be Nicholas Webb, a best-selling author, holder of more than 45 patents, and CEO at Lassen Scientific Inc., and Herman McKenzie, acting director of engineering for The Joint Commission.
Webb will talk about how health care organizations can succeed with innovation. McKenzie will provide a crucial update on practices and policies from this leading accrediting body, and he will take questions from the audience.
Other elements of the Exchange include:
- A workshop on how HTM professionals can use alternative equipment maintenance (AEM) programs for efficiency and quality improvement strategies. The workshop will be led by Frank Painter, professor of the clinical engineering graduate program at the University of Connecticut, and Matt Baretich, president and CEO of Baretich Engineering. Baretich is the author of the “AEM Program Guide: Alternative PM for Patient Safety.”
- An Expo Hall that will feature more than 160 leading medical device companies and service providers, showcasing cutting-edge technologies and emerging products.
One defining feature of the Exchange experience will be networking opportunities in the form of lunches, celebrations and receptions, including one at Cleveland’s celebrated Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Past attendees have commented that some of their most valuable lessons and insights came in the form of conversations they enjoyed with peers from around the world.
For attendees who enjoy being on the move, the Exchange will feature the second annual AAMI Foundation Fun Run & Walk, a fundraiser which will help to provide scholarships for students preparing for careers in health technology. The two-mile run and walk will take place around the Huntington Convention Center.
“I’m confident that attendees will be leaving the AAMI Exchange with new energy, new inspiration, new insights, new solutions – and smiles on their faces,” said Schulte. “And, we very much want to hear from attendees on how we can keep improving the Exchange experience.”
For more information about the Exchange, visit www.aami.org/AAMIExchange.