On October 4, 2017, representatives from Make HTM Great Again, the South Carolina non-for-profit HTM association, had a conference call with task force members of the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) Board of Directors and paid leadership. The purpose of the call was to form a relationship and explore options for collaboration and partnership between the HTM profession and ASHE.
Make HTM Great Again Founder Pat Lynch and Leah Lough, consultant and former executive vice president at AAMI, were joined by Russ Harbaugh (2017 ASHE president), Bradley Taylor (2018 ASHE president), Dean Pufahl (2019 ASHE president), P.J. Andrus (ASHE executive director), Tim Adams (ASHE director of leadership development) and Keith Deline (ASHE Board member).
“Our one-hour discussion covered many topics but was cut short by time restraints,” Lynch says. “There seemed to be a genuine attitude and desire to discuss how HTM and ASHE can move toward a much closer relationship. What that relationship will look like remains unclear.”
Task force members shared some interesting and notable facts about ASHE’s membership. Currently, 3.5 percent of its members are responsible for, or have oversight of, the HTM function in their facilities. Approximately 400 ASHE members hold HTM-related job titles. Four of the ASHE board members identify their responsibilities as HTM related.
Lynch told task force members that Make HTM Great Again desires collaboration in the following areas:
- A national organization to link and coordinate the efforts of all its local and regional societies.
- Advocating important positions and issues to the public, the FDA, state, federal and local governments, and manufacturers.
- Addressing and solving the major problems threatening health care, hospitals, patients, and the HTM profession as a whole.
- Recognizing the value of HTM in the workplace and the general public.
- Streamlining communication to consumers, members, and other health care delivery stakeholders.
Lynch also voiced his desire to monitor state legislatures for pending bills that would limit, restrict or modify the rights of hospitals to select service options. Task force members explained that they already monitor state legislative activity via chapters and coordinate actions through their national advocacy liaison. Further, the liaison holds a quarterly conference call and publishes a newsletter.
ASHE task force members were receptive to these areas of collaboration and would welcome an exchange of new ideas, input and ways to address issues that affect the future of HTM and facility managers.
The ASHE task force plans to discuss the alignment and feasibility of welcoming HTM into ASHE in the future. Another call between the two groups is in the works.