As valuable as it is to hear from policymakers and government leaders, no one is better suited to speak on the importance of advocacy than those who who serve – or have served in – healthcare IT leadership roles. They know more than anyone how regulations impact providers’ ability to care for patients, and what can be done to ease the burden. To that end, we reached out leaders who have dedicated years to policy work, and asked what it has meant to them.
“Advocacy provides the means for those of us who work ‘in the trenches’ to have an input into the rules and regulations by which we have to live. It is extremely important to me, as a representative of rural community healthcare, to let regulators know how their decisions impact providers. The imposition of regulations increase cost for providers that, in many cases, are barely able to break even. Additionally, involvement in CHIME Advocacy has allowed me to understand regulations and the reasons for implementing those regulations.”
–Randy McCleese, Health IT Consultant (Former CIO, Methodist Hospital and St. Clair Regional Medical Center) and recipient of the CHIME-HIMSS CIO of the Year in 2018, and CHIME Federal Public Policy Award for CIO Leadership
“Henry Ford said it best, ‘if everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.’ Advocacy on public policy issues critical to healthcare must be hard coded into the DNA of every IT leader. It’s up to all of us to work collaboratively with our policy leaders and educate on the difficult issues affecting our communities.”
-Aaron Miri, CIO, Dell Medical School & UT Austin, Appointee of to the federal Health IT Advisory Committee and Former Chair, HIMSS National Public Policy Committee
“Our legislators and regulators alike are routinely required to rule on issues greatly impacting the way we deliver healthcare, often with only a cursory knowledge of and little experience in the challenges we face. It is our responsibility to educate our friends in DC and inform the decisions they are making.”
-Bill Spooner, Retired CIO, Sharp HealthCare, Recipient of the CHIME Legacy Award (2018) and CIO of the Year Award (2009), member of the CHIME Opioid Task Force, and longtime advocate
“It’s better to try and control your destiny than to have to react to it. What we found many years ago is that the government is actually hungry to hear the boots-on-the-ground experience and reaction to their policies. They’re very interested in hearing how this is really going.
I think it’s imperative that there are people who are deeply involved in this who can help other CIOs and others in healthcare leadership understand what the implications are of these regulations to their plans and operations.”
-Pamela McNutt, CIO, Methodist Health System, CHIME Fellow, Recipient of the CHIME-HIMSS CIO of the Year in 2002, and member of the CHIME Policy Steering Committee
“CHIME’s advocacy program is important because it allows us to connect directly with our elected officials and ensure they understand the challenges and opportunities of technology in healthcare. Hearing directly from their constituents who help provide care to patients gives them insight to the impact of federal regulatory policy.”
-Daniel Barchi, CIO, NewYork-Presbyterian
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