CHIME’s 2017 Annual Report Serves as Benchmark for Members

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4.12.2018
By Cletis Earle, Chair, CHIME Board; CIO – Kaleida Health

 

Earlier this month, CHIME published a 2017 Annual Report. This is the first annual report for CHIME in recent memory, and perhaps the first ever. The 2017 Annual Report is available online here. It can be downloaded, too, if you want to save a copy.

Preparing for the report’s Letter from the Chair made me think about the history of CHIME, where we started and where we have gone in a little over 25 years. CHIME was founded by 192 members who saw the need for an organization to support CIOs through education, collaboration and networking. Now our membership is north of 2,600 with CIOs and senior healthcare executives from around the globe. Our industry has changed drastically since 1992, as have our roles and responsibilities within healthcare organizations. What previously may have been a focus on technical knowledge and skill has expanded to include an ability to lead strategically in a complex, dynamic and diverse healthcare environment.

With the proliferation of EHRs has come the potential benefits of interconnectedness, allowing providers to share patients’ information digitally in real time – or nearly real time – within and across health systems. We know that much of that promise has yet to be realized, though. That is where our broad understanding of not just the technical barriers but also the institutional, regulatory and safety hurdles can help. Understanding alone won’t make this great promise a reality, either. As leaders in our health organizations, we apply our expertise and knowledge to educate and guide C-suite colleagues through these seemingly formidable but critical changes. And we do this together, sharing our experiences and successes through CHIME to collectively improve healthcare and health in our communities.

CHIME’s greatest success is the leadership shown by our members. If you have read the 2017 Annual Report, you know much of what is stated above appears in my Letter from the Chair and in other sections of the report. In part, the 2017 Annual Report celebrates you and how you have inspired CHIME and the Board of Trustees to stretch higher and higher. But it also is a benchmark for you to assess how well we serve you year after year.

The report allows us to track our progress and ensure the upward trajectory CHIME achieved in its first 25 years continues well into its second. Looking at where CHIME stands today, I am proud of what we have accomplished as an organization. I also am proud that we stayed true to our roots. We are still an organization that supports CIOs and senior healthcare IT executives through education, collaboration, networking – and now also through advocacy activities.

In today’s rapidly changing healthcare world, we must be nimble, adaptable, forward-looking and strategic to be exceptional leaders transforming healthcare. You will find that CHIME is stronger than it has ever been. I am confident we will meet any challenge that comes our way and not only succeed but excel.

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