Thank you for joining us at the 49th Annual Conference and Exposition in our nation’s capital of Washington, D.C. Attendance at this year's conference was incredible, and we appreciate your support and membership. We hope your conference experience was enriching and that you enjoyed four jam-packed days of education, networking, and fun.

 

Attendees left today with big smiles after a hilarious and entertaining closing session featuring the very talented Capitol Steps. We thank Valic for sponsoring the event. The entire audience was in stitches during the political satire show, poking fun at the latest world events, leaders, and the historic government shutdown that happened on Oct. 1. From Nancy Pelosi and John Boehner, to President Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin, and everything in between, the show was daring, funny, and left quite the impression on attendees. 

Do you have what it takes to be a transformational leader who brings out the best in others, setting the pace, and making things happen that wouldn't have happened otherwise? Your winning formula got you here, but will it be enough to successfully inspire and lead you during changing times?

 

In this impactful session, learners were given the tools to manage change and succeed through failure, how to be relevant in times of change, how to engender the trust and commitment of decision makers in their organizations, and how to empower themselves with political savvy, trust, and commitment to get through the challenges that lie ahead.

Change now has a lot to do with technology and communication. It’s  both generational and cultural. There are many 21st century culture shifts that are constantly affecting our workforce including:

HR professionals have to acknowledge that change is an opportunity for their organizations to be better and reflect the communities and patients they serve; it’s diverse and can eliminate disparities. In the health care setting, African Americans and Latinos are:

• Two times as likely to use emergency rooms 
• Less likely to have a primary care physician 
• Less likely to receive routine care 
• Less likely to fill prescriptions, citing cost as the reason 53 percent of Hispanics report relying on home remedies compared to 32 percent of Whites
• Under-diagnosed when it comes to obesity.

We have to understand that diversity is the mix, and inclusion is making the mix work. As HR professionals, we create the future for our organizations. We are the alchemists of possibility and the source of all things extraordinary!

 

Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council Foundation 

Irving, Texas

 

My path to HR was not typical. While I’m not in the clinical aspect of care, I wanted to be able to impact others. The work I was doing made a difference, but not exactly in the way that I it wanted to. I moved into the DFWHC Foundation, which basically brings many hospitals together; so in that capacity, I was able then to impact what’s going on in hospitals. As an analyst, I take workforce data for about 70-75 percent of the entire Dallas-Fort Worth area and compile it to push out benchmarks to the hospital systems so they know where they stand. What we’re doing is really innovative and new to health care. 

 

The foundation allows me to touch many different organizations in my community, so I see and hear a lot of what’s going on in these different hospital systems. 

 

The biggest challenge in our area is scarcity—not only in our area, but across the U.S. Inexperienced nurses are finding it harder to find work because hospitals want to hire those with experience, and on the other hand, many who have been in the workforce for 20-30 years want to retire. Not only are we going to lose physically having them in the hospital, but we’re also losing their intellectual property and all the experience they’ve gained over the years. 

 

Before our nurses want to retire, we need to use them in a different way to demonstrate their value before they leave the workforce by mentoring new nurses. Then at that point, we can’t argue that we have a deficit because of not having experienced nurses, because we’re allowing those moving out of the workforce to mentor those with less experience and show that we value both our new and experienced nurses on both ends—by bridging the gap and sharing knowledge. 

 

This is my very first ASHHRA conference, and I’ve been very impressed from the start. This conference has been so impactful because of the consistent messaging of knowing and acknowledging what we can give back to others. I lift my hat to the HR folks who are faced with the issues every single day. They’re the fix-it for everything and have to be able to balance it all. The knowledge we’ve gained at this year’s conference is something that can be used and applied every day to those who walk through our doors and count on us. 

During Tuesday’s closing session, ASHHRA honored its 2013 Award Winners for their outstanding contributions, dedication, and leadership: