CMSA’s Annual Conference & Expo 2011

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SAN ANTONIO 2011 kicked off with the Annual Meeting as the CMSA Board unveiled the association's first printed issue of CMSA Today™, CMSA’s official magazine.

Board members also discussed the CMSA activities, partnerships, and collaborations over the past year.

Past President Peggy Leonard, MS, RN-BC, FNP, serving as the Case Management Foundation’s ambassador to the conference, hosted a rousing auction among the CMSA Chapters for an autographed copy of the inaugural copy of CMSA Today™. In a competitive round of bidding, the Detroit and Greater Grand Rapids/Kalamazoo Chapters joined forces to donate a combined $3,000 - outbidding the Kansas City Chapter’s final bid of $2,500. In the end, the spirit of the moment and generous hearts won out, and the Kansas City Chapter elected to donate its final bid as an additional contribution to the Foundation. Find out how you can join the others who support the Case Management Foundation here.

Later that afternoon, attendees were welcomed to the Conference during the Opening Main Session. CMSA’s President Teri Treiger, RN-BC, MA, CCM, CCP, addressed the current and future priorities of CMSA as they relate to its strategic vision and mission. Reinforcing CMSA’s values, Treiger restated the association's commitment to working with industry partners in an open and collaborative environment.

Attendees were then presented with different perspectives on care management from keynote presenter, Suzanne Mintz, MS, who spoke about the importance of the family caregiver. After that, Catherine Mullahy, RN, BS, CRRN, CCM, discussed the focus on the caring heart.

The day culminated with an exciting Opening Night Event at Knibbe Ranch. More than 1,400 friends and colleagues gathered at this real working Texas cattle ranch for good food, fun times, and great entertainment. While enjoying a meal of delicious Texas BBQ, guests found themselves surrounded by festivities that included line dancing, armadillo races, and a true rodeo.The amazing ranch experience drew to a close and attendees made their way back into the city, awed by the moonlit wonders of the Texas countryside.

Other highlights from the conference included:

• A stimulating presentation by Dr. Bill Crounse, Microsoft’s Senior Director of Worldwide Health, on broadband access to the web, on-line medical records, mobile applications, connected devices, and tele-presence in the home. He discussed how such innovative technologies are laying the foundation for a new kind of health delivery system - one that places consumers at the center with far greater control than they typically have today.

• CMSA’s 2011 Award Ceremony recognized the passion and commitment of CMSA members, local chapters, and innovative organizations.

- The Chapter Excellence and Innovation Awards (CEIA) honored local CMSA Chapters that thrive amidst increased competition for membership, educational opportunities, and recognition in the communities. CMSA was pleased to recognize the achievements of the nominated chapters - all of which serve as the grassroots of the Society’s success.

- CMSA launched its Practice Improvement & Research Awards, recognizing Capitol BlueCross and Johns Hopkins HealthCare for their use of findings from a research or quality/performance improvement (QI/PI) project for the advancement of case management practice and/or improved client outcomes. 

- Carol Gleason, MM, RN, CRRN, CCM, LRC, BCPC, was honored to be selected for this year’s Award of Service Excellence. Having demonstrated her commitment and passion to case management, Gleason embodies the innovation, creativity and collaborative resourcefulness of an "in-the-trenches," grassroots case manager whose day-to-day management practice has transformed the field of case management and serves as an inspiration for others.

- This year’s Case Manager of the Year, Margo MacRobert, RN, MS, CCM, NEA-BC, was recognized by CMSA for her dedication, leadership, and notable contribution to the future of case management locally, nationally, and internationally.

• CMSA's Case Load Capacity Calculator was launched on Thursday in an open meeting to health care professionals across the continuum of care, demonstrating the features and functionality of CMSA’s newly developed cloud-enabled software that gives individual case managers the ability to determine their unique case load capacity.

• Members of the Education Committee, along with CMSA’s 2011-2012 President, Mary Beth Newman, MSN, RN-BC, A-CCC, CMAC, CCP, MEP, CCM, demonstrated the recently launched Case Manager Toolbox, located at www.cmsa.org/toolbox, which features links to a collection of over 100 case management resources, including white papers and websites that care management professionals will find useful in their practice.