Over 5,500 people attended the IHI’s Annual Forum in Orlando last week, representing over 40 countries from around the world. At least 15,000 connected to the forum virtually by watching online videos of the forum sessions.
Don Berwick, the President and CEO of the IHI (pictured here), gave another stirring keynote presentation. He stressed that health in and of itself is valueless; rather, it is what we can do with our health that makes it worthwhile. And sometimes, less is more. He cited his own knee as an example. He suffers from a degenerative knee disease, and knows that at some point, he will need a complete knee replacement. This operation was about to take place for him, but the day before his surgery, another doctor suggested steroid injections. With that done, his condition improved immensely and he is still able to participate in his favourite sport: skate-skiing. If he’d had the knee replacement, he’d have to give up his sport. And it would have cost more.
There were many other sessions on an extensive range of topics such as hospital performance, pandemic planning, patient safety, and roles that various health providers can/should play. There was also an exhibit hall with 200-300 exhibitors; this was a great place to connect with potential employers, find out what future qualifications may be required for dream jobs, and find out what is happening at hospitals around the world.
I also had the pleasure to represent our U of T chapter at the IHI’s Chapter Congress – a meeting of chapter leaders from around the world (currently IHI chapters are operating in 178 campuses worldwide). We discussed issues around chapter growth, education, and activities, and I’m pleased to report that I returned to Toronto feeling energized and full of ideas for the upcoming semester. Stay tuned for upcoming events in the winter semester!
To access presentation materials from the IHI Annual Forum click here : http://www.softconference.com/ihi/slist.asp?C=2557
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