Returning to Cerner

Returning to Cerner

In a little less than a week, I will return to Kansas City to attend the Cerner Health Conference 2013.  It has been a year since my last visit when Cerner hosted the Partnership with Patients conference.  People in the wider world of patient advocacy are still talking about that amazing event.  For one weekend last September, Cerner’s educational building became a social media hub and epatient epicenter.  We even trended on twitter in Kansas City.  It was the kind of event that stirred hearts and minds.   

This year I will do something very different at Cerner.

I will not paint.

I will not speak.

I will not moderate sessions of a patient conference.

Instead, I will blog and live tweet.  I, who have so long endorsed social media as a powerful voice in and of itself, will stick my courage to the testing place and prove that the online voice is just as powerful as any orator.  Cerner is paying me as a keynote speaker, but my stage will be the internet.

I look forward to seeing old friends and hearing new thoughts.  I look forward to returning to the company that gave me my first speech with listening ears and a questioning mind.  I shall tweet to @Cerner and with the hashtag #CHC13 and spread the word about innovation and new products in Kansas City.  I will report debate.  I will bring with me the questions that I hear at so many conferences regarding EMR systems.  I will listen eagerly for answers, for I have never regretted attending a Cerner event.  I cherish the knowledge I have gained while listening to those so willing to teach me when I was just known as Regina, the widow of Fred Holliday.  Now I may be known as Regina the founder of the Walking Gallery, but I will listen to the wisdom of the staff at Cerner.  Cerner invites patients to sit at their table.  I can think of few venders who can claim the same.

Now, I must admit it will be quite odd for me to sit back and focus just on writing when traditionally I do two or three things at once.  But I think that this event will be an exciting one as things are rapidly changing in electronic health records as the measures of Meaningful Use march forward.

Cerner Health Conference 2013 takes place October 6-9^th and I will be there on the 6^th and 7^th.  Due to a prior commitment I can stay no longer than those days, but I am sure that those hours will be sufficient to report out current Cerner projects.  Happily, I will be able to chirp in with follow-up questions while on the road as @cerner is one of the most responsive corporate twitter accounts within health care.

So dear friends and faithful readers, wish me luck, and follow me on twitter as I explain HIT content and health policy from Kansas City.