Seeing Green
With the traditional red ribbon cutting, the AHIMA exhibit hall is open and the convention is in full swing. As a first time attendee, I found it difficult to imagine the expansive displays of software and services, and I can't wait to mill about the booths during the dedicated exhibit hours. Word on the street is that games and giveaways abound, so I'll be taking stock of who's got the goods that attendees just can't pass up.
This morning's general sessions officially kicked off the convention, with warm welcomes from Seattle mayor Greg Nickels, WSHIMA President Carol Quinsey, RHIA, CHPS, and 2008 AHIMA President Wendy Mangin, MS, RHIA. Mangin lauded the year's many accomplishments, including passage of the Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act and the movement to implement ICD-10. Despite AHIMA "shining year," however, Mangin said it's only the beginning. "There's still so much left to do in the year to come," she asserted.
As excited as I am to report back to the ADVANCE office in Pennsylvania, my return flight will be a 6-hour guilt trip thanks to a jarring presentation by artist/environmentalist Chris Jordan, who said air travel is one of the most "environmentally destructive" behaviors that humans wreak upon the earth. Battling consumerist ignorance, Jordan digitally constructs scaled images of mass consumption--and, boy, are his pictures worth some words. He started with taking photos of trash, but now produces eye-opening art; he turned a stacks of 1.14 million paper grocery bags--the amount dispensed by stores in a single hour--into a virtual forest, while a sea of 2 million plastic bottles only covered what consumers toss in 5 minutes.
Throughout the presentation, Jordan emphasized: "Once we become aware, then we have a choice we didn't have before." Well, now that thousands of attendees are aware, AHIMA's making it easy for us to get a little greener. Flash drives preloaded with convention papers are a huge hit with attendees, while abundant recycling bins are keeping bottles and cans out of the trash. Heck, I'm pretty sure the plates at last night's Welcome Reception were made of recycled material.
During a break, I caught up with attendees Diane Larson, MA, RHIA, CHPS, from Duluth, MN, and Pam Dodd, RHIA, from Leeds, AL. They said they were looking forward to learning about hot topics and staying up-to-date on upcoming regulations. I'll be seeing them again this afternoon when I sit in on the regulation-legislation track--today's topic: emerging issues. With RAC audits and ICD-10 on the horizon, I'm sure there will be much to discuss!