Midyear is upon us and healthcare remains front and center in the national spotlight. There have been Cabinet level leadership changes emerging in our Nation’s Capital that undoubtedly will result in further policy reforms and resultant impact across all facets of the healthcare industry. Keeping your finger on the pulse of these and other changes is an essential part of executive leadership.

In an effort to help you to stay informed, we are fortunate to have ACHE Immediate Past Chairman, Diana L. Smalley, FACHE, joining us in August for the Annual Chapter breakfast. In September, ACHE is holding a 2-day cluster event in Hawaii which will help to support the continuing education requirements of our members. Many members were affected by sequestration and unable to travel to the Congress on Healthcare Leadership in March. By holding a cluster in Hawaii, it eases that burden. Information about the cluster was mailed to members and can also be found on the ache.org website.

Midyear serves as a great checkpoint to assess progress in your annual professional and personal goals. As you reflect on the past 6 months and look ahead to the remaining half of the year, I encourage you to consider a few ACHE opportunities that will contribute positively to both professional and personal growth. They include:

Advancing your knowledge and contributions to the discussion on diversity by applying for the Thomas C. Dolan Executive Diversity Program. The deadline to apply is Tuesday, July 1. More details and information can be found at ache.org/ExecutiveDiversity. During this year-long program scholars will benefit from specialized curriculum opportunities addressing barriers in career attainment and developing executive presence, one-on-one interaction with a specially selected mentor and participation in formal leadership education and career assessments. Enhanced self-awareness, critical leadership skills and an expanded network of leaders will help prepare scholars to ascend to C-suite roles in hospitals, health systems and other healthcare organizations.

Serving as Regent. The 2014-2015 Regent election process is under way and elections will be held in September and October across 20 Regent jurisdictions. The notice and position descriptions for geographic regions can be found in the Member Center on ache.org. You can also view declared candidates for all jurisdictions. All Fellows who wish to run for election must submit a letter of intent to elections@ache.org by Aug. 29, 2014. The beginning of the term coincides with the start of ACHE Congress 2015 (in March).
 

Paying it Forward. Give thought to…

In closing, thank you to the leaders and organizations that support the Hawaii-Pacific membership through sponsorship. The Chapter leadership works in earnest to bring value to its members and to be good stewards of your contributions. Continuing the partnership at this critical juncture of healthcare reform insures that healthcare executives in Hawaii and Guam have access to forums for increasing knowledge, the opportunity to expand their professional network, and the ability to stay dialed in to this ever changing environment of healthcare.

Have a wonderful, and productive, summer!