AHDI Website Technical Difficulties

AHDI recently transitioned to a new association management system (AMS) – Personify, and launched our newly integrated website. As with all major platform transitions, we have experienced many expected and unexpected errors/incompatibilities that we are working hard to correct. Many of you have already contacted us to alert us to errors and pages that cannot be accessed. We greatly appreciate this feedback as it serves to assist us in reaching a more efficient process sooner. Please be advised of the following problems we are currently working to resolve:

• Delivery of membership packets for new and renewing members is delayed. – Please be patient; your packet my take longer to reach you over the next couple of weeks as these will be processed in batches in the order they were received.
• Membership cards are currently not available. – Please wait until this area of the website is restored to access and print your card.
• CMT certificates cannot be downloaded at this time. – New CMTs will receive their certificates by mail. CMTs whose employers need verification of credentialing should contact the AHDI office.
• Professional Practices Network (PPN) is currently offline and not available. – Send professional practice questions to kwall@ahdionline.org.
• The discount link to Stedman’s products in the Member’s Only area is currently not available.
• None of the online directories – members, components, etc. – are currently available. Contact the AHDI office to verify membership or locate a component.

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we work through these technical issues with the goal of delivering you the most dynamic member experience we can. We will keep you informed as we make corrections and updates to the website. In the meantime, please contact our Member Services Department at 1-800-982-2182 or by email at ahdi@ahdionline.org if you have any questions or concerns.

AHDI Student Alliance- New MEMBERS ONLY Facebook Group!

The Student Alliance has recently lost their website (ahdisa.org) but is ready to start anew with a Member's Only Facebook group! As a member of AHDI you can join this group FREE of charge to access the same great benefits you had on the SA site- the Topic of the Week email, newsletter, and vital links to valuable MT resources! This page can also be used as a forum where you can interact with like-minded people to maximize your networking potential!

Join the AHDI Student Alliance Members Only Facebook Group today!

AHDI Announces 2009 Integrity Awards Nominees

Congratulations to the following award nominees who exemplify AHDI's goals for high-integrity impact on the healthcare documentation industry:

ADVOCATE OF THE YEAR
Laura Bryan, CMT, AHDI-F
Kathy Muelker, CMT
Lynette Shipp, CMT, AHDI-F

EMPLOYER OF THE YEAR
Amphion Medical Solutions
Transcription Relief Services (TRS)

EXCELLENCE IN CREDENTIALING
Carol Clark, CMT
Tammy Moore, CMT, AHDI-F

INNOVATION THROUGH TECHNOLOGY
Laura Bryan, CMT, AHDI-F
Scott Faulkner

MEMBER OF THE YEAR
Dianna Hall, CMT, AHDI-F
Pati Howard, CMT, AHDI-F
Kathy Muelker, CMT
Jeanne Nienhuis

MEMBERSHIP IMPACT
Capital Chapter
Pennsylvania Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity
Wisconsin/Minnesota Association for Healthcare Documentation Integrity

RISING STAR
Kim Boyce
Judi Freeman
Kristy Gower
Allison Jaeger
Susan Keane-Ruth

Winners will be announced live at the Integrity Awards Red Carpet Event at ACE 2009 in Nashville, Tennessee (August 2, 2009).

Meet the Candidates Webinars

AHDI will be hosting two candidate webinars in the month of July. Registration is free for members to attend the debates. View the 2009 Candidate web page.

First Webinar
Was held 7/13/2009 (Monday)

Second Webinar
Date: 7/21/2009 (Tuesday)
Time: 4:00 p.m. PDT/7:00 P.M. EDT
Topics: (1) Membership Recruiting/Retention, (2) Governance/Components, (3) Platform issues, and (4) Personal Contributions
Reserve Your Seat Now

AHDI Transitions to Personify!

If you have visited the AHDI website over the last few days, you’ve probably our transition to Personify, our new association management system, including changes in layout and functionality. You may also have encountered access errors and technical glitches. We apologize for the inconvenience as we work to address these issues and ensure the most dynamic online user experience for our members and guests. Please feel free to contact us if you encounter difficulties that prevent you from registering or interacting appropriately with our website (ahdi@ahdionline.org)

Mentors Needed for ACE First Timers

If you’re an ACE veteran willing to mentor a first-time attendee, we could use your expertise and insight. Mentoring involves getting connected to your first-timer prior to the convention, answering any questions about event preparation and logistics, and meeting up with your first-timer on site to help him/her plug in to the convention and to association life. Please email Lea Sims (lsims@ahdionline.org) if you are willing to serve in this capacity for ACE’09 in Nashville.

If you are an ACE first-time attendee and would like to be partnered with a mentor, please contact Lea Sims at the email address above. Mentors will not be assigned on site.

HOD Meeting on July 29 in Nashville

The annual face-to-face meeting of the House of Delegates will be held on Wednesday, July 29, in Nashville. The meeting begins at 8 a.m. and ends at 5 p.m. We have a packed agenda of association business items and educational presentations planned throughout the day.

New to this year’s agenda will be over two hours in the afternoon devoted to reveal some of the excellent work that has been done by a few of our component associations to accomplish our national initiatives. Representatives from these component associations will talk about which of the initiatives they chose, why they picked that one, how they did it, and what they gained from it. There will also be an opportunity for questions, as others can learn from the experiences that are shared.

We firmly believe that participation in national initiatives not only serves the national association in accomplishing important established goals, but that when this commitment involves our grassroots members it can unite the component association membership with a greater focus and purpose.

If you’re in Nashville on July 29, or arriving that day, come and join us at the HOD meeting—where you will see volunteers in action!

ACE 2009 Hotel Group Rate Deadline Extended!

The AHDI group rate of $161 per night has been extended to Wednesday, July 8, 2009! Act now to reserve your room and take advantage of this significantly discounted rate. If you miss out on this special offer, you may be paying up to $264 per night!

Reserve your room through the link below or by phone. If reserving by phone, be sure to reference the code: "N-AAMT" to receive the AHDI group rate. If you are considering sharing a room, take advantage of our room-share program. Jacque Taylor, AHDI-F, has graciously volunteered to match up attendees. You could potentially stay for $80 a night at this four-star resort! Nothing can beat that price. Contact Jacque via email at taylor.jacque@gmail.com to find a roommate.

Reserve Hotel Room Now—Reserve your room to ensure the "AHDI" group rate of $161 (single/double occupancy).

Reserve by phone: Call the hotel toll free at 888-777-6779 and request the "N-AAMT" group rate.

If you are still undecided about attending, have a look at the ACE 2009 Interactive Schedule At-A-Glance to find detailed session overviews and speaker bios.

Career Title Survey

As the results of the recent work title survey confirm, the term "medical transcription" may no longer adequately encompass the true scope, nor demonstrate the relevance of our profession. The skill requirement of the healthcare documentation worker of the 21st Century will continue to evolve with advances in technology. The U.S. Department of Labor has suggested we consider updating the title of our occupation with a term that demonstrates the significance and long-term viability of our profession.

Providing the Department of Labor with accurate statistics can help to ensure continued recognition of our skills as the transition to the EHR progresses. Government support via paid apprenticeships and grants is available to industries that can demonstrate a viable career lattice pathway which enables workers to maintain a progressive standard of living through continuing education and advancement. Click here to access this brief survey.