Weekend Immersion in Nursing Informatics – Another Success!
 For the 4th year in a row, GAHIMSS has sponsored the ‘Weekend Immersion in Nursing Informatics’ (WINI) in our state. This year marks another successful event held June 10-12. Participants traveled from as far as Rhode Island and Fort Myers, Florida to attend the conference. Stefanie Kingsley and Shirley Woodhead, both GAHIMSS Board members, facilitated the conference. Kathleen Smith and Carol Bickford from ‘Informatics Consulting and Continuing Education, LLC’ were the instructors for the weekend. Both Kathleen and Carol have been involved in Informatics since its inception, and have authored many articles and books, as well as being members of some of the acclaimed informatics organizations.
Although a bit smaller in participation this year, as the Instructors put it: ‘Sometimes smaller is better’. The group enjoyed the ability to have more participation and more involvement due to the smaller size. The group of 22 attendees allowed for a more personal experience, not to mention that nearly each attendee won a door prize!
The conference was held at Emory Conference Center in Duluth, GA. Thanks goes to Dee Cantrell, CIO of Emory Healthcare System and GAHIMSS Board Member, for coordinating Emory IT department as sponsor of the event at the center. The location contained all the amenities one needed, including two hotels, and wonderful meeting spaces. The food provided for breakfast, lunches, and breaks was outstanding. It was certain that no one would go hungry for the weekend.
Beginning Friday at Noon the Consultants dove directly into the sessions. The participants began gaining knowledge of Nursing Informatics as an extremely important discipline in IT today. They learned how extremely vital the role is to the adoption of technology in healthcare.
Friday night the group enjoyed a networking event sponsored completely by Rubbermaid Medical. Cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and sharing thoughts and ideas of technology and Informatics was enjoyed by all that attended. The event was held at a nearby French Restaurant, Le Giverny Bistro at the Emory Inn. The instructors joined the group, and a great deal of reminiscing about the past history of Informatics, technology in healthcare today, and current job experiences regarding IT of attendees was the venue.
Saturday was full of information on Nursing Informatics. Several Case Studies were completed, with the participants using their own experiences and skills to determine project needs and implementation methods. Having a smaller group enabled the break outs to be more realistic and job oriented. Following the sessions, several participants joined the facilitators, Shirley and Stefanie, and the Instructors, Kathleen and Carol for dinner at a nearby Atlanta Restaurant.
Sunday wrapped up the conference with more information and networking regarding Informatics. Each participant received a certificate of completion and their CEU’s for program attendance. Most attendees won door prizes throughout the conference, from the latest textbook on Informatics, mouse pads, jump drives, gift cards, etc., etc.
It was an exciting event, and feedback from participants was extremely positive and greatly appreciated.
Shirley Woodhead, RN-BC, BSN, MA, PMP
GAHIMSS Board of Directors
Co-Facilitator for the WINI Program
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