Newsletter Edition: February 2015

Intermountain Issues
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Attend Intermountain’s annual Trustee Conference on March 20.
As an Intermountain trustee, you’re invited to attend the 2015 Intermountain
Healthcare Trustee Conference, scheduled for March 20 at the Little America Hotel in
Salt Lake City. Nine presentations are planned by Intermountain trustees and senior
leaders, and there will also be a mini health fair offering information on prevention
and wellness topics. The conference provides a perspective on the challenges and
opportunities we’ll face in 2015 and helps trustees govern Intermountain more
effectively.
Here are some important details:
What:
When:
Where:
2015 Intermountain Healthcare Trustee Conference
Friday, March 20, 2015 (please plan to attend all day)
Little America Hotel, 500 South Main Street, Salt Lake City
Breakfast and lunch are provided. Some board members traveling long distances may
choose to stay overnight on the Thursday before the conference.
When:
Where:
Friday, March 20, 2015 (please plan to attend all day)
Little America Hotel, 500 South Main Street, Salt Lake City
Breakfast and lunch are provided. Some board members traveling long distances may
choose to stay overnight on the Thursday before the conference.
Invitations and registration forms were mailed at the end of January. If you’d like to
attend, you can contact Delinda Gordon in Intermountain’s Travel Services at
801-442-3931 or at Delinda.Gordon@imail.org.
Register now for Healthy Dialogues luncheon with Dr. Charles
Sorenson.
Intermountain Issues
Trustees can register now for the April Healthy Dialogues
luncheon event featuring Charles Sorenson, MD, President
and CEO of Intermountain Healthcare. This lunch event is
scheduled for Wednesday, April 1, from noon to 1:30 p.m.
at the Marriott City Center Hotel, 220 South State Street,
Salt Lake City.
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Dr. Sorenson will speak about Utah’s place in the evolving
landscape of American healthcare.
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There is no cost to attend the lunch event, but seating is limited. An RSVP is required
by March 27. To reserve your seat, please call 801-442-2895 or visit
Intermountainhealthcare.org/dialogues.
Presented by Intermountain Healthcare, the Healthy Dialogues speaker series features
presentations by healthcare leaders on national and local health policy issues. Past
speakers include Dr. Donald Berwick, Michael Leavitt, Dr. Elliott Fisher, Clayton
Christensen, Dr. Atul Gawande, and Shannon Brownlee.
Update on Utah’s 2015 legislative session.
Bill Barnes of Intermountain’s Government Relations office provides the following
update on the 2015 Utah legislative session:
We are now well into the 2015 session, and we are watching several issues related to
healthcare. In particular, the state faces important decisions relating to Medicaid.
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update on the 2015 Utah legislative session:
We are now well into the 2015 session, and we are watching several issues related to
healthcare. In particular, the state faces important decisions relating to Medicaid.
Issues include:
Medicaid funding.
The future of Governor Herbert’s Healthy Utah plan and any of the other
proposals to expand insurance coverage in lieu of expanding Medicaid.
Trustees with questions about these or other issues may contact Bill Barnes at
bill.barnes@imail.org.
Trustees are also invited to subscribe to the Intermountain Health Policy
Network. In an effort to support trustees and employees who are interested in
receiving updates and information as the 2015 session progresses—as well as
information about how to become more involved—Intermountain has created a
Intermountain Issues
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subscription service called the Intermountain Health Policy Network. Those who
subscribe receive periodic emails providing legislative updates and occasional “calls to
action” on pressing issues and how to contact the appropriate officials. You may
subscribe to this network here.
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Participation in the network is strictly voluntary and informational. Intermountain
Healthcare neither endorses nor opposes any political candidate or party.
Intermountain and the Utah Department of Health are promoting the
safe use and disposal of prescription meds.
A billboard in the “Use Only As Directed” public service campaign.
A new public service campaign designed to educate the public about the proper use
and disposal of prescription drugs is being sponsored by Intermountain Healthcare and
the Utah Department of Health.
The campaign, called “Use Only As Directed,” is dedicated to reducing overdose
deaths by educating Utahns about the proper use, storage, and disposal of prescription
drugs. Messages are being disseminated via multiple media and community outreach
channels, including TV, radio, internet, social media, and outdoor advertising. New,
permanent medication disposal drop boxes are located at Intermountain community
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deaths by educating Utahns about the proper use, storage, and disposal of prescription
drugs. Messages are being disseminated via multiple media and community outreach
channels, including TV, radio, internet, social media, and outdoor advertising. New,
permanent medication disposal drop boxes are located at Intermountain community
pharmacies across Utah as part of the campaign.
“Through a three-pronged effort of public awareness, provider education, and
treatment services, we aim to reduce misuse and abuse of prescription medications
among our patients and within the communities in which we operate,” says Mikelle
Moore, Vice President of Community Benefit for Intermountain.
For more information, visit UseOnlyAsDirected.org.
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Intermountain Foundry holds inaugural event showcasing innovations.
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Intermountain leaders, physicians and other clinicians, and members of the community
came to Intermountain Medical Center last month for an inaugural “innovation event”
to look at projects being developed by Intermountain employees to improve healthcare
quality, service, and affordability.
The event showcased the first four projects to complete an eight-week program
designed to support employees’ ideas for improving quality of care while reducing
costs. This effort is part of the new “Intermountain Foundry” initiative.
Intermountain’s partner in the Foundry is Chicago-based Healthbox, a company that
fosters collaboration and innovation among inventors, entrepreneurs, and others in the
healthcare industry.
Through the Foundry program, employee innovators receive support to refine their
business concepts, assess the commercial viability, identify product development or
service needs, and develop a plan for launch within Intermountain or beyond in the
broader healthcare industry.
Four projects were presented at the event:
Wailua Magnetics. John Doty, MD, presented a more effective and less
expensive tool and care process for ablation, a technique used to treat atrial
fibrillation.
GermWatch. Per Gesteland, MD, MSc, gave details about future plans and
fibrillation.
GermWatch. Per Gesteland, MD, MSc, gave details about future plans and
expansion of GermWatch, a software tool that allows physicians, other
clinicians, and the public to track infectious pathogens prevalent in
communities.
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SmartPX. Benjamin Horne, PhD, shared the project, SmartPX (short for Smart
Prognosis), a predictive analytics score used to reduce readmission rates for
patients with heart failure.
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Micro Environ. Pravin Mishra, PhD, and Lincoln Nadauld, MD, PhD, spoke
about a method for improving cancer cell studies through the use of a new
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culture medium called ME-gel.
Along with these presenters, other Intermountain employees were involved in the
project teams.
Intermountain awards and recognition.
Dixie Regional CEO honored
Terri Kane, CEO of Intermountain’s Dixie Regional Medical
Center, was recently honored by Becker’s Hospital Review as
one of “50 Rural Hospital CEOs to Know.”
According to Becker’s, the 50 leaders on the list “are dedicated
to advancing healthcare in their communities and are tackling
the challenges of providing healthcare in rural or small towns
with vigor.” To read the full story, click here.
Intermountain’s Chief Information Officer named a Top Healthcare CIO
For the third consecutive year, Becker’s Hospital Review
included Intermountain Healthcare’s Chief Information
Officer, Marc Probst, on its list of “100 Hospital and Health
System CIOs to Know.” The list includes those who “have
demonstrated excellence in leadership by tackling the
challenging world of health IT and innovating during a time of
change in the industry,” according to Becker’s. The full story is
found here.
Visit the online Trustee Resource Center.
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Intermountain Issues
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Visit the online Trustee Resource Center.
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Intermountain provides online tools to help trustees be successful in their role as
advocates for our organization. Available at intermountaintrustee.org, the Trustee
Resource Center provides one convenient location to access several important
advocacy tools, including:
Trustee newsletter articles and archive
In-depth information about Intermountain
Trustee roles and responsibilities
Overview of our healthcare initiatives
Innovation efforts that improve healthcare delivery
Frequently asked questions
If you have questions or comments about Intermountain Trustee, please Contact
Us.
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