HIMSS Physician Committee 2023 Year in Review

By Rakhal M. Reddy, MD MS FACHE FAMIA | HIMSS Physician Commitee Chair

It has been a distinct honor and privilege to serve as the chair of the HIMSS Physician Committee this past year. As I reflect on the accomplishments of our committee, I am pleased to share that we have nearly fulfilled all our objectives, with the remaining deliverables expected to be achieved in early 2024.

Throughout the year, our committee has effectively welcomed and integrated new members, strengthened collaborations with our counterparts on the HIMSS Nursing Committee and deepened our ties with the HIMSS EHR Association.

Comprising 14 dedicated members from diverse care delivery backgrounds — including from EHR vendors, community hospitals, large integrated delivery networks, academic facilities and non-profit organizations — our committee truly represented the rich diversity of our field. The collective experience and varied perspectives of our members have been instrumental in shaping the initiatives and achievements of the committee.

In the early months of 2023, our committee embarked on a day-long virtual summit to strategically plan our deliverables for the year. Our primary focus was to enhance understanding, both among HIMSS physician members and those beyond, on crucial topics impacting physicians in the healthcare IT industry.

These included the impact of technical advances of physician’s workflow and practice; addressing physician burnout, alleviating documentation burden, emphasizing collaboration with our nursing colleagues to underscore the value of clinical informatics and actively participating in discussions on artificial intelligence and large language models in various forums and formats.

The final webinar of the year highlighted the value of having providers included in technology development. The deliverables were key culminations of our committee members’ expertise and commitment to furthering the engagement of healthcare providers in digital health and emerging technologies in the healthcare information technology space.

We were also well represented at the 2023 HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition and virtual engagements. At the conference, the committee was highlighted at the HIMSS Connect Booth, where five of our members shared the work of the committee and why they felt volunteering to be a part of the committee was so important. Further, members coordinated with the nursing informatics committee and held a session, The Value of Clinical Informatics in Healthcare: Beyond the EHR to Interoperability. 

Recognizing that the time committed by our physician members was voluntary, I express my deep gratitude to each committee member for their unwavering dedication and hard work in achieving our goals this year. The successes we celebrate today are a testament to the collective efforts and commitment of our committee members.

I extend special appreciation to Gwynne Jelbaoui, program manager in clinical informatics, who played a pivotal role as the linchpin of our committee. Her patient organization of our talented physician leaders has been critical to the success of our initiatives. Jelbaoui dedication and tireless efforts have been invaluable in steering the committee toward its achievements.

As my tenure as committee chair concludes, I reflect with pride on the dynamic role that the HIMSS Physician Committee has played and will continue to play into the future in advancing healthcare IT for physicians.

Looking forward, I am confident that the committee will not only sustain its momentum but also continue to thrive, making significant contributions to the growth and excellence of healthcare IT and its applications, particularly for and with physicians. The journey continues, and I am optimistic about the bright future ahead.

Resources created by the HIMSS Physician Committee in 2023

Digitally Enabled Care Models and The Last Mile Challenge

Driving acute care and IT leadership

ChatGPT: Its potential and limitations in healthcare

Addressing clinician burnout with operational and technology focused initiatives

Unlocking Large Language Models in Healthcare: understanding their prowess, identify prospects and the prudence needed in their use.

Empowering Innovation: Unveiling the Crucial Role of Healthcare Providers in Technology Development

Article series on Large Language Models and Generative AI:

• Section 1
• Section 2
• Section 3
• Section 4
• Sections 5 and 6 were still in the process of development when this was published. The links to each section can be found at the bottom of the articles.