Last week all eyes were on the weather as we tracked the path of Hurricane Ike. As a resident of south Florida, I have learned to respect hurricane warnings and so I took steps to prepare for Ike based on the forecast. You can never be quite sure of the path of a hurricane or the strength it will deliver when it hits land.
Today we know the devastation of Ike spans from the country of Haiti, where thousands of people are stranded, to the state of Texas, where they are just beginning to realize the extent of damage this huge storm left on their coastal and inland regions. We send our thoughts and prayers to all who were impacted by the storm.
All of us in south Florida are relieved that we escaped another storm, but we know that with a slight shift in its pattern we could be assessing our damage just as those in Texas are doing.
Another unfortunate victim of Hurricane Ike was DMAA: The Care Continuum Alliance. DMAA was scheduled to hold their 10th annual conference, Forum 08, last week at the Diplomat Hotel in Hollywood, Fla. The venue is a beautiful hotel overlooking the Atlantic Ocean here in south Florida. Tracey Moorhead, president and CEO of DMAA, and other staff were on constant watch and made an educated decision based on the evidence they were receiving. On September 5, they sent out word to all registered attendees that they had decided to postpone the conference.
If you have ever planned a wedding or another event that took months of preparation, you understand the impact of this decision on the morale of the staff and on those who were planning to attend. I applaud them for their decision to put safety first and look forward to attending Forum 08 on the new date — November 23 to 25, 2008 — at the same location.
As a result of foresight and technology, those registered for the conference were able to participate in several of the keynote presentations and to track sessions via live webinars from their office or home. As soon as the meeting was canceled, the staff of DMAA regrouped and began sending e-mails to registered attendees alerting them of the dates and time for the upcoming webinars. I was able to listen to several of the programs and found them to be excellent. To view the list of programs presented, click here.
I hope those who were registered to attend the meeting appreciated the decision that DMAA made on your behalf. As someone who has lived through several hurricanes, I have learned it is better to be safe than sorry. I plan to attend the rescheduled Forum 08 and hope to see you there. Important information will be discussed regarding disease management, wellness and the important role case coordination plays in improving the quality of care for consumers. Here is information on the revised schedule for Forum 08.
See you next week
Anne Llewellyn, RN-BC, MS, BHSA, CCM, CRRN
Editor-in-Chief of Across My Desk, Case in Point magazine, and the Case Management Resource Guide
allewellyn@dorlandhealth.com
