David Brown, CIIP at Kaiser Permanente Information Technology, will start a two-year term as SIIM chair on July 1, 2014. DOTmed HealthCare Business News sat down with Brown to discuss his vision for imaging informatics and what he looks forward to at this year’s show, taking place May 15-17 in Long Beach, Calif.

HCBN: What are your goals as incoming chair of SIIM?
DB: I am excited about work that’s being done to re-invent SIIM’s eCommunity presence. This is an effort that I fully support. SIIM will ultimately provide tools that will allow its contributors to express themselves across numerous platforms with minimal effort. Rebuilding SIIM’s online presence is a top priority for my first year.

I will be supporting the SIIM Board with its efforts to carry out the new initiatives and directions defined in the 2014-2017 SIIM Strategic Plan. The Board is comprised of talented individuals who are dedicated to SIIM’s development and success. I am all too aware that I am sitting at a table of leaders, and my job is similar to an orchestra conductor. I will help to guide the conversation, and together, we will shape SIIM’s future.

Finally, I hope to leverage my CIIP status to reach out to other imaging informatics professionals (IIPs and CIIPs) and encourage their participation in SIIM. These are changing times, and imaging informatics professionals need to be prepared. There is a need to prepare for the advent of enterprise imaging at a scale that we have not yet seen, but are beginning to fully appreciate.

It is my hope that I can encourage CIIPs to network with one another with a goal of mutual support and continuous development. It is through this collaboration that new ideas will be exchanged, and excitement fostered. SIIM is clearly the right forum for this type of networking. This is what SIIM has been providing all along.

HCBN: Can you tell us about the learning track you are co-chairing for the upcoming SIIM annual meeting?
DB: I will be co-chairing SIIM 2014 Learning Track 1: “The Changing Role of the IIP.” Chuck Socia is the other co-chair for this track. The first two sessions will be on Thursday, followed by a Town Hall on Saturday. The first session will be focused on the changing role of the CIIP, and the second session will include practical tools to help advance a CIIP’s career.

HCBN: What else is new at the SIIM 2014 Annual Meeting this year?
DB: The SIIM 2014 Hackathon is new, and promises to be very exciting. The Hackathon is going to provide an opportunity for hackers to have hands-on experience with APIs that have been developed using nextgeneration HIT standards such as DICOM REST-based services (WADO-RS, QIDO-RS, STOW-RS), HL7 FHIR, and SWIM.

Some of these standards, such as HL7 FHIR, are very new and so this will provide an early entrance into understanding these standards. This should be a very exciting event, even if you don’t code. And if you do code, you should make your reservations now! This is an event that you will not want to miss.

HCBN: What are you hoping attendees will take away from SIIM 2014 this year?
DB: One of the strengths of the SIIM Annual and Regional Meetings is the quality of conversation that occurs both in the meeting rooms and in the hallways. SIIM provides a good forum for the exchange of ideas with a focus toward resolving common challenges. This is achieved through networking, and through having ready access to the thought leaders in our field. This in itself is a worthwhile take away from SIIM 2014.

I also hope that attendees of SIIM 2014 will bring home a new tool or a new concept to be applied. Some of the sessions have been specifically developed to present tools that other IIPs have found useful. Other sessions are focused on education and innovation. My hope is that attendees will come home feeling that they have learned something, and that they will be able to use this knowledge year round.