ASHRM 2015: Driving Safe and Trusted Healthcare

​The American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM) kicked off its 2015 annual conference with a presentation by 2015 president Ellen Venditti, RN, MS, CPHRM, FASHRM. Venditti, a risk management and patient safety consultant, welcomed participants to the celebration of the organization's 35th year and introduced the theme of the event, "Driving Safe and Trusted Healthcare." Venditti also stressed the importance of human factors in risk management. "It's important to remember that human factors principles are not limited to patient safety or the clinical setting," she said. American Hospital Association President Rick Pollack delivered a recorded message: "Your efforts will improve safety, save lives, and improve care." He emphasized the importance of teamwork, collaboration, and finding ways to push the field forward together. "We have the opportunity to improve quality, safety, and the entire patient safety experience," he said. Venditti and Kim Hoarle, MBA, CAE, executive director of ASHRM, both highlighted the importance of enterprise risk management and introduced another focal point of this year's meeting, health information technology. The opening keynote speaker, Marianne Jennings, spoke on the influence of culture on ethics and compliance. She summarized her points in two simple questions: "Why would somebody believe this is appropriate behavior in our company?" and "If you were on the other side of the issue, how would you feel about what you're doing?"