This week the HIMSS global conference was back in person after the COVID-19 pandemic sidelined last year's event. After a week packed with hundreds of educational sessions, scores of vendor demonstrations and new meet and greets, the HIMSS Media editors sat down for a debrief.

Cybersecurity, patient experience and public health were some of the top themes running throughout the conference.

With data breaches and ransomware attacks on the rise, health systems are looking for ways to secure their data from the get-go.

"It needs to be baked in. It can't be an afterthought, because the stakes are just too high. It's not just an issue of data breaches anymore. It's not just an issue of bad press. It is an issue of patient safety, truly," said Mike Milliard, executive editor of Healthcare IT News.

Speakers also discussed the importance of listening to patients when it comes to innovating new tools.

"What I heard again and again is that healthcare wants to know what the patient wants," Sue Morse, managing editor of Healthcare Finance News, said. "They don't want to give them something they don't want, and they are trying to find out what they want through technology, and reaching them how they want to be reached."

Discussions of the COVID-19 pandemic ran throughout the show. There were several discussions about the role of digital in public health.

"The pandemic has shown us how hugely important social media, and texting and WhatsApp are to how governments communicate with people, how people communicate with each other," said Jonah Comstock, editor-and-chief of HIMSS Media.

Talking points:

• The mood and feel at HIMSS21.
• New cyberattacks require innovations in cybersecurity.
• More attention paid to the voice of the patient.
• Public health infrastructure gaps exposed by the pandemic.
• More work still needed on interoperability.
• Incorporating health equity and clinical trial diversity into the conversation.
• AI/ML in a low-key, but foundational role.
• Star Trek and the Jetsons – models for healthcare
• Some keynote highlights
• COVID lessons, positive and negative
• The telehealth explosion and its aftermath

Show notes: 

ONC, CDC want to fix the fragmented public health system COVID-19 exposed

HIMSS21 tech news: cloud, analytics and interoperability developments

Updates and lessons learned from AstraZeneca, MGH's AMAZE platform

Govs. Chris Christie and Terry McAuliffe trade jabs at HIMSS21

COVID-19 shined light on new opportunities for public health on social media

AI is the new paradigm in forecasting infectious disease risk

Former ONC head Rucker: APIs will ‘empower totally new business models’

Rainn Wilson makes us grateful for being number two

DHA director: Information and technology drive effective pandemic response