HIMSS has announced their second annual National Health IT Week Blog Carnival which will run from September 16-20. I am honored to be asked to host this year's Blog Carnival during National Health Week on behalf of HIMSS. I expect there are going to be some great posts, as we have a passionate community who will be able to promote the value of health IT in helping to achieve the triple aim: Improving the patient experience of care; Improving the health of populations; and reducing the cost of healthcare.

Members of the health IT community are invited to write some new and original posts that answer the question: "What’s the value of health IT?" Bloggers should post between Monday, September 16 and Thursday, September 19. HIMSS and I will review each submission and publish round up posts on ahier.net. We're not looking for sales pitches so try to keep them non-promotional and focus on the health IT trends of the year. After you have published the post during National Health IT Week then send the link to HIMSS@shiftcomm.com for review and addition to the carnival.

There will be several National Health IT Week events in Washington, D.C., including:

• The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) will hold the 3rd Annual Consumer Health IT Summit to learn about public and private sector led advancements to equip and empower patients to better manage their health in a digital era.
• The 12th Annual HIMSS Policy Summit will explore how we can better engage patients through meaningful use and the road to safety regulations. I plan on attending this event.
• The Childhood Cancer Caucus will highlight federal efforts to combat childhood cancer, as part of National Childhood Cancer month.
• An interactive policy forum sponsored by the Bipartisan Policy Center will look at key technologies and trends that are ushering in the era of personalized medicine.

Keep and eye on the National Health IT Week website to stay aware of all the events. HIMSS is also providing a social media strategy toolkit for use during National Health IT Week, including some very cool images you can download HERE to post on your blog or use to change your profile image. They also provide some great advice on how to leverage social media for National Health IT Week.

We'll be using the hashtag #NHITWeek so even if you don't write a blog you can help get the word out and join in the tweeting. Also, Jennifer Dennard (@SmyrnaGirl) will be hosting a #HITchicks tweetchat on September 20th during National Health IT Week, and stay tuned because there will be a number of opportunities to participate in Tweetchats, Google Plus Hangouts, LinkedIn discussions, and other social media platforms during the week.

For more information on the Blog Carnival, please contact: himss@shiftcomm.com.
For more information on NHIT Week, please visit: http://www.healthitweek.org