It has been a privilege to serve on the AMIA Board of Directors and as your Board Chair. We are now beginning the important process of electing new leaders of AMIA, including several Board Directors and the two officer positions, Secretary and Treasurer.
We are asking all energetic and accomplished AMIA members to consider self-nomination for these important roles. In this message, we will cover the election process, review who can serve, and discuss time commitment.
Board election process
To be considered for the Board, candidates must self-nominate by June 30. All The Nominations Committee, chaired by Patricia Dykes, will select a slate of candidates based on a variety of factors, including:
- Service to and support of AMIA’s mission
- Contributions to the field of informatics
- Leadership experience and ability to think strategically
- Excellent communication skills
- Knowledge about AMIA and informatics
The Treasurer and Secretary positions require prior Board experience. Candidates will have the opportunity to prepare a biography, record a video, and participate in a forum to answer questions from AMIA members. The election will occur in the fall, and elected Board members and officers will be invited to attend the Board meeting at the AMIA Annual Symposium in New Orleans, November 11-12. Official Board service will begin in 2024.
Who can serve
Many accomplished informaticians don’t feel “ready” to run for the Board. But if you are interested, we encourage you to get feedback from current Board members. AMIA members at all stages of their career are encouraged to run. Early career individuals should have demonstrated leadership skills, but that experience can be from Committee or Working Group service, even in trainee roles, or experiences outside of AMIA. You do not need to be an informatics department chair or ACMI fellow! Members from academics, industry, health systems, public health organizations, and all parts of the healthcare ecosystem are welcome. The most important characteristics are a commitment to serving AMIA and willingness to devote time and energy to the role.
Time commitment
Being elected to the Board is an honor, as well as a substantial service commitment. AMIA Board service involves attending two in-person Board meetings annually – one before the AMIA Clinical Informatics Conference in the Spring and one at the beginning of the AMIA Annual Symposium in the fall.
Throughout the year, there are additional meeting commitments, including up to eight virtual Board meetings, typically lasting one-to-two hours, and additional executive committee meetings for the Secretary and Treasurer. All meetings require several hours of preparation, and Board members are often asked to provide feedback and decisions once or twice per month between meetings and to participate in virtual and in-person activities, such as Board Office Hours and meet-the-leadership events. Additionally, Board members serve as a liaison to other parts of the AMIA organization and its strategic partners and are expected to engage in a wide range of AMIA activities as a member.
We hope you will consider volunteering to serve AMIA as an officer or Board Director. One final thing – don’t be discouraged if you have self-nominated previously and were not chosen. Many Board members, and even Board chairs, have run multiple times before being elected. If you are willing to volunteer at this level but are not elected, we will look for other opportunities for you to serve AMIA! If you have any questions, please contact our current AMIA Board of Directors and Officers.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Sincerely,
Gretchen Purcell Jackson, MD, PhD, FACS, FACMI, FAMIA
AMIA President and Board Chair
Vice President and Scientific Medical Officer, Intuitive Surgical
Associate Professor of Surgery, Pediatrics, and Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Patricia Dykes, PhD, MA, RN, FAAN, FACMI
AMIA Nominations Committee Chair
Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Program Director of Research, Center for Patient Safety, Research and Practice, Brigham and Women's Hospital