WorldConnex is “the magic secret sauce” that combines technical and clinical issues in the hospital setting, said Candice Friestad, Assistant Vice President of Clinical Informatics at Avera Health. “It offers a variety of different subjects and different elements within healthcare. Not only can it provide a solution, but it also gives you the chance to see what other people have done for their issues and challenges, both technical and clinical.”
Candice attends WorldConnex annually and has presented her Connexall program for her peers. Reflecting on her many WorldConnex events, one memory stands out. “I was trying to identify and connect telemetry units with nurses, without the nurse having to touch the system. And we had about 250 telemetry beds,” she explained. During a coffee break, she had the opportunity to speak with Connexall’s research and development lead, Jason Wilson. “I had an idea of how it might work, and we talked about it.” A few months later, Jason reached out, and together they developed an alpha-beta version of the solution. “We’ve had it in place now for over five years, and I know Connexall has offered it to other customers, as well.”
Candice equally enjoys the interactions with her industry peers. “I’ve met colleagues at the University of California at San Francisco, Memorial Sloan Kettering, Johns Hopkins, Cincinnati Children’s and Arkansas Children’s,” she said. “And those are just off the top of my head. We’ve gotten to know each other fairly well.”
“The main reason I continue to attend WorldConnex is solution discovery,” said Candice. “I really enjoy the collegiality, and there are so many challenges in healthcare and Connexall usually offers some form of solution.”
WorldConnex is like “coming home”
Monique Lambert, Manager of Nursing Innovation and Informatics and Clinical Assistant Professor for the Department of Medicine at Stanford Healthcare, attended WorldConnex for the first time in 2023. A highlight for her? “Meeting Candice Friestad of Avera Health,” she said. “And when I went to the ATA Virtual Nursing Summit in November, I saw Candice there, too.” Based on their common interest in operationalizing virtual nursing, they plan to keep in touch.
Monique has worked in the healthcare industry for 19 years and attended numerous conferences. “WorldConnex was one of the best conferences I’ve ever been to,” she said. She was so impressed, in fact, that she will be a speaker this year, as well.
What is it about WorldConnex that stands out? “It’s more intimate. It focuses on understanding problems that we encounter in everyday clinical care delivery, the nuances behind those problems, and potential opportunities for leveraging Connexall to address those problems. By hearing how healthcare providers are using this technology to solve problems, to me that made it valuable.”
Another difference for Monique was the quality of conversations with Connexall staff. “Sandy (Saggar) is an amazing CEO in terms of his warmth. He’s very calm and thoughtful. That’s the kind of conversations I felt like I was able to have with Connexall staff.”
Reflecting on the WorldConnex event, Monique said, “It’s almost like coming home to hang out with your family. It’s got a very warm, inviting kind of vibe. When it really feels like family, that means you can have more earnest discussions … harder discussions in a safe group.”
We hope you can join us in October! Click here to learn more and to register.
