In this special Speaker Series, Becker's Healthcare caught up with Mitchell Parker, executive director of information security and compliance at IU Health in Indianapolis.
Mr. Parker will speak at two sessions during the Becker's Hospital Review 4th Annual Health IT + Revenue Cycle Conference: at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 19 in a session titled, "The Last Mile – Bringing Privacy and Security to the Patient Experience" and on Saturday, Sept. 22, at 9:05 a.m. in a session titled, "Securing the Blockchain." Learn more about the event and register to attend in Chicago.
Question: Can you share your best advice for motivating your teams?
Mitchell Parker: Always keep the mission of the organization front of mind in whatever you do. We are there to further the mission, and we need to remind ourselves and our customers of the importance of what we do to serve and protect our patients. We need to put the mission above any one person or ego, and demonstrate that we are stewards of it.
Q: What is the most exciting thing happening in health IT right now? And what is the most overrated health IT trend?
MP: I think the most exciting trend in health IT is the advent of precision medicine. We have the opportunity to leverage technology and knowledge of human DNA to combat diseases and improve the quality of life for people who would not have had a chance before.
The most overrated trend is addressing security with point solutions. We need to address risk as an enterprise, not through putting it in boxes that have only one purpose.
Q: What's the biggest misconception about health IT?
MP: That we are not innovative and are behind the curve with technology. The innovations coming out of an ever-increasing number of physician-led startups show the opposite. Also, the use of new technologies such as blockchain across healthcare to improve multiple areas demonstrates that healthcare is always looking to improve.