Whether we call it a society, a club, a network, or even a family…we need it. We need to be part of something greater than our work and our selves. We need to understand how others are approaching problems similar to ours. We need to learn from one another. We need a shoulder to lean on, or a hand to reach out to. My friends, we need each other.

Part of what the HPMSNJ tries to accomplish is to create links between us. Our members contribute to setting up education programs, designing web sites, writing newsletters, contributing their organizations settings as a place for a meet and greet, or making phone calls to encourage attendance. Some present at sessions, or line up presenters, or introduce presenters. Some belong to organizations that help sponsor our society. Some are active in committees, or work with the state department of health. Some organize mail lists, or send invitations, or help register people at the door, or pick up our speakers. Some contribute databases to our map of hospitals in NJ, some contribute mapping software to our web site, and some use a map to come to our sessions around the state!

Since 1999, I’ve come to HPMSNJ events, and got to meet a lot of really fine people, who are doing very difficult jobs, in a profession that serves the noblest of callings, to help the sick by planning services, marketing services, and providing positive public relations for our institutions. I’ve learned much from this group of professionals. And I count on them to help me, or to help others that I know need help.

We’ve seen our membership grow to 135 members plus! Our educational sessions average 50 people to each session. To provide some context to that number … other local societies report being lucky if they get 10 people to a session.

We have 15 sponsors going into 2008, more than double than we had at the end of 2006.

Even our "meet n' greet" gatherings have gathered strong attendance. Meant to be low-key networking events around a common subject, in 2007 we saw more than 30 attend our sessions.

Our 2007 annual meeting was attended by record numbers this year, as people came from around the country from as far away as Washington state, Wisconsin, and Illinois, to hear Chuck Lauer, columnist for Modern Healthcare and a national icon for healthcare.

We created a statewide fold-out map, and made it available for free to all members, for distribution by the New Jersey Hospital Association, and to all of our sponsors. We’ve printed 2,500 copies of the map, and within the first two months have distributed more than half of them!

We have honored, by awarding the Society Recognition Award, to Fred Jacobs, a man who spent his career improving health – whether as a physician or as the Commissioner of Health in New Jersey. We’ve awarded to three society members, Eileen Horton, Anna Pence, and Anna Steelman, for their work to improve the society.

In 2008, we will strive to resurrect the "Percy" awards, for excellence in health care advertising in NJ. We are planning on creating a world class educational session around the "patient experience". We have much work to do, and we have people already who have stepped up to try to make these two goals happen.

If you are interested in getting involved in our society, please call or e-mail me.

Anthony C. Stanowski
President, HPMSNJ
stanowski-anthony@aramark.com
215-238-3550