A Message from Your Chapter President, Second Quarter 2025

Published on May 5, 2025

In my first President message for 2025 I reflected back on the strong foundation that was laid from all the work and accomplishments of 2024.  The first quarter for us in 2025 has only accelerated from there.  It is gratifying to see how our Board, our Chapter Leaders, and committee members have all leaned in to deliver on the strategic theme we laid out in January to “Elevate, Engage and Execute.”

Key Accomplishments and Activities from Q1

NEW MEMBER GROWTH AND MEMBER ADVANCEMENT

We’ve seen very strong new member growth in just the first 3 months of the year, and also quite a bit of advancement activity among existing members who have accomplished becoming Board Certified Fellows, or existing Fellows becoming re-certified.  From January through March, we have seen:  38 new members added to the chapter; 4 members advanced to Fellow; and 10 Fellow members re-certified.  Welcome to all our new members and congratulations to our new Fellows!

If you’ve been thinking about getting your FACHE credential, now is a great time. Right now, ACHE is offering a Board of Governors Exam fee waiver (a savings of $225). To receive the waiver, qualified Members must submit their completed Fellow application, $250 application fee and all required documents by June 30.  ACHE provides many supportive resources like the free quarterly FACHE® Overview Webinar, and ACHE Board of Governors Examination Flashcards with digital access to help with study preparation.  And our own Chapter through the Membership and Advancement Committee provides support and study prep opportunities also. Visit ache.org/FACHE to learn more and reach out to Nicholas D’Addabbo on our Membership and Advancement Committee.

EDUCATION AND NETWORKING EVENTS

Programming has been very busy, with 12 Chapter events in Q1 that offered a total of 4.0 Qualifying Education Credits and 3.0 Virtual Interactive Credits.  With the amount of programming provided, I thought it should be summarized for you to see – and this was just Q1!

And there’s more to come! We will maintain the momentum into the next several months with a variety of events offering both In-Person, Virtual, and Qualified Education credits, unmatched networking opportunities, social gatherings, Members-only and Fellows-only events and ways to give back through volunteer civic engagement events.

If you haven’t yet, make sure to save the date for Thursday, October 23^rd for our Annual Summit at Gillette Stadium “Leadership Rewired: Building Capacity for AI, Automation, and Innovation in Healthcare”.  Join us for expert keynote speakers, a wide variety of panel discussions, and amazing networking in an awesome venue!

NEW WEBSITE

Have you visited our chapter website lately? Earlier in Q1 we completed a revamp of all website navigation and content in a slick, new format.  My appreciation for this months-long effort goes to our Chapter Administrator, Tammy Ballard.  She worked tirelessly both with ACHE National and contacts at other ACHE Chapters to incorporate new ideas into the design, navigation and interactive features available.  Thank you, Tammy!

Reflections from ACHE’s Annual Congress on Healthcare Leadership

ACHE’s Annual Congress on Healthcare Leadership in Houston at the end of March was simply one of the best ever.  This year began a new era, as record-breaking attendance levels prompted a move to outside of Chicago, and Houston did not disappoint!  Roughly 7,000 attendees made for ACHE’s largest ever annual gathering.  If you weren’t able to join this year, make a point to mark your calendar now for next March 2-5, once again in Houston.

You’ve probably seen several social media reactions to what was a fantastic week of learning and connecting. If not, take a look on LinkedIn with the hashtag #ACHECongress to see what all the buzz was about. A short list of highlights from my perspective included:

• A riveting opening session with award-winning author, research professor and podcaster, Brene Brown, who reminded and challenged us with what intentional leadership looks like
• Numerous sessions that covered current hot topics on AI’s potential for healthcare, how different organizations are leading efforts on patient experience, and several sessions on leading through the various challenges we all face in today’s tenuous financial environment while not losing sight of what matters for our patients and our caregivers.
• An unforgettable luncheon interview with Pulitzer-Prize winning author and Presidential historian, Doris Kearns Goodwin. Her comments and reflections on the role of empathy, trust and resilience highlighted inspiring lessons from past Presidents that we can and should apply to today’s crises and challenges.
• And as always, Congress provided invaluable moments to connect with colleagues from across the country once again, and meet new friends – who all share a commitment to professional development within the bond of the special calling we all feel to this profession of caring for others.

I look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events, and please let me know how we can serve you better!  ~Jack

Jack Bailey, MS, FACHE
President, ACHE of MA