Virtual Spring Conference 2021

Join the Health Professions Network for our Spring Conference, virtually! Pay what you think is fair based on your planned participation for you and your colleagues to attend a four-day virtual conference with two hours each day of phenomenal speakers, sessions, collaborative discussions and networking events with HPN leaders, members and fellow attendees.

We've incorporated feedback and optimized our format to minimize draining screen time and maximize personal face time as much we can, while still delivering outstanding content—that means similarly outstanding speakers in shorter sessions with more built-in time to discuss and collaborate in small groups!


Our Keynote: Bob Johansen

Volatile. Uncertain. Complex. Ambiguous. How can leaders prepare for a VUCA future?

For nearly two decades, Bob Johansen has been tackling that question, helping organizations around the world—from GlaxoSmithKline to major universities and nonprofits—prepare for and shape the future.

In his recent trilogy of books on leadership, he's outlined tangible skill sets, competencies, practices and mindsets leaders need to be ready for the next "future shock."

  • Ten skills (think competencies) introduced in Leaders Make the Future
  • Five literacies (think disciplines or practices) introduced in The New Leadership Literacies
  • One mindset (think worldview) introduced in Full-Spectrum Thinking

And we at HPN are delighted to announce that Bob will be opening our Virtual Spring Conference, April 20, with a visionary and engaging keynote address and joining us live for discussion!


Our Schedule & Program

Tuesday, April 20 - Strategies for a "VUCA" Future

Time (EDT)ProgramSpeaker(s)
3:30PM - 4:30PMIntroduction & Interactive Keynote Address: Full-Spectrum Thinking: Unlock Clarity while Challenging Certainty

Full-spectrum thinking is a creative mix of skills, literacies, and mindset. It will unlock clarity while challenging certainty. The dangers of certitude are swelling, but the tools for full-spectrum thinking will get dramatically better just in time over the next decade. Many are certain, but few are clear. That’s about to change.

Bob Johansen, PhD, Institute for the Future
4:30PM - 5:20PMRotating Breakout Discussions: Meet, Greet & Brainstorm! We're jumping in the deep end with innovative virtual activities for networking, connecting and addressing the big questions facing health professions leaders in the near future. Together, we'll prepare a roadmap for the week's discussions!Interactive
5:20PM - 5:30PMSignoff: Our Spring Conference Roadmap. We'll outline our programs and discussions for the coming days' events.HPN Staff

Wednesday, April 21 - Transformations in Education

Time (EDT)ProgramSpeaker(s)
12PM - 12:45PMIntroduction & Session: Online Learning: Perspective from the World's First Completely Free University

NextGenU.org is often referred to as the world's first free university, but we have no independent university accreditation. Collaborating with our university partners and other expert organizations, we provide free courses and issue free certificates to individual students successfully completing courses with us. Institutions may also adopt our free courses and curricula and offer low-cost or free courses and degrees to their students.

Erica Frank, MD, MPH & Miriam Chickering, BSN, NextGenU
12:45PM-1PMBreakout Discussions: Your Response. How has your organization changed education, credentialing, etc. in response to COVID-19? What's likely to stick in the future?Interactive
1PM - 1:45PMSession: Educators' Panel: Health Professions Education Post-COVID-19

Panelists with broad perspectives and experience in health professions' education will speak to changes in professional education due to COVID-19 and what's likely to stick in the near future. What are the implications for professions?

Loxie Kistler, EdD, University of Cincinnati
Dusty York, MAEd, Chattanooga State
Donna Slovensky, University of Alabama
1:45PM - 2PMBreakout Discussions: Opportunities to collaborate. In our new normal, are there new ways that professional associations can work together with educators to produce outstanding, high-performing health professionals? Interactive

Thursday, April 22 - Transformations in Health Professions & Associations

Time (EDT)ProgramSpeaker(s)
12PM - 12:30PMIntroduction & Session: Moral Injury: The Crisis of Clinician Distress (and What to Do About it)

Moral injury occurs when clinicians are repeatedly expected, in the course of providing care, to make choices that transgress their long standing, deeply held commitment to healing. It reframes the challenge of distress from “burnout”, which suggests a lack of resilience on the part of clinicians, to one that more accurately locates the source of distress in a conflict ridden healthcare system.

Moshe Cohn, MD, Moral Injury of Healthcare & NYU Langone Health
12:30PM - 1PMBreakout Discussions: Associations' Role. What can associations do to help professionals through moral injury? Could moral injury be an advocacy rallying cry for associations? How are you dealing with burnout in your own organizations?Interactive
1PM-1:30PMSession: COVID's Impact on Credentialing, Job Analysis & Measurement

Vijay Krishna, Vice President, Credentialing with the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB) is one of the world's foremost experts on credentialing for professional certification bodies across industries. He'll speak to the impact of COVID on credentialing and future directions for job task analyses and measurement of the value of credentials.

Vijay Krisha, Ed.D., ANSI National Accreditation Board
1:30PM-2:00PMBreakout Discussions: Credentialing matters. How has credentialing changed during COVID-19 at your organization? For your professionals? For your students? What unique challenges have you faced? What is likely to stick?Interactive

Friday, April 23 - Transformations in Healthcare Policy & Practice

Time (EDT)ProgramSpeaker(s)
12PM - 12:30PMIntroduction & Session: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Health Professions, Healthcare Practice

A growing body of evidence draws a direct connection between diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in health professions and communities' healthcare outcomes. Our new normal may present new opportunities for organizations to promote DEI, tangibly, in their professions. Mr. Lloyd Bullard is a national expert in the areas of Cultural Competence, Racial Disproportionality and Disparity of Outcomes, Supervisory and Management Development and Consultation/Training.

Lloyd Bullard, LBIC Consulting
12:30PM - 1PMBreakout Discussions: Associations' Role. What can associations do to promote DEI in your professions? In your organizations—in your leadership and in your staff? Interactive
1PM-1:45PMSession: Impact of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion on Quality Care and Education

Stacey Ocander, Dean of Health and Public Services at Metropolitan Community College in Omaha, Nebraska, will speak to the unique wave of challenges faced by educators in guiding the next generation of health professionals through an increasingly complex and diverse health space. How can organizations place Equity at the core of their missions and actions, and work to create an inclusive space that draws on collaboration & diversity of opinions, experience, and perspectives as a fundamental aspect of allied health education?

Stacey Ocander, Ed.D., Metropolitan Community College
1:45PM-2:00PMBreakout Discussions: Engaging the next gen. An important topic for educators and professional associations—how can we leverage our new normal to connect with the next generation of health pros and ensure the sustainability and longevity of our organizations, programs and professions?Interactive

This program schedule is obviously in an unfinished state, but we wanted to give you preview of our format and our outstanding confirmed speakers. We'll update this page (and our email list) with more information as we nail down specifics!

Each day is organized around a different theme, where we'll be tackling critical topics like responses to crisis in education and meetings work, burnout in clinical work (plus education and association work), changes in credentialing (like best practices in remote proctoring), the future of health care delivery, and what we can expect from a new administration's initiatives to advance access and improve quality.

We're so excited to deliver another outstanding and innovative virtual experience! Register, today!


Register Now

Again, pay what you think is fair to attend our virtual Spring Conference. We're excited to connect with as many organizations and individuals as possible, and we don't want cost to be a barrier. Our suggestion: If you're planning to attend all of our virtual sessions, we suggest a registration fee of $150 for HPN members and $250 for non-members and an additional $25 or $50, respectively, per additional representative of your organization. Can't make it to some of the sessions? Take some off. You know what's fair.

Select the number of attendees from your organization, below, to add additional attendees to your registration form. The form below takes a credit card. Prefer to pay by eCheck? Click here.

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