Local chapter update: Struggling with virtual member engagement or remote meetings?

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, most ACDIS local chapters and networking groups have embraced a remote structure for their meetings and member engagement. While this structure allows members more flexibility to join meetings regularly without taking time off work to commute to an onsite location or travel across the state, it doesn’t come without its challenges.

Many chapter leaders have found that while their meeting attendance has grown, their member engagement has suffered in the remove environment. To offer ideas for more consistent and widespread engagement, the ACDIS Chapter Advisory Committee participated in a free virtual panel discussion for leaders on the topic of virtual engagement and meetings on July 18, 2024.

If you missed the live webinar, you’re in luck: The recording is available for free on the ACDIS website!

This panel discussion was led by ACDIS Associate Editorial Director Linnea Archibald and featured the following members of the Chapter Advisory Committee:

• Danita Arrowood from the CDI educators networking group
• Amy Bush from the pediatric ACDIS networking group (APDIS)
• Madhu Subherwal from California 
• Jenny Taylor from Idaho/Washington

Click here to watch the recording!

The following is a list of upcoming events for ACDIS local chapters! Visit your local chapter’s webpage on the ACDIS site for additional information about upcoming meetings. To join a chapter if you haven’t already or to update your chapter contact information/affiliation, click here.

October:

• The Pediatric Networking Group (APDIS) meets Thursday, October 24, 3–4:30 p.m., via webinar. The program is titled, “Hot Topics: Episode 5,” and will be presented by Kara Lawrence Layman, RN, CCDS. For information, contact Amy Bush (bush-amy@cooperhealth.edu).
• The Wisconsin ACDIS chapter meets Thursday, October 24, 1–3 p.m., via webinar. For information, contact Alicia Whiteford (WisconsinACDIS@gmail.com).

November:

• The Florida ACDIS chapter meets Saturday, November 2, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., in person, for their last quarterly meeting. For information, contact Edna I. Betances-Harold (betane@shands.ufl.edu).
• The Massachusetts ACDIS chapter meets Saturday, November 2, 1–2 p.m., via webinar. The program is titled, “The Confusion About Encephalopathy,” and will be presented by Yasmin Aghajan, MD. For information, contact Liz Castellucci (lcastellucci@mgh.harvard.edu).
• The North Carolina ACDIS chapter meets Friday, November 15, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., in person, for their winter conference. For information, contact Kay Blue (Kayblue01@gmail.com).
• The Virginia ACDIS chapter meets Friday, November 15, 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m., via webinar. The program is titled, “Lessons Learned: How a Definition Defines Sepsis Outcomes,” and will be presented by Alexis Wells, MSN, RN, LSSYB, CCDS, and Stacie Gandee, RHIA, CCS, CDIP, LSSYB. For information, contact Amanda Palacios (amanda.palacios@rivhs.com).
• The Illinois ACDIS chapter meets Wednesday, November 20, 12–1 p.m., via webinar. The program is titled, “The Role of AI in CDI: Questions and Answers,” and will be presented by Joshua Geleris, MD. For information, contact Dorothy Fanning (dorothy.fanning@aah.org).

December:

• The Georgia ACDIS chapter meets Friday, December 6, via webinar for its fourth quarterly meeting. For information, contact James Doster (james.doster@atriumhealth.org).