Note from the Director of Programming: What do you want to tell us?

by Rebecca Hendren

You’ve probably heard us say this a lot: ACDIS’ mission is to serve our members. Everything we do, we do to ensure we are the most useful partner you can possibly have as a CDI professional.

But how do we manage this? Because you tell us what you need. ACDIS has eight committees, a CDI Leadership Council, Mastermind groups, a forum, and regular focus groups and networking events where ACDIS’ direction and education are guided by our members.

We have many outlets for you to share your thoughts about ACDIS and CDI, so if you want to get more involved, keep an eye out for the next call for volunteers in June, or simply email us anytime you want at info@acdis.org and know that the ACDIS editorial team will read it and respond.

The ACDIS conference in May is a perfect example of a service that has been created and steered by our members. Each year we put out a call for speakers and the CDI community sends in their greatest ideas and best success stories, and then a committee of their peers evaluates who should be on the agenda. The committee also reviews poster applications and votes for the winners of the ACDIS Achievement Awards. It’s a wonderful example of member voices being heard.

The conference is also a wonderful way to share your thoughts when onsite. I’m looking forward to spending three days in deep conversation with many of our members when we’re all together in Chicago. The conference really is my favorite time of the year. It’s reinvigorating and inspiring to talk with attendees and find out what’s going on in their CDI lives and get ideas for how ACDIS can help support them, provide education, or even start working on guidelines and best practices.

Another very important way we receive feedback is through the annual membership survey—and you don’t even need to be a member to take it! ACDIS provides so many free resources such as the ACDIS Podcast, position papers, the weekly CDI Strategies, the biweekly ACDIS Podcast, and so on that we want to hear about from everyone. Those who are members get a chance to opine on the offerings that are exclusive to members, including the CDI Journal and all the online resources. And if you’re not a member, feel free to give feedback on the various free resources.

Please take the time to give us your opinion. It’s through direct member feedback that we know what you like and don’t like and where we should devote our resources. You have until March 31 to take the membership survey here, so make sure we can hear your voice!

Editor’s note: Hendren is the director of programming for ACDIS. Contact her at rhendren@acdis.org.