The 2019 GBIS Technical Conference & Expo was held August 16 – 17, 2019 and was once again a success. The Meet & Greet event was sponsored by Vizzia Technologies and hosted at the Marriott Courtyard Macon. Participants gathered to have a good time socializing and networking with fellow healthcare professionals. 

Registration kicked off the conference with breakfast sponsored by DotMed and a welcoming presentation was given by Glen Stone, host representative for Central Georgia Technical College and Horace Hunter, GBIS Executive Director.  All the exhibitors was given the time to personally invite all the attendees to visit there booth.

A great thank you goes out to all the instructors that volunteered their time to present excellent classes: Ed Walters, Philips Healthcare – Artificial Intelligence; Nikhil Shirke, Fortuneline Business Consulting – Future Trends in CMMS; Michael Cameron, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta-Safety Analyzers; Dr. Karen & Dr. Lorraine Jonassen, Georgia Gwinnett College-Cyber Security; Dr. Mike O’Rear, Chattanooga Technical College-6G and the effects on HTM; Glen Stone, Central Georgia Technical College-Importance of the skill of soldering. The attendees from all the classes expressed great appreciation and how wonderful all the classes were conducted.

The guest speaker-Martin J McLaughlin of AAMI gave a great presentation expressing the importance and benefits of becoming ACI certified. He presented a power point illustration highlighting the history and the certification process.

Bhumika Patel was presented with an AAMI pin and congratulations from AAMI Martin J McLaughlin for completing the ACI certification test. Dr. Mike O’Rear and Horace Hunter presented her the GBIS ACI Scholarship award and reimbursement check for completing the certification test. MediMizer, Inc. was the sponsor for this year’s award. Mrs. Patel gave this very impressive acceptance speech.

 "Good Afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen!
I am extremely honored to be receiving this GBIS ACI Certification award. I am very grateful for the recognition that I have received for my achievement.
I have faced several challenges on my way here, but would like to thank almighty for giving me strength to achieve this. Moreover I would like to thank my better half my husband for encouraging me. My parents, my In laws, family and friends for their tremendous support. Winning this award would not have been possible without the inspiration. 
The toughest battles are the ones fought against nature’s will. When ‘unexplainable phenomena’ cripples one’s body, one tends to ask “why me?” And there is enough number of people in the world fighting this battle. This gives my life purpose and inclines me to be involved in healthcare. Mary Schmich once wrote, “Our body is the most important instrument we’ll ever possess” and through biomedical engineering, I hope to keep this instrument ‘sharp- sounding’ when the music fades away. This will be my gift to the world.
I also promise to only get better at my work. Thank you all. Thank you GBIS for believing in me. I encourage you all to be certified. It’s better for us, for our society and for the healthcare industry."

Over all, the conference was a very good success having almost 100 participants joins us for another year of fun, enjoyment and a knowledge sharing experience.