Conferences | Social Media University, Global (SMUG)

Orlando Observations

I have been in Orlando for the last couple of days rehearsing for — and then presenting at — Virtual VA E-Health University, or VeHU. Apparently this used to be an in-person conference with significant attendance, but due to travel budget cuts they’re now doing it virtually. It was my first experience presenting in front of a green screen:

I felt kind of like the weather guy on TV, because the computer system placed a whole stage behind me, and I was able to point to elements on my slides and interact with them. If I can get the video I will post part of it here.

As part of the #vVeHU project, the leaders asked participants around the country to take pictures of themselves joining us, and including a three-word phrase describing their thoughts or reactions to the event. I had some great coaches (Erin and Jenny) helping me get accustomed to the green screen format, and after rehearsal on Thursday we joined the three-word challenge, too. Here’s our photo (click to enlarge):

The conference continues next week, so follow the #vVeHU tag on Twitter to join the discussion.

A few other observations from the trip:

1. We were in Orlando last month for an AAU basketball tournament, and with my celiac disease it was nice to find a Chipotle able to provide a gluten-free meal. I ate dinner there last night, and also grabbed a burrito bowl today on the way to the airport. I was amazed that even at 8 p.m. yesterday there was a long line, and it wasn’t much shorter at 4:30 today:

2. I needed to get gas for my rental car, and at a place called BJ’s Gas I had a new experience. I put my credit card in the reader, and after I had gone through the authorization I discovered that it still wouldn’t let me buy gas. It wanted me to swipe my membership card:

That was odd; I had never seen a gas station where a membership was required. Talk about a gated community. 😉

3. As I jumped on one of the toll roads on the way to the airport, the customary alignment of the cash-only lanes was the reverse of what I’ve normally experienced, in that the far-right lane (which usually is staffed and offers change for your “foldin’ money”) was an exact-change, coins-only lane. When I realized it, I already had three people behind me, so I had to just go through. I pulled over and tried to walk back to the booth operator in the adjoining lane (which had no cars coming) and he waved me off, saying he wasn’t allowed to take payment for the other lane. I understood the safety concern, so I went back to the car and backed into his lane (there was still no one there), and still he said he couldn’t take my money. So this is my official confession to the crime of going through a toll booth without paying. I tried. Really I did. I hope the state police don’t meet me when my plane lands there next time. But if anyone can tell me where I can pay my $1.25 debt to society to prevent future prosecution, I would be most grateful.

4. Even though the TSA has gotten lots of flack for intrusive searches, I have to say my experience through the TSA Pre-Check program has been fantastic. When I arrived at the airport, the screening line was long, but with pre-check I got through in less than five minutes.

5. On my flight from Orlando to Atlanta, I got on wifi and checked the status of my rental car in Detroit, which I hope to be picking up in the next hour. Dedrick M. with Hertz was extremely helpful, in the online chat, getting my reservation moved over to my Gold account so when I arrive at DTW and need to pick up the rental car for my drive to Grand Rapids, I will be able to just grab the car and go instead of waiting in line.

6. The wifi at Atlanta’s airport was intolerably slow. It took 15 minutes just to get logged in, and then when I opened five tabs in my browser I got this message:

I’ve never had a good wifi experience in Atlanta, but this was the worst yet.

Our Delta flight should be landing in Detroit a little before midnight, and then I’ll drive to Grand Rapids, MI to meet up with my family.

All-in-all, it was a great trip, and it makes me thankful for all of the conveniences and technology we enjoy today.

It’s amazing to have a virtual conference that reaches across the country.

It’s amazing to have wifi in airplanes, and to be able to write blog posts from 30,000 feet.

And it’s really great that because of air travel my route from Atlanta doesn’t go like this:

We’re celebrating birthdays for our granddaughters this weekend. If all goes according to plan, I should arrive at their house about 2:30 a.m.

Looking forward to a great day with the family tomorrow. God has truly blessed us!

Welcome to all the new SMUGgles from the VeHU conference!

Keynoting the HARC Forum in Sydney

I’m delighted to be in Sydney, New South Wales this week and presenting this evening at the HARC 7th Forum. HARC is the Hospital Alliance for Research Collaboration, and is an initiative of the Sax Institute in partnership with the NSW Clinical Excellence Commission and the Agency for Clinical Innovation.

As is my propensity, I will be going through a lot of slides during my 50-minute presentation, so to make it easier for participants to follow without having to take notes, I’ve posted the deck to Slideshare and have embedded below.

HARC Forum Presentation

View more presentations from Lee Aase

You can follow all the fun on Twitter with the #HARCsm tag. I’m glad also to finally get to meet Hugh Stephens, who is a member of our External Advisory Board for the Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media.

Here are a few links participants might want to check:

The Know Your Numbers video and Facebook application.
The Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media site
Information on joining Mayo Clinic’s Social Media Health Network and a list of members.
How to become a SMUGgle.

I look forward to continuing the conversation in the comments below, and in the social time after the event. We also have a tweetup with the #HCSMANZ gang Thursday night.

SMUG Down Under

As I write this, I’m at the Denver airport, having just done a presentation for the annual meeting of the American Association of Medical Colleges. It was fun to get to hear Don Tapscott, author of Wikinomics and Macrowikinomics, in a plenary session just before my presentation. He’s one of the authors who have influenced me a lot, so it was a treat to hear him. Much food for continued thought.

Tonight I’m flying to Los Angeles to catch a flight to Sydney, where I will be the guest of the Sax Institute and its collaborators in New South Wales.

It’s my first trip to Australia, and as far as I know it’s the first time any of my ancestors have been there. A whole new continent.

It’s going to be a really full week. I will be posting more here, and documenting the trip via Twitter, too.

This will be the longest night I’ve ever experienced. It’s dark in Denver as we get ready to board, and for the next 20 hours or so I’m going to be flying into the night, until arriving in Sydney on Monday morning.

I feel kind of ripped off that I don’t get to experience the end of Daylight Saving Time in the U.S. and the “Fall back” part of the equation, but then again I won’t really experience Sunday, either.

For those who attended my session at the AAMC meeting, I welcome any comments or questions you may have…just put them in the comments below. And if you want to see the full version of the video I used to close my presentation, it’s here.

G’Night!

On Italy and Aletta

I’m in Baveno, Italy today and will be coming back to the U.S. tomorrow after my 8:30 a.m. presentation. As this video shows (and tells), this has been quite an eventful trip since I left Rochester, Minn. on Saturday morning:

I’m about to go for dinner, and this time I’m fairly confident I won’t be locking myself on the outside patio. Last night I had to call my host Hans and have him get someone from the front desk to rescue me. I’m not sure what I would have done if I hadn’t brought my phone out there with me, and if I hadn’t previously talked by cell with Hans. It’s about 30 feet to the ground, and I’m sure I would have freaked some of the other guests if they had seen a big blond guy crawling on the roof.

The hotel staffer graciously assured me that this had happened many times before. I’m blaming this incident on jet lag.

And while I’m not blaming my need to run to the Mall of America for dress pants during my MSP layover on my wife Lisa’s absence, it sure will be good to have her back home when I get there Thursday. She’s been in Grand Rapids, Mich. for the last 11 days to help my daughter Rachel, who just gave birth to our third grandchild, Aletta Louise Borg, last Wednesday. Lisa flies home Wednesday.

Here’s a picture of Rachel with her little brood, including the newest arrival:

I’m glad Lisa has been able to help Rachel, but with her home I will hopefully be less out of sorts.