When Systems Go Silent:
HI Leadership in Downtime & Recovery

When systems go down, Health Information (HI) professionals step up. Join OHIMA for this virtual event focused on one of the most critical challenges facing healthcare organizations today — downtime preparedness and recovery. Hear firsthand experiences from organizations that have navigated prolonged downtime events, including lessons learned, recovery strategies, and what they would do differently. Learn from discussions and exercises designed to help your organization prepare for the unexpected.

Prepare your team. Strengthen your strategy. Lead with confidence.

Register now to secure your spot! This virtual event will take place on Tuesday, August 4, 2026 from 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM EST via Zoom (all times are Eastern Time Zone). The event recording will be available through October 31, 2026. It is highly recommended that you attend this event live so you can interact with our speakers and ask questions! Find details on each presentation and our speakers below.

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The Nashville Nightmare
1.5 AHIMA CEUs
Domain: Information Protection: Access, Disclosure, Archival, Privacy and Security

Description

This panel discussion will describe the scope and impact of the Nashville tornado on the physical building and the records stored inside. The challenges involved in recovering scattered PHI will be addressed. During the presentation, key labor, legal, HIPAA/regulatory, and insurance considerations related to the loss and exposure of health records during a natural disaster will be explored. The session will close by summarizing mitigation strategies for proactive disaster planning that contribute to compliance, business continuity, and protection of medical records.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of this session, attendees will be able to:

• Describe the scope and impact of the Nashville tornado on physical building and records stored and elaborate on the challenges involved in recovering scattered PHI
• Identify key labor, legal, HIPAA/regulatory, & insurance considerations related to the loss and exposure of health records during a natural disaster
• Explore mitigation strategies for proactive disaster planning that contribute to compliance, business continuity, and protection of medical records.

Speakers

Rose T. Dunn, MBA, RHIA, CPA, CHPS, FACHE, FHFMA, FAHIMA, currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer of St. Louis-based First Class Solutions, Inc. Her distinguished career in healthcare began at Barnes Hospital, the flagship facility of BJC Healthcare, where she rose to the role of Vice President, overseeing a workforce of 1,600 employees. Following Rose's tenure at Barnes, she transitioned to MetLife Healthcare as a National Assistant Vice President, gaining deep expertise in managed care. She later served as Chief Financial Officer for a dual-hospital system in Illinois, where she played a key role in the organization's successful bond issuance. For over 35 years, Ms. Dunn has led her own firm, which partners with hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, providers, and payers to enhance revenue cycle operations and overall financial performance. An accomplished leader in the field, she is a recipient of the prestigious AHIMA Distinguished Member award and has served both as the elected President and interim CEO of this 80,000-member professional association. She currently chairs the HIMSS Long-Term and Post-Acute Care (LTPAC) Committee. Her professional affiliations include active involvement with ACHE, AICPA, HFMA, HIMSS, and AHIMA. Rose is also a prolific author and speaker, having published more than 200 articles and over a dozen texts, including Dunn & Haimann's Healthcare Management (ACHE/HAP), the Libman Education module Fundamentals of HCCs, and delivered countless presentations on a wide range of healthcare topics.

Deanna M. Peterson, MHA, RHIA, CHPS, LNHA, has been an accomplished Health Information Professional with extensive experience across acute care, LTACHs, skilled nursing, and post-acute care providers. In 2009, Deanna joined First Class Solutions, Inc., where she is Senior Vice President for Operations and Long-Term Post-Acute Care Services and serves as the organization's Privacy Officer. She provides strategic leadership, strengthens compliance and documentation practices, and supports clients with survey readiness, quality initiatives, and EHR optimization. Deanna holds a BS in Health Information Management and an MHA from Saint Louis University, is a Licensed Nursing Home Administrator in Missouri, and holds multiple AHIMA certifications. A recognized leader, she has served as MoHIMA President and on AHIMA practice councils, earning several professional awards for her contributions to post-acute care and HIM.

Adam Henderson is a seasoned entrepreneur, investor, and CEO with a strong track record of building and scaling service-driven organizations. He founded STAT Informatics Solutions, a company specializing in information governance and document management for hospitals, government entities, and other regulated environments. Under Adam's leadership, STAT grew into a trusted partner for mission-critical operations before ultimately being acquired. He is now the CEO of Acuity Consulting Solutions, a Consulting firm specializing in digital optimization, generative AI, project management and disaster recovery. After leading a successful exit, Adam shifted his focus to becoming President and CEO of Acuity Consulting Services' specializing in federal contracting, SDVOSB organizations, and mission-oriented consulting teams. His expertise spans operations, compliance, growth strategy, and navigating complex stakeholder relationships. Known for his direct, practical approach and his commitment to integrity and execution, Adam brings a clear-eyed perspective to leadership, scale, and building businesses that last. Adam earned his BSBM from the University of Phoenix and graduated from Drake University's signature 18-month Executive Management Program. He is a devout Catholic and resides in Green Bay, WI with his wife and children.

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HIM Leadership and Operations During a Prolonged System Downtime: Lessons Learned and Recovery Strategies
1 AHIMA CEU
Domain: Information Protection: Access, Disclosure, Archival, Privacy and Security

Description

Lurie Children's experienced an unexpected, prolonged system downtime lasting approximately 30 days. During this time, the Health Information Management (HIM) team played a critical role in maintaining documentation integrity, supporting clinical operations, and leading recovery efforts. This session will share key lessons learned from the downtime, including how the HIM team adapted workflows, supported clinical and operational teams, and partnered across the organization to ensure continuity of care. The presenters will also discuss strategies used to support system reactivation and documentation recovery. In addition, we will highlight current business continuity planning efforts, including tools, processes, and governance structures designed to support documentation and HIM operations during future downtime events.

Learning Objectives:

• Define the role of HIM during a system downtime, including key responsibilities in supporting clinical operations, documentation, and data integrity.
• Identify strategies to effectively support HIM teams during downtime events, including staffing models, workflow adjustments, and communication approaches.
• Describe approaches to managing recovery and system reactivation, including documentation reconciliation, scanning, indexing, and backlog management.
• Evaluate documentation strategies for downtime scenarios, including paper-based workflows, transcription tools, and governance practices to ensure a complete and compliant legal medical record.

Speakers

Kara Hollis, MBA, RHIA, is the Senior Director of Health Information Management at Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago, where she leads enterprise-wide strategies for information governance, regulatory compliance, and HIM operations. With deep expertise in healthcare information management, Kara oversees initiatives spanning release of information, documentation integrity, data governance, and digital transformation. Kara is a recognized leader in driving operational excellence and innovation, with a strong focus on leveraging technology to improve efficiency, compliance, and patient care. She has played a key role in advancing strategic initiatives including HIM modernization, AI-enabled documentation tools, and cyber resilience planning within complex healthcare environments. Known for her collaborative leadership style, Kara partners closely with clinical, IT, compliance, and executive teams to align information management practices with organizational priorities. She is also deeply committed to team engagement and professional development, fostering a culture of accountability, growth, and continuous improvement. 

Christina Mizera, RHIA, is a Health Information Management (HIM) Manager at Lurie Children's Hospital specializing in data integrity and regulatory compliance. She leads both the Data Integrity and Deficiency Analyst teams, overseeing critical functions such as Master Patient Index (MPI), chart corrections, and dictation system management. Her team also ensures reliable interface monitoring along with maintaining all uptime and downtime forms. In addition, Christina facilitates and leads HIM Committee meetings, driving collaboration and process improvement. Through her leadership of the Deficiency Analyst team, she ensures the accuracy and completeness of medical records by supporting detailed chart analysis and enforcing provider documentation requirements, including deficiency tracking and privilege suspension when necessary. 

 Shellaine Kang, RHIA, CCS, is the Director of Hospital Coding, CDI, and Epic Physician Database at Lurie Children's Hospital. She has extensive background in health information management, revenue cycle optimization, and coding compliance, she leads high-performing teams to enhance documentation accuracy, coding efficiency, and financial outcomes. She is known for her data-driven approach, collaboration with clinical and operational stakeholders, and commitment to driving process improvements that support organizational performance and patient care excellence.

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Disaster Planning & Recovery Tabletop Exercise
1 AHIMA CEU
Domain: Information Protection: Access, Disclosure, Archival, Privacy and Security

Description

When healthcare systems go down, coordinated decision-making across departments becomes critical. In this interactive tabletop exercise session, presenters representing key organizational roles - including clinical operations, HIM, IT, compliance, leadership, and revenue cycle - will work through a simulated downtime event in real time. As the scenario unfolds, the presenter team will respond to evolving challenges such as system outages, ransomware incidents, Wi-Fi/network disruptions, communication breakdowns, and operational recovery decisions. Attendees will observe the decision-making process while contributing ideas, questions, and response strategies through facilitated audience interaction and discussion. Designed to mirror the complexity of real-world healthcare downtime events, this session will highlight the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration, preparedness planning, communication workflows, and recovery coordination. Participants will leave with practical insights and strategies to strengthen downtime readiness within their own organizations.

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

• Identify operational and communication challenges that arise during healthcare downtime events.
• Describe the roles and responsibilities of HIM, clinical, IT, compliance, and operational teams during system disruptions and recovery efforts.
• Discuss response strategies for various downtime scenarios, including ransomware attacks, software outages, and network/Wi-Fi failures.
• Analyze interdisciplinary decision-making processes during a simulated downtime exercise.
• Recognize opportunities to improve downtime preparedness, communication planning, and recovery coordination within their organization.
• Apply lessons learned from the tabletop exercise to support organizational resilience and continuity planning.

Speaker

This session will be led by Manjusri (MJ) Nguyen, MBA, RHIA, Associate Director - Epic Services at Nationwide Children's Hospital.

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REGISTRATION

Registration deadline is Friday, July 31, 2026.

This event is worth 3.5 AHIMA CEUs. 
AHIMA CEUs are also accepted by AAPC!
Check eligibility on the AAPC website. 

REGISTER NOW

 
**Log into your OHIMA profile in order to take advantage of your member rate! **If you are an AHIMA member from a partnering component association, use your special promo code to discount your rate (check your email).

In order to qualify for the OHIMA member rate, you must be a 2026 AHIMA/OHIMA member. If you have questions about your member status or believe that your member status is incorrect in your OHIMA profile, please contact the OHIMA Central Office. If you wish to renew your membership or join AHIMA/OHIMA to take advantage of discounted registration rates, please join AHIMA and select Ohio as your state association. Then, contact the OHIMA Central Office to have our system updated immediately and see discounted registration rates applied during registration.

Only credit cards and debit cards are accepted forms of payment for registration. If you must pay with a check, contact the OHIMA Central Office.

ACCESS INSTRUCTIONS

This is a virtual event hosted via Zoom. Access information will be sent to registered attendees on Monday, August 3rd EOD. Please enter your email address correctly during registration! If you do not receive this email, first check your spam and then contact the OHIMA Central Office. The recording of the event will be made available 1 week after the live event concludes; access instructions will be sent after the event. The event recordings will remain online through October 31st for viewing and earning CEUs.

CE CREDITS

This program meets the AHIMA CE Guidelines for 3.5 hours of continuing education. AHIMA CEUs are also accepted by the AAPC! Check eligibility on the AAPC website. CE credits will also apply to the recorded version if unable to attend the live streamed event. 

After the event, CEUs will be uploaded into your OHIMA profile (My CEUs under the Member Menu). Even if you are not an OHIMA member, you still have an OHIMA profile on the OHIMA website because you registered for this event. There within your profile, you can download or save a report of your CEUs. Please note that you’ll still need to enter your CEUs in your AHIMA CEU Center (they will NOT transfer automatically). We recommend entering all the OHIMA Virtual Event CEUs as one entry: “OHIMA Virtual Event: When Systems Go Silent: HI Leadership in Downtime & Recovery” and the total # of CEUs earned. (The domain for all 3 sessions is Information Protection: Access, Disclosure, Archival, Privacy and Security.) Then, keep the CEU detail in your OHIMA profile. Any questions - contact the OHIMA Central Office.

SPONSORSHIP

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