Looking back on 2018, I can’t help but choose gratitude as the theme for this month’s column, which is also my last as your chapter president.

The health benefits of practicing gratitude are evidenced in study after study. Increased sense of well-being, reduced depression & anxiety, lowering risk of disease, and a brain flooded with feel-good chemicals like serotonin are just a few of the pay-offs of a grateful mindset.

As I reflect on this year at MHSCN, a few things rise to the top of my gratitude list this year:

• A remarkable team of board members: I am grateful for the time and talent these people share to make the wheels of MHSCN spin. They are talented, they are committed, and they are fun! Special thanks to Susan Haberle, Kristi Hamilton, Allison Bendickson and Valerie Anderson who are leaving after this year’s term expires. Thanks also to Mary Beth Schwarz and Erika Peterson who left the board earlier this year due to career changes. I’m a better person and a smarter professional thanks to knowing & working with you all.
• Substantial content for our members: MSHCN delivered on its value promise in 2018 with “Engage! Influence! Inspire!” spring conference & awards; Networking events including a Job Transition Panel, Walk & Talk at Lake Nokomis and the Network & Nosh Breakfast at Bluespire; and the “Adventures in Healthcare Marketing & PR” fall joint conference held in the Wisconsin Dells with WHPRMS and ISHMPR.
• Strong direction for MHSCN’s future. We worked hard to complete a new strategic plan this year and I’m grateful we can put a check in the “completed” box next to that task. It’s a solid plan built on the feedback you provided us in last year’s member survey. I’m excited to work together to put it into action in 2019.

I know without a doubt that incoming president, Paul Fiore, will continue to advance the MHSCN mission to advance the success, professional development, effectiveness, and visibility of Minnesota’s healthcare marketing, communications, public relations and strategy professionals.

In closing, I know that the difficulties of life are easy to list, especially in healthcare these days. They come to mind one after the other without much effort. My hope is that our gifts of good fortune, both personally and professionally, would be just as easy to tally and my parting challenge is to build a daily gratitude practice into your life in 2019.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve you this year, and my heartfelt wishes for an abundance of health and gratefulness in 2019.   

Katie Johnson
MHSCN president, 2018