by Katherine Du Fresne, RN, MSN, CPHRM, FASHRM
Hello Friends,
The Month of May is already upon us! It seems like just a moment ago we were celebrating the new year, but now spring is in full swing. Some of you may know that I am from Indianapolis, Indiana. But if you are not also from Indiana, you may not know just how important the Month of May is to Indianapolis. You see, on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, the Indianapolis 500 will take place. But the festivities around the Indy 500 start well before the race! In fact, things really kick off at the end of April with a bike race called the “Little 500,” which takes place at Indiana University in Bloomington. You may remember the Little 500 from the 1979 film “Breaking Away.”
I am by no means a bicycle racer—mine has a basket and a bell—but I am always impressed by the dynamics of team bike racing. In fact, I recently heard a colleague of mine, who is a racer, explain the concept of “drafting” in bike racing. My simple understanding of drafting is that a team of racers positions themselves in a close line behind one another, which reduces air resistance for the riders behind the lead. In this formation, the second rider can gain a “draft benefit” that reduces their energy use by about 25%. The riders in the third and fourth positions can gain even greater benefit—perhaps up to 30–40% energy savings. But the really interesting thing is that the lead rider, the one providing that benefit to the team, also reaps a small benefit—maybe even a 5% energy savings.
You might be thinking—OK, interesting, but what does that have to do with being a risk professional? Honestly, it reminds me a lot of it—and not just the fast pace or the high stakes. What really strikes me as similar is the way we, as an ASHRM community, provide “draft benefit” for one another. I cannot count the times a colleague has tackled a problem ahead of me and then shared their learnings, reducing my energy expenditure and enabling me to go farther, faster. When colleagues share experience and knowledge, not only does the draft benefit impact risk professionals, but it ultimately impacts patients all over the country. So, let’s keep collaborating and connecting and see just how much draft benefit we can generate!
And here are just a few ways that ASHRM is providing some draft benefit for all of us:
- The inaugural session of the redesigned HRM Essentials was held this month in Dallas. Over 70 risk professionals attended!
- On June 5th, ASHRM will host a complimentary wellness-focused webinar featuring Stefanie Simmons from the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes Foundation.
- Keep an eye out for Healthcare Risk Management Week resources from ASHRM—it’s coming up June 15–19.
- The ASHRM Learning Symposium, a new live learning event, will launch in Chicago in July.
- And the ASHRM Annual Conference 2026 is just around the corner! Registration is now open, and the conference takes place October 4–6th in Phoenix, Arizona.
Happy Health Care Risk Management Week—a little bit early! And keep racing, friends. Remember, you have a team in the ASHRM community!
Katie
2026 ASHRM President