Issue 21, August 17, 2021

Checking for Campus Technology Issues

Have you ever picked up your phone, found you had no dial tone and wondered if it was just you? Did you walk down the hallway to another office to see if anyone else was having problems? Were you unsure whether to report it or not? A similar scenario with our phone system happened late last week.

Now, you have UTHSC TechConnect will let you know when ITS is experiencing any issue that might affect your service!

You may be asking yourself, "How do I check?" Go to the client portal and look in the first column. If ITS is experiencing any issue, it will be listed there. We will remove the notice once the issue is resolved.

Our goal is to let you know of an issue as soon as possible!

Our Cybersecurity team instituted a policy that puts [Ext] before the subject line of external email messages. This was more of a cautionary thing just to let you know that the email was not sent from someone within the UT system.

This does not mean you cannot or should not open the email. Especially if you communicate often with partners at other institutions (St. Jude, ROH, Le Bonheur), professional associations (AMA, ADA), higher ed associations (EDUCAUSE, ACGME), or vendors (Roche, Fisher Scientific). Even our ITS newsletter has the [Ext] prefix in the subject line because it is sent through MailChimp. 

All the [Ext] means is a simple, “Hey, this email didn’t come from an internal UT source, so use caution when opening it.” 

Have a question about a suspicious email? Either forward it to abuse@uthsc.edu or contact our Cybersecurity Office at itsecurity@uthsc.edu.

2021 NVivo Virtual Conference

The 2021 NVivo Conference, Transcending Boundaries in Qualitative Research, is being held virtually on September 22-23. Join leading researchers from around the globe to meet, learn and network with peers and experts while examining global impacts on and trends in qualitative research.

You can customize your learning and networking experience by selecting from over 70 hours of programming available live on the day of the event and on-demand for 90 days following the event. Conference registration is $99.

The pre-conference workshops allow you to expand your NVivo knowledge by attending a specialized virtual session facilitated by an NVivo Expert. Each workshop is 2 hours in length and costs $25.

Microsoft has some excellent training courses we recommend:

• Microsoft Teams Breakout Rooms Level 100 (August 23 - 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm CST)
• Supporting The Whole Student for Education with Microsoft Teams Insights (August 24 - 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm CST)
• Back to School Roadmap: Outlook (August 31 - 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm CST)

Are you new to Excel? Check out this Microsoft introduction to Excel series of videos to get you started! And remember, if you are a new to UTHSC, you have access to Microsoft 365, which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and many other fabulous applications.

Email
Using @ to Add Someone to an Outlook Email

Do you ever find yourself in an email exchange with a coworker and think someone else should be included in the conversation? You can add them to the To: or CC field, but did you know you can also add them to the conversation by using the @ and typing their name within the body of the message? 

Better yet, if it is a longer email with several topics and they only need to know about a certain section of the conversation, use @their-name in that section so they know at a glance that that part needs their attention.  

Lean 6 Sigma
What is a Fishbone Diagram?

In Lean, we save time by not reinventing the wheel.
 
So, instead of us telling you how great a Fishbone Diagram is, just check out this awesome article from GoLeanSixSigma that tells you all about the Fishbone Diagram and how it can help you and your team brainstorm. Plus, there is a nifty template you can download for free.

Why Should You Be Concerned about Cyber Security Breaches?

Cybersecurity should be everyone's concern. Data theft has become a global phenomenon. Public and private entities in the U.S. are overwhelmingly the most attractive targets of cyber-attacks.  Over thirty-six billion records were stolen in 2020 globally. It is difficult for any entity to eliminate the possibility of being vulnerable when it comes to cyber-attacks. Successful and notable cyber incidents hardly scratch the surface of the number of attacks or breaches that occur daily.

These attacks underline the fact that criminals will exploit any vulnerability in any system. It also highlights the fact that no industry can consider itself immune to attack and must constantly address their security procedures to better protect themselves from these evolving threats. Data from the healthcare industry, which includes both personal identities and medical histories, have a wealth of information and are sold for a high price.

Research demonstrates that the healthcare sector is uniquely vulnerable to privacy breaches due to   regulations for healthcare operations to adopt electronic health records (EHR). Healthcare records contain some of the most valuable information available, including Social Security numbers, home addresses and patient health histories, making them more valuable to hackers than other types of data.

All it takes is opening up an email attachment for hackers to gain access to hospital systems. Despite the potential threats that malicious actors may pose to online network systems, the Internet and electronic devices continue to drive the economies of the world. We should take cybersecurity seriously while allowing innovation to continue to thrive. Security is everybody's business.

Reference: https://www.hipaajournal.com/healthcare-data-breach-statistics/

ITS Spotlight: Lisa Hall

In each issue, we feature one of our amazing ITS team members. We learn more about Lisa Hall, executive director of our Business Productivity team in this segment.

What is your role and how long have you been in ITS at UTHSC? I am celebrating my 8-year anniversary with UTHSC in early September! My role has changed many times since I joined the university. I was hired for my process background to lead the Systems Development team. We branched off and piloted the Lean 6 Sigma initiative in 2018 to help the campus with continuous process improvement projects. Shortly after, we created the Business Productivity Solutions team, which now includes Lean, Application Support, Product Management, and ITS Communications. Our mission is to provide holistic support of processes and products for the campus.

What is a day in the life of Lisa like? We provide training and support for Lean, desktop applications, and enterprise-level systems (think: SharePoint, OnBase, Blackboard, TechConnect), so that our campus customers can be as productive as possible, by improving their processes and fully utilizing the technology available to us. What I love about my job is that no two days are the same!

What is your favorite thing about working at UTHSC? I think UTHSC draws a special type of person: people who want to make a difference! Whether your job is training our future medical professionals, supporting those who do, or you are a future medical professional, we all want to make UTHSC and the world the best it can be. And that makes us all special!

What’s something most people don’t know about you? I love the outdoors! Whether it is camping, hiking, playing in the water, hanging on the beach, or skiing, I’m in! It helps to refresh my brain and brings fun and balance into my life!