Help and Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Links

1. How do I submit an item, and which category do I choose?
2. Why can’t I access my old submissions? Why can’t these be used anymore to recreate or rerun my old announcements?
3. How do I write a better headline?
4. Where can I find photos?
5. How do I only receive emails about the events and announcements that interest me?
6. How can I get my announcement or event featured in your advertisements on the right hand side of the page?
7. How do I opt out of receiving Health System Headlines?
8. Who can I contact for more information?
9. What type of items can be posted in Health System Headlines?
10. Can I add an event from Health System Headlines to my Outlook calendar?
11. Can my announcement be published in multiple categories?
12. How many days are items featured in Health System Headlines?
13. Can I submit events that are open to the public?

1. How do I submit an item, and which category do I choose?

To submit an item, click the “Submit an Item” above. Log in with your Level 1 login  if you are a Health System employee, and fill out the simple form. If you are not part of the Health System, email your item to the editor using the link on the Submit an Item page.

Here’s the list of categories, and the types of items that can go into them. You can choose more than one category for each item you submit.

• Clinical Care: Information about inpatient, ambulatory and diagnostic/procedure services, including Faculty Group Practice, Ambulatory Care and nursing and allied health professions.
• Clinical & Translational Research: News and updates for researchers and research-support staff involved in clinical trials or integration of research into clinical practice. This includes abstract submission opportunities.
• Basic Research: News and updates for researchers and research-support staff in laboratory settings.
• Education: Promote educational opportunities and programs for the UMHS community. Includes MLearning, the Clinical Simulations Center, Continuing Medical Education (CME) and preparation for educational accreditation. Includes M.D., Ph.D., Postdoctoral and Multi-Degree programs, U-M residency and fellowships.
• Faculty Development: Information about courses, seminars, videos and other resources to support faculty in their career development.
• Global Initiatives: Information about international education and service opportunities including seminars, events ,Global Reach, the U-M Center for Global Health and the School of Public Health .
• Funding/Award Opportunities: A place to promote research funding opportunities, U-M and external award nominations, Fostering Innovation Grants (FIGS) and other grant opportunities.
• You Can Make a Difference: Information about fundraisers, volunteer opportunities and ways you can improve the lives of our patients, patient families and the general community. (This includes sales in which a portion or all proceeds will go to a UMHS unit, events supporting different units and departments, blood and organ donation drives, food drives and awareness-raising events).
• Quality, Safety and Environment: Information about Lean Thinking, quality improvement efforts, safety guidelines, and environmental stewardship related to making UMHS a better, safer and more environmentally-friendly workplace.
• Policies & Compliance: Information about UMHS, UMHHC, Medical School and University-wide policies, regulations, procedures and external regulations affecting employees. This includes updates to major sub-unit policies such as nursing department/area specific policies, standard practices and other important information for employees and supervisors.
• Computing & Technology: Information and updates about information technology, supportive technology and technology strategy. Updates from Medical Campus Information Technology (MCIT), Medical School Information Services (MSIS), and University-wide IT issues.
• Computing & Technology: Information and updates about information technology, supportive technology and technology strategy. Updates from Medical Campus Information Technology (MCIT), Medical School Information Services (MSIS), and University-wide IT issues.
• Professional Development: Information about courses, seminars, videos and other resources to help UMHS employees in their professional development.
• Getting Around: The latest updates on parking, bus routes and schedules, lane closures and ongoing construction projects within and around UMHS. This includes listings for commuter car and van pools.
• Events for Faculty, Staff and Students: Promote upcoming events pertinent to those directly affiliated with UMHS. This includes seminars, workshops, symposia, colloquia, academic lectures, memorials, receptions, celebrations, webcasts, teleconferences and broadcasts.
• Public Events: Promote events open to the general public as well as UMHS employees. This includes seminars and lectures, support group meetings, sporting events, vendor fairs, awareness events for national health observances, exercise, nutrition and relaxation classes, Gifts of Art events, FRIENDS gift shop sales and more. (This category replaces “Community Beat.”)
• Accolades & Milestones: A place to promote awards, appointments and kudos for UMHS faculty, staff and departments. This includes special recognitions, recognition of research and scientific achievement, as well as department and UMHS- wide accomplishments. This also includes notices for retirement recognitions and receptions.  There isn’t an automated list from Human Resources that populates this category.  Instead, all items are submitted by a member of the UMHS community.
• Leadership and Administration: Changes, events and updates related to the Health System’s leadership and administrative services, and messages from top leaders.
• UMHS in the News: A recap of all things UMHS that have been featured in the media.
• Your Health & Wellness: All health related events, announcements and programs.  This category can encompass both items for the Health System community and the general public.
• In Memoriam: This section includes obituaries and memorial services for faculty and staff.
• Research Training: Events open to UMHS faculty, post docs, staff or students (individual events may have attendance restrictions) that focus on proposal preparation, research development, research administration or regulations. Items posted in this category are typically offered by such units as the Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research (MICHR), Institutional Review Boards of the University of Michigan Medical School (IRBMED), Clinical Research Calendar Review & Analysis Office (CRAO), University Committee on Use and Care of Animals (UCUCA), Medical School Office of Research, Medical School Faculty Affairs, Taubman Health Sciences Library, and Office of Research and Sponsored Projects (ORSP).
• Research Seminars and Events: Upcoming seminars, workshops, conferences and thesis presentations throughout the U-M campus related to biomedical research (basic, clinical and translational).  These events are typically open to the entire U-M population as well as the general public.

2. Why can’t I access my old submissions? Why can’t these be used anymore to recreate or rerun my old announcements?

You can access all of your old items on the Headlines website archive and resubmit your announcement from there. Just visit http://umhsheadlines.org/ and search for your announcement in the upper right white search bar. Then copy and paste your item into the submission form here: http://umhsheadlines.org/submit-an-item/

3. How do I write a better headline?

1. Tell the reader as much as possible. Here’s an example: “Take the Employee Engagement survey by April 1 to win Health System gear.” It includes a call to action, a deadline date and an incentive for those who complete the call to action.
2. Use active sentences. Use words like “Take” the survey or “Win” free gear. Do not start a headline with the words “You can…”
3. No more than two lines. Include important details, but make sure a reader can read it quickly and easily.
4. Follow UMHS style guides. Only capitalize the first word and proper nouns in your headline. All other words should be lowercase.
5. Make your headline simple. Not everyone knows medical jargon and acronyms. Make your headline appeal to a broad audience who may not be knowledgeable about the subject matter.

4. Where can I find photos?

You can find free images on our media bank here and see other resources on our DIY site.

5. How do I only receive emails about the events and announcements that interest me?

Subscribe to one of our RSS feeds by going to your favorite category on the Health System Headlines website and clicking on the RSS feed link on the right side of the page.

You can find a full list of RSS feeds for Health System Headlines at https://www.umhsheadlines.org/rss-feeds/

For detailed instructions on subscribing to RSS feeds, view the informational flier.

6. How can I get my announcement or event featured in your advertisements on the right hand side of the page?

Items are chosen based on Health System-wide significance and applicability to large numbers of employees. We are always open to suggestions, so if you feel your item should be placed in the sidebar ads, please indicate this in your announcement submission.

7. How do I opt out of receiving Health System Headlines?

You will need to set up your own email filter so Health System Headlines messages are automatically sent to a separate folder or the trash.

However, because the Top Stories section of HSH will take the place of many global messages about important topics, you are encouraged to subscribe to the Top Stories RSS feed and monitor the IHP Top Stories, to avoid missing important news about benefits, messages from institutional leaders, and other important announcements.

8. Who can I contact for more information?

Health System Headlines Editor, Michael Steigmeyer or (734) 936-9108
Director of Public Relations, Kara Gavin or (734) 764-2220.

9. What type of items can be posted in Health System Headlines?

Items submitted to and posted in Health System Headlines should be of general interest or relevance to a large segment of the UMHS community. This publication includes news, events and announcements that impact many of our faculty and staff.

Smaller events, departmental newsletters, unit fundraisers and tailored news for specific audiences should be shared directly with impacted employees rather than through Health System Headlines.

Employees cannot submit advertisements for personal business and Headlines should not be used to promote non-UMHS activities.

All submissions are subject to editing or rejection by Health System Headlines editors.

10. Can I add an event from Health System Headlines to my Outlook calendar?

You can email Health System Headline events directly to your Outlook email by clicking the mail icon in the top right side of the screen while reading an entry. Once you are in Outlook, open the emailed item and select “Move” at the top toolbar in your mail browser. From there, you can scroll down to select the option to add the item directly to your Outlook Calendar.

11. Can my announcement be published in multiple categories?

Your item may appear in more than one category, but please limit your selection to the most relevant two or three categories.  If submitting to more than one category, indicate the most important category in the “comments to the editor” box for inclusion in the daily email.

Items will be archived indefinitely in each section. Users can also see your announcement if they subscribe to the RSS feed for that category.

12. How many days are items featured in Health System Headlines?

Announcements will appear once in the daily email and four days on the Announcements page. The date you select for publication is the day your item appears in the email and begins appearing on the website. For each category you choose for the website, it will go out to RSS subscribers and appear on the category page, where it will be archived.

Events happening in the next two weeks will be posted on the Calendar upon editor approval. An announcement will appear before your event on the web, on email/RSS on the date you specify at the top of the submission form, and in the daily email on the day of the event. If your event is more than a week away, you may submit one additional announcement as a reminder.

To have your announcement repost to the website, click “view/manage past submissions” on the submission page (https://www.umhsheadlines.org/submit/).  Click ‘recreate’ next to the item that you would like to repost. When the submission form opens, change the “day your announcement should appear in the email” along with any other updated information.

13. Can I submit events that are open to the public?

Yes, events for the public are published on the public calendar and on the Public Events page, formerly Community Beat. Some events can be included on the public and UMHS faculty, staff and students calendars as well as the Public Events and Events for Faculty, Staff and Students category pages.