Content is king for spring

Members of the Medtrade Spring Education Committee understand the vital link between strategic information and HME business success. That is the rationale they use when developing each year's seminar curriculum.

Medtrade Spring 2013 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas will address topics that attendee feedback has determined to be of most significance, including audits, non-Medicare market opportunities and regulatory/legal issues in home care.

“These subjects represent the concerns and demands of providers,” said committee member Bob Fary. “The education committee's goals are to continue to improve the quality of the education programs while being flexible and providing timely subject matter for suppliers in the lectures.”

The time has come for the provider community to look introspectively and ask some probing philosophical questions, says committee member Miriam Lieber.

“We are at a point where we need to look at where we are given the state of the industry and economy,” she said. “We need to ask ourselves 'Why are we in business?' For a lot of people, they need to look at why they got into the business in the first place and whether they can shift their mindset and philosophy to continue. Sustainability is the key to going forward—not just for the long-term, but for the near future as well.”

Lieber added that the committee has been more vigilant than ever in looking for topical integrity when it comes to slating the seminar program.

Continuing education units (CEUs) have been an important addition to the Medtrade educational lineup and those opportunities will be abundant at the spring show, committee members said. Offering CEUs not only gives the seminar roster more clinical credibility, but also serves to attract more rehab and respiratory attendees, Fary said.

“It has been especially effective in drawing more local attendees from the Atlanta and Las Vegas areas,” he said.