MD Publishing provides much appreciated in-person conference
MD Expo Tampa drew 361 healthcare technology management (HTM) professionals making it the largest in-person event of 2020 for parent company MD Publishing. The MD Expo built on the success of HTM Mixers in Denver and Milwaukee with a third HTM Mixer set for Nashville on December 9-10.
MD Publishing President and Founder John Krieg was pleasantly surprised by the large turnout in Tampa. He said MD Expo Tampa experienced “much bigger turnout than I expected because of COVID-19.” He also said that several HTM professional thanked him and the MD expo staff for hosting the conference.
“They were very appreciative,” Krieg said.
MD Expo Tampa started with educational sessions and a welcome reception. Thanks to support from the Florida Biomedical Society (FBS) and sponsors — including Select Biomedical, USOC Bio-Medical Services, Avante Health Solutions, Innovatus Imaging, AIV, HTMjobs.com, RPI, AllParts Medical and MedWrench – members of the HTM community were able to further their education and network with peers while also learning about products and solutions available to assist them with their jobs.
Attendees shared positive feedback after the first day of education and while enjoying a beverage at the Welcome Reception sponsored by Select Biomedical.
The second day featured more educational sessions, an exhibit hall with companies sharing their solutions capped off by a Happy Hour sponsored by AIV.
Attendees, exhibitors and presenters all shared positive feedback regarding MD Expo Tampa.
“We had a lot of traffic yesterday,” Amy Hobbs from USOC Bio-Medical Services said as the exhibit hall opened on Day 2 of MD Expo Tampa. “Sunday was fantastic. We’ve had a lot of good attendees at this MD Expo. There was not a time that we were not busy.”
DR Flower from Beta Biomed said he had “some very nice conversations” with attendees during exhibit hall hours.
He added that the opportunity to attend an in-person event was amazing.
“It’s been quite important for businesses and just as human beings we want to interact,” Flower said. “I think it’s very good for biomeds to get together.”
“It is the backbone of our industry to be able to come together and interact,” he added.
MD Expo impressed American MedMart CEO Matthew Lau.
“It’s been a real good conference. We are a new company, so to be able to get the word out about who we are has been phenomenal,” Lau said. “I was expecting more people to approach us for jobs, but we’ve made more contacts with other vendors which is fabulous for us.”
Young professionals (YP) were invited to a special event at MD Expo. The YP at MD was held at a nearby bar and grill where young HTM professionals gathered to network and share ideas.
“Our second annual Young Professionals at MD Expo Networking Event was a huge success. We love that we are building a community in the HTM field where our future leaders can build relationships and network together,” MD Publishing Senior Account Executive Megan Cabot said.
Attendees and presenters also reported great appreciation for the opportunity to attend MD Expo Tampa.
Larry Fennigkoh, adjunct professor, biomedical engineering at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, praised the event and the previous HTM Mixer in Milwaukee.
Dean Moore from AdventHealth Tampa said this was his first MD Expo.
“It’s good to go out and network with other professionals,” Moore said. “The training (at MD Expo) is good.”
Charles Hardenstein, a biomed from Colorado, travelled to Tampa for the MD expo.
“It’s a great show. Thank you for having it,” he said.
Lowell Pitman from Holston Valley Medical Center in Tennessee said the conference exceeded his expectations. He said that he felt safe attending during the COVID-19 pandemic especially with all of the safety measures in place by the organizers and the host hotel.
“I can tell y’all put a lot of energy into planning and making it safe,” Pitmann said.