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The fall season is usually known as conference season all over the country. This is a perfect time for state and national associations to plan a CME conference and to create an environment for networking, education, social stimulus and creating espirit de corps. This is a busy time for me, as I have the opportunity to be a speaker at many of these conferences and to have workshops on suturing and trauma evaluation and management. The focus of my lectures is summed up in emergency medicine, trauma and surgery. One of the many drawing factors of a great conference is the exhibit halls. Exhibit halls have changed over the past 15 years as the number of pharmaceutical companies has decreased precipitously and it becomes increasingly difficult for associations to have a dynamic exhibit hall. With this situation being obvious, what can be done to make your conference a magnet for exhibitors?
Regardless of whether you are a pharmaceutical company or any other type of vendor, you are paying a price to set up your exhibit and there are essentials that need to be present. The conference must be robust and have a number of participants that will see your product. This number can be approximately 300 at a minimum and I have seen multiple state conferences meet this requirement this conference season. The participants need to be aware that it is a necessity for them to both visit the exhibitor and to dialogue about the product that they represent. When I am at an exhibit hall, I personally thank the representative for their presence and for supporting my organization. Gratefulness and humility go a long way to encouraging the exhibitor that the group is worth another visit next year.
The number of females in the NP and PA professions also influence who is present to exhibit. The AAPA presented figures in their last survey that state that 63% of the profession is female. The NP profession is probably 95% although I am making an assumption rather than looking at a survey. Why is this of importance to the conference chairperson and to the exhibitor? There has been a surge of interest from those who sell articles of clothing, jewelry, bath oils and soaps as well as selling items related to conditioning and nail products. I spoke at the NPA last week and their exhibit hall demonstrated this new emphasis as many of those present were from the DNP programs, regional medical centers, education enterprises and the clothing and toiletry markets. This is an epiphany from the exhibit halls of the 1990’s.
Who is conspicuously missing? Many of the pharmaceutical companies as well as the journal and book publishers are attending these conferences less often. The person who sells “scrubs” and lab coats have disappeared. Companies such as Littman and Welch Allen, who have the support of NPs and PAs when looking for quality equipment, obviously feel that the profession should come to them, not they to the professions. I have not seen the armed forces exhibiting this year which leads me to believe that we are very patriotic and there are no needs for great NPs and PAs. The recruiters are picking and choosing wisely, looking at attendance, number of professionals actively looking for new employment and then there is the added consideration that they too, have families and cannot be absentee Moms and Dads every weekend.
The last aspect I want to mention is the presentation. The exhibit hall of the Nurse Practitioners of NYS was by far the most creative and appetizing for the attendees. The hall was set up in a fashion that utilized creative “w’s” to set up meeting areas, snack areas, chairs for the tired and weary as well as had an active refreshment proposal at the different times that the hall was open. Why is this important? It was a drawing card for the exhibitor and the participant alike. Breaks in the exhibit hall guarantees traffic and the purpose of the exhibit hall is to have and maintain traffic so that everyone is happy. What can you do to help this special part of our conferences become greater success stories? Invite your representative or have them contact their regional manager, thank them for attending, listen to the representative and learn about new products, purchase some of the wonderful offerings, participate in the silent auctions and lastly, perhaps you can volunteer to be a part of your conference committee and give of your talent and expertise. These are our conferences and we want them to continue to grow.
Robert M. Blumm has received national recognition as a distinguished fellow of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA). He is the past president of the Association of Plastic Surgery Physician Assistants, and was past-president of the American Association of Surgical Physician Assistants, past president of the American College of Clinicians and NYSSPA, as well as Chairman of the Surgical Congress of the AAPA. In addition, Bob received the John Kirklin MD Award for Professional Excellence from the American Association of Surgical Physician Assistants. Along with his associate, Dr. Acker, Bob was the first recipient of the AAPA PAragon Physician-PA Partnership Award. He has been a contributing author of three textbooks, written 300 plus articles and is a sought out conference speaker throughout the United States.
The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
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