Medtrade 2005 Educational Program to Address Home Healthcare Industry's Most Critical Issues

Atlanta, GA - June 22, 2005

VNU Expositions, producer of Medtrade, announces the conference schedule for its fall 2005 event, which will take place October 17 - 20, 2005, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. Medtrade 2005 will present over 170 educational sessions during the conference that are designed to improve business practices for the home healthcare industry.

Over 20,000 home medical equipment providers and other home healthcare providers are expected to attend Medtrade 2005. Those who participate in the educational conference will gain first-hand knowledge that allows them to provide better care for their patients and improve their operational efficiency.

This year's conference program promises to exceed attendees' expectations, according to Teresa Tatum, conference manager for the Medtrade events. Tatum says Medtrade's collaboration with the American Association for Homecare and the diligent work of the Medtrade educational advisory committee has resulted in a conference program that speaks directly to the critical issues facing the industry.

Jeff Baird, Esq., an attorney with Brown & Fortunato, P.C., in Amarillo , Texas , and a member of the educational advisory committee, says the committee takes its responsibility very seriously.

"The educational advisory committee works closely with AAHomecare and Medtrade to create the best programs possible for both Medtrade and Medtrade Spring. As the committee and AAHomecare review the many program proposals, we focus on the qualifications of the speaker and the relevance of the proposed topic," explains Baird. "The committee and AAHomecare understand that many owners and employees of home medical equipment companies depend on the two Medtrade events for much of their education and we try to provide those programs that will help companies comply with the law and adjust to the changing marketplace."

In addition to Baird, the Medtrade educational advisory committee includes: Kim Brummett, vice president of contracting and reimbursement, Advanced Homecare, Greensboro, N.C.; Mary Ellen Conway, president, Capital Healthcare Group, Bethesda, Md.; Asela Cuervo, Esq., Law Offices of Asela M. Cuervo, Washington, D.C.; Jack Evans, Global Media Marketing, Malibu, Calif.; and Bob Fary, vice president of sales, Inogen Corp., Goleta, Calif.

"In the current environment, staying on top of business, reimbursement and regulatory changes allows you to meet those challenges with an effective strategy," says Cuervo. "The education programs for Medtrade 2005 are designed with this in mind.  The conference includes programs that address business process, legal and policy changes and clinical issues.  The entire management team will benefit from attending."

On Monday, Oct. 17, Medtrade and AAHomecare will present three all-day, pre-conference educational events. These conferences are designed to offer attendees an intensive and in-depth look at critical topics in home healthcare and include:

• Continuum of Care Conference
• Reimbursement from Customer Service to Collections: What's New and What Works
• Leading Practices in Home Health

The Medtrade 2005 educational conference begins Tuesday, Oct. 18. To best meet the needs of the home healthcare industry, the educational conference has been expanded to include three new tracks. Mergers & acquisitions, oxygen/respiratory issues, and sleep-disordered breathing have been added to the current tracks, which include accreditation, business operations/customer service, home health /clinical issues, information technology, legal and legislative issues, pharmacy, professional motivation, rehabilitation and assistive technology, reimbursement, and sales and marketing.

"Over the past several years, Medtrade has become a key source of education and motivation for me and our staff," says Brad Schmidt, COO, Red Ball Medical Supply, Shreveport , La. "Our company finds it so valuable that we have formed two delegations, each consisting of a marketing person, billing person and operations person. The two teams alternate traveling to Medtrade and Medtrade Spring in order to gather information for the entire Red Ball Team."

Some examples of the compelling sessions that will be offered at Medtrade 2005 include:

• HME Makeover Workshop
  In this hands-on workshop, home medical equipment providers can learn ways to redesign their showrooms. Participants will learn how space, traffic flow, lighting, display, color and product selection generate more sales.
• Measuring and Documenting Outcomes in Homecare
  The current healthcare environment creates the absolute need for homecare organizations to recognize existing data compilation methods and develop mechanisms to quantify valuable data that previously was not analyzed. This session will focus on how outcome management provides a means by which interdisciplinary collaboration can improve patient care and provide positive financial outcomes that demonstrate the value of interventions provided by homecare organizations.
• Winning Strategies for Marketing within Legal Parameters
  This panel discussion will focus on the innovative steps that home healthcare providers can utilize to increase business, such as joint ventures and referral marketing programs. Panel participants will also discuss the legal parameters that govern marketing, joint ventures, other business arrangements and growth strategies.
• The State of the Industry Roundtable
  The issues facing the HME industry continue to impact providers. In this session, a panel of experts will discuss the challenges the industry faces and will provide strategies to proactively address them.

The Medtrade 2005 conference program is available online at www.medtrade.com.

Attendees who register by August 30 can receive special discounts for the conference and exposition. The early bird registration cost is $20 for the exposition and $150 for the educational conference, which includes all sessions and the exposition. Those interested in attending the pre-show conferences, including the Continuum of Care Conference, the Home Health Nursing Conference, or the Reimbursement Conference that will be held on Monday, Oct. 17, can also take advantage of a $300 early bird discount that includes the conference, all Medtrade educational sessions and the exposition.

Discounted hotel rooms are available at designated show hotels through the Medtrade Housing Bureau. Attendees can reserve rooms by calling Ambassadors Services Group at (800) 631-3188 or by logging on to www.medtrade.com and choosing the Travel and Housing link.

Medtrade 2005 is scheduled for October 18 - 20, 2005 . For more information about the event, please visit www.medtrade.com or call (800) 933-8735. VNU Expositions' upcoming healthcare events include Medtrade Spring 2006, which will be held March 21 - 23, 2006 , in Las Vegas , and Medtrade 2006, which will take place October 10 - 12, 2006 , at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

VNU Expositions produces more than 50 conferences and trade shows annually for professionals in fields ranging from healthcare and construction to jewelry and retail merchandising. VNU's expositions and conferences reach thousands of industry leaders each year in collaborative environments designed to inspire, inform and entertain. For more information, please visit www.vnuexpo.com.

Denise McClinton
McClinton Communications
254.772.2941
253.669.9844 (fax)