Learn about industry issues and your business at IMDA's Annual Conference and Manufacturers Forum

Take advantage of this prime opportunity to absorb ideas from industry leaders and swap business intelligence with your peers. The Manufacturers Forum, which is held in conjunction with the Conference, is a meeting place for specialty sales and marketing organizations and manufacturers of new medical technologies who are seeking specialty representation. Because the Conference and Manufacturers Forum are held during the summer, our members enjoy affordable off-season rates for the very best accommodations. Join us for the ambiance, the ideas and the networking.

The IMDA Annual Conference and Manufacturers Forum is an opportunity for medical specialty distributors and reps to learn from and network with each other, and to meet manufacturers of innovative medical devices who are in need of specialty distribution.

Save the date: The 2013 IMDA Annual Conference and Manufacturers Forum Announced
Take advantage of this prime opportunity to absorb ideas from industry leaders and swap business intelligence with your peers. Put this on your calendar today.

2013 IMDA Conference & Manufacturers Forum
Sunday, June 9 - Tuesday, June 11, 2026
Loews Royal Pacific Resort, Orlando, FL

Stay tuned for more details. Hope to see you there!
 
We joined IMDA in order to get together with other specialty distributors for new ideas on product lines and other business issues, such as recruiting, managing sales, improving our biomedical engineering program, and buying product and professional liability insurance. Indeed, at our first meeting, we found others in our field who were willing to share ideas on how they operate their business, and we even received a few leads on new product lines, which turned out quite well for us. We discussed ways in which we could market products better, and actually did some cross-training with another distributor, who was carrying several of the same lines as we were.

                    --Rick Almasy, Nightingale-Alan Medical

Highlights of the 2012 Conference in Nashville, TN, included:

  • Cindy Christofanelli is like no other gatekeeper you�ve seen before. She has a master�s in nursing, and she�s a certified materials and resource professional. She is also a value analysis professional. And IMDA members are likely to see more like her in the IDNs they call on.

  • Electronic medical records. Sunshine rules. ICD-10. Unique Device Identifier. 510(k) reform. Providers and suppliers are getting hit by all kinds of rules and regulations. No use hiding your head in the sand, though, Mercury Medical�s George Howe told IMDA members.

  • Materials managers came out of the economic meltdown of the late 2000s as emboldened supply chain leaders, said John Pritchard, president, USLifeLine and publisher of the Journal of Healthcare Contracting and ACO Insights.

  • There may be some light at the end of the vendor credentialing tunnel. Shawn Walker of Bay State Anesthesia reported that the Joint Commission has clarified its position on the subject: Though hospitals should know who�s entering their organizations and why, they do not have to engage in a formal vendor credentialing program.

  • It�s a great time to be an IMDA member, said IMDA legal counsel Mitchell Kramer. Why? Because payers are demanding that providers deliver better outcomes at lower cost. That�s what IMDA members provide, through the innovative technologies they bring to market.

  • Click here for the complete conference brochure. Click here for copies of presentations and handouts.
     
  • IMDA members can click here for a list of the 2012 Sponsors & Exhibitors and 2012 Attendees (PDFs, Login to Members Only)

Past speakers include:

  • Cindy Christofanelli, RN, MSN, CMRP, corporate director of supply chain management, SSM Health Care, and central region director of the Association of Healthcare Value Analysis Professionals.
  • John Pritchard, president, USLifeLine and publisher of the Journal of Healthcare Contracting and ACO Insights.
  • Dave Hesson, vice president, Aspen Health Care Metrics.
  • Garrett Jackson, JD, MHA, value analysis manager, BJC HealthCare.
  • Gerry Layo, Sales Coach International
  • Lawrence King, King Strategic Alliance, team-building expert.
  • Mark Leahey, executive director, Medical Device Manufacturers Association.
  • Kraig Kramers, President & CEO, Corporate Partners, Inc., author of CEO Tools: The Nuts-n-Bolts of Business for Every Manager's Success.
  • Peter Salgo, MD, medical correspondent for CBS and CNBC.
  • Jeffrey Bauer, PhD, medical economist, author of Telemedicine and the Reinvention of Health Care.
  • Kevin Mosher, president, Masimo Corporation.
  • Howard Stevens, founder, H.R. Chally Group.
  • Ron Stephenson, professor of marketing, Indiana University.
  • Nancy Reaven, president, Strategic Health Resources.
  • Al Cook, Association of Healthcare Resource & Materials Management.
  • Rick Davies, president, Vector Resources.

Past topics covered include:

  • Understanding IDNs' value analysis processes.
  • Vendor credentialing: How it's affecting you, how you can respond.
  • Building a world-class sales organization
  • How to make sure you're on your customers' "A" list of vendors
  • Building high-performing teams.
  • Impact of government scrutiny on group purchasing practices.
  • Advances in medical science and new opportunities for specialty suppliers.
  • Driving sales through extreme cooperation (between manufacturers and specialty sales and marketing organizations).
  • Finding the right sales rep for your product and customer mix.
  • Helping your customers evaluate the cost-effectiveness of new technology.
  • How to make your Internet site more than a billboard.
  • E-commerce and the specialty distributor.
  • Selling to the materials manager.
  • Using automation to manage leads.
  • Achieving cost-effective sales through telesales and telemarketing.
  • Performance-based compensation programs.

Read up on past conferences:

Here�s what members have said about past conferences

�This was my first IMDA conference, although one of my employees has been here three times. Excellent networking. Great opportunity to discuss our business with other distributors. Ideas and opportunities to change the status-quo. Breakouts were great for brainstorming. Overall, excellent meeting! Great job.�

�I�m glad I attended the IMDA conference, I learned a lot.  All members and officers were very knowledgeable on every topic. I would recommend this conference to others.�

�Excellent meeting�.Sessions were very informative. Look forward to more next year.�

�Great meeting. Very positive environment. The structure enhanced interaction and communication. A much greater sharing of information. The general sessions were very positive and informative.�

�Always a value.�

 

  
   
 
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