Medtrade Preview

HME Goes Back to School

As students return to school, providers return to this year's edition of Medtrade to take advantage of the event's professional education opportunities.

• By David Kopf
• Sep 01, 2015

Medtrade is just around the corner, slated for Oct. 26-29 at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center, and once again it is serving up a wide range of educational offerings to help providers face industry challenges such as competitive bidding and audits. That said, it is also offering the kind of strategic education that can help them develop new strategies for sustaining and expanding their businesses in the face of these industry challenges.

Workshops

To begin with, Medtrade is kicking off the show by hosting a number of Monday workshops on Oct. 26:

Judith Brannan, associate director of education/medical affairs for SIGVARIS Inc. will present a fitter’s course called “Compression Therapy and its Application in the Management of Venous Disease.” The workshop is approved for 7.5 credits through ABC and 7 credits through BOC, and will cover a variety of subjects such as the anatomy and physiology of the venous system, including pathophysiology of venous disease; chronic venous insufficiency (CVI); define deep vein thrombosis (DVT); which diabetic patients will benefit from graduated compression; and Compression Therapy and its application in venous disease & treatment.

Mark Malinowski and Carrie Green, marketing manager of Board of Certification/Accreditation (BOC), in collaboration with MED Group Materials will present “An Introduction to the Certified Durable Medical Equipment Specialist (CDME).” A CDME is a person who demonstrates broad knowledge of the DME/supply industry, including prescription verification, intake process, product selection, dispensing and setup, documentation, billing, compliance, and performance management. The workshop will cover the scope of practice for the CDME and prepare attendees to take the CDME examination. The presentation will show the value of the CDME for facilities in a challenging industry climate and how to market the credential to customers, referral sources, and third party payors. Also, CDME Exam Participants can take the CDME exam at Medtrade on Wednesday, Oct. 28, for an additional $50. (If not participating in workshop, exam is $150.) This price includes the application and exam fees. To qualify, participants will submit their application and documentation to BOC before taking the exam.

Four Computers Unlimited experts — Dan Greyn, Senior, systems consultant; Gail Turner, senior systems consultant; Joe Simanton, senior product owner; Cole Helmer, support specialist — will present “New Foundations, Unlimited Possibilities,” which will introduce attendees to the company’s TIM software for managing HME functions such as patient intake, claims processing, document management, business intelligence, asset control and financial management. The presentation aims to help attendees understand how their unique business requirements can be addressed through using TIMS and CU’s application development resources.

Lastly, Mike Sperduti, president and CEO of Emerge Sales Inc. will present “Mike Sperduti’s HME Sales Excellence Training,” a sales training program that will teach providers Sperduti’s step-by-step sales process. The workshop will cover:

• How to turn a medical facility that you have no relationship with into a referring account in four to six weeks.
• The most effective Sales and UpCare technique that will immediately increase your new patient referrals and revenues.
• How to skillfully handle and overcome objections such as “We are happy with our HME current provider” or “It’s the patient’s choice.”
• Relationship building strategies and talking points that you will put in “your own words” to be brilliant during every customer conversation- from your first meeting to getting you first patient.

Conference Tracks

In addition, Medtrade 2015 is providing 80 conference sessions across a broad range of topical categories designed to help providers understand current industry and clinical conditions. The topics are:

Audits. Clearly audits pose a clear and present danger to providers, but they are also the reality of the day. The programs in this track are presented by industry experts on audits and aim to teach providers on how to reduce the risk that an audit will occur. The programs will teach HME professionals how to prepare for an audit, and will show the supplier how to respond to an audit.

Business Operations. The ability to run an effective business operation has considerable impact on a provider’s bottom line. These sessions cover topics such as hiring and training, taking care of customers, and how to prepare a provider business and staff for a successful future.

Continuing Education & Training. This track covers the diverse products and services required in the realms of rehab and assistive technology; sleep, oxygen and respiratory; and wound care to ensure that providers are up to date with the latest issues for these categories. The rehab and assistive technology sessions will offer insight on documentation, product selection, assessment, and more. The sleep, oxygen and respiratory sessions will cover constantly changing reimbursement codes, patient care practices, and technological advances that providers need for a successful respiratory business. The wound care track will cover the clinical and business intricacies of this key category.

Legal. Laws affecting the HME industry continue to change. These programs will assist you in understanding how to successfully operate a provider’s business within legal guidelines. Providers will learn about federal and state laws governing HME, as well as imminent and future legislation.

Medicare Updates. Frequent changes in HME industry demand that providers are aware of an understand the impact of these developments. This track will feature timely updates from various organizations, including the National Supplier Clearinghouse, National Government Services, CGS, and Palmetto GBA. Individual speakers will also provide updates on clinical issues affecting the industry.

Retail. The interest in retail-focused home medical equipment sales continues to increase as providers look to diversify product categories, payor sources and customer demographics. This track will provide the nuts and bolts of how to create and manage a profitable retail business while ensuring the appropriate sales, marketing and operational strategies are in place.

Sales and marketing. Providers seeking to create new business, reach new markets and develop a more productive sales team should attend the series of educational sessions presented. Experts in this field will teach you how to effectively and efficiently sell and market your most important products and how to create new revenue sources for your business.

Strategic planning. By necessity, surviving and thriving in the DME industry requires a thoughtful approach. Providers can no longer react to what comes their way. Rather, the successful supplier must stay a few steps ahead of market forces. The programs in this track will instruct HMEs on how to prepare a strategic business plan, how to follow the plan, and how to continually update and upgrade their plan. The programs will suggest key issues that should be addressed in a strategic plan.

Trending markets. The HME industry is changing at a breathtaking pace and this track will help providers understand how to handle these changes. The programs in this track focus on new ways for suppliers to conduct business and focus on untapped and emerging markets. For example, healthcare is becoming data-driven, and the focus is on outcomes. So one session will show how forward-thinking providers will set themselves apart from its competitors by providing outcomes data to payors and physicians.

This article originally appeared in the September 2015 issue of HME Business.