Notes from Medtrade

The opening salvo for Medtrade 2011 was the tremendous attendance at the pre-show seminars. The interest for most DME/HME providers was to see how much they could learn about new opportunities and strategies to help them succeed.

The lines of people waiting to get into the Expo were long and full of HME. I spoke with many of them and I realized that they all recognized that on the Expo floor were many answers they were seeking.

Some of the people I talked to included:
Bill Griffin of Griffin Home Health Care in North Carolina remarked that once again he was very comfortable, attending classes and working with vendors. That is basically what they all said to me.

Jon Kuykendall, second generation of Village Health Services (Ozark, AR), was looking for new rehab products. He found many. Tom Inman (Virginia Home Medical) told me how he works on a Healthcare Advisory Council his representative organized to bring the right message to D.C. He is here at Medtrade, looking for new ideas.

Jim Binson, and his lovely daughter Robbyn, of Binson's Home Health Care Centers in Michigan, were very concerned that most reimbursements were still at a 1968 level.

Mike VanHuss, a rep, was pleased that there were so many providers at the seminars.

Russ White of Georgia-based Walker Home Medical was looking for new and better ways to get his company more share in today's market.

The enthusiasm I saw augers well for our industry. It appears that they were accomplishing what they came for.