Heard at the Show

On doing business differently

“This year the message is not about the way we do business traditionally; it’s not about the person who trained me. It’s about thinking outside the box and saying, ‘I’m ready to do it differently. I want to survive and I want to thrive.’”

— Miriam Lieber, Lieber Consulting, Sherman Oaks, Calif.

“People are using technology that they haven’t used before. They are tracking and monitoring when they didn’t before. Now you cannot afford not to track your business … You’ve got to do your work and then you’ve got to do the utilization review of your work, which is the monitoring, and I think that’s the hardest challenge for the managers I work with. “

— Louis Feuer, Dynamic Seminars & Consulting, Pembroke Pines, Fla.

“Attendees at Medtrade Spring seem enthusiastic and strategic-driven and extremely intent on getting the right information that will run and drive their business. They are looking to take an outward and aggressive advocacy position in their communities to support what we do in our industry. They are looking at new ways to market their business and also how to generate publicity regarding the contributions they make.”

— Colette Weil, Summit Marketing, Mill Valley, Calif.

“We’re looking for peripheral types of products that can help us build our business. We’re looking for advertising and marketing information and associations … that can give us ideas on how to do our business better.”

— Marilyn and Launis Look, Look Stairchairs, Simi Valley, Calif.

On the government and HME

“Being new in the industry, my issue is with Congress and government officials … We’re the ones saving the government money by keeping people out of the hospital and a $5,000-a-day bill. We’re the ones keeping them at home for a minimum price, so why are we the ones getting sliced and diced to death?”

— Chad McCrickard, Petsch Respiratory Services, Martinez, Ga.

On a contrarian view of competitive bidding

“We are looking forward to competitive bidding coming back this summer. We were one of the winners last year; we think it’s the future of health care. As a managed care provider, competitive bidding meant more participation through the Medicare side of the business for us, and meant a pay increase compared to what managed care rates are. We thought it would be a benefit to our company.”

— Hector Quevedo, Atenda Home Medical Equipment, Miramar, Fla.

On the industry outlook

“This industry is made up of entrepreneurs, but there are a lot of synergies that can be realized if providers will come together and work together. This is not the time for factionalizing and going off and doing your own little thing.”

— Duane Ridenour, Universal Software Solutions, Davison, Mich.

“I am personally bullish on the HME industry. While I recognize we have taken a number of hits from different directions, I look at this as the immovable object meets the irresistible force, and that is at the end of the day, we have 78 million baby boomers who will live to be 85 years old, whose bodies will break down as they get older and who do not want to live in an institution. So there’s going to be a huge demand for what we as an industry have to offer.”

— Jeff Baird, Brown & Fortunato, Amarillo, Texas

“Despite industry and economic conditions, both attendees and exhibitors continue to see the value in face-to-face client interaction and education. As the organizers of Medtrade and Medtrade Spring, Nielsen Business Media is significantly committed to the industry. With the legislative and regulatory issues and the economy and all of the things that could fracture the industry, it’s more important now than ever to bring the industry together in a central location … We want the industry to succeed and be healthy. We will do everything that we can to make that happen.”

— Kevin Gaffney, Medtrade Group Show Director, Nielsen Business Media, Alpharetta, Ga.