GLENDALE, Ariz. — Essentially Women, the group purchasing organization for women's health care products, will hold its Focus on the Future 2011 in Glendale, Ariz., April 4-6. Founded in 1996, the group has grown to over 800 members with more than 1,000 locations.
"Women's health is recognized as one of the top niche markets in the health care field and will grow even stronger as the baby boomers come of age," said Cindy Ciardo, CEO of Milwaukee-based Knueppel HealthCare Services and one of Essentially Women's founders. "Plus, at least at this point, it is not one of the areas hit by the devastating effects of competitive bidding. So even small independently owned businesses can remain viable as long as they are committed to meeting the Medicare requirements."
Ciardo said she believes small businesses "like the boutiques that survived the fallout of accreditation and surety bond requirements" are now more stable.
"In fact, without the doom and gloom of worrying over competitive bidding issues, they are on more solid footing than many HMEs with Medicare as their primary payer source," she said. "The women's health niche has its own problems, like inadequate reimbursement, but I think it is an industry where the boutique model can thrive."
This year's show, Ciardo said, reflects the opportunities for growth in the sector and the buying group's focus on product diversification, from compression and lymphedema management to wigs and diabetic shoes.
While women's health providers have traditionally focused on post-mastectomy and have limited compression products to the arms, Ciardo said, "many have branched out to lower limb management as well — compression sleeves and hosiery, pumps and compression containment devices." Wigs and hats are another obvious adjunct due to the hair loss many women experience with cancer treatments.
"If you choose not to dedicate staff, you can hire a wig specialist on a part-time or as-needed basis, working by the appointment-only work plan," Ciardo said. "It's almost all cash, so it's a good business expansion idea."
Shoes are another product that dovetails, she continued, noting that American Diabetes Association figures show 11.5 million women, or 10.2 percent of those age 20 years or older, have diabetes.
"There are many reasons that a woman would prefer to buy shoes at a women's boutique," Ciardo said. "Generally, we're more fashion-oriented and will be happier in that setting than in a specialty shoe store — if you can even find one. Also, women like working with women, maybe because they feel they can identify better with the aesthetic concerns a man may not take as seriously. It puts them at ease.
"Of course, this means more training and education and understanding of the Medicare criteria for the boutique, but the actual time involved in the measuring and fitting is not as time-consuming as a breast form fitting."
The buying group's annual show, Ciardo said, is where she gets some of her best ideas for marketing and sales, whether from seeing new products or networking. "There is always some new idea I pick up that helps my business," she said.
In addition to exhibits from manufacturers and distributors in the women's health sector, the eleventh annual conference and trade show will feature more than 20 educational sessions on current industry issues along with a networking reception. Session topics include:
- Post-pay audits and pre-payment reviews
- Medicare compliance and accreditation tools
- Effective and legal sales and marketing strategies
- Improving cash flow and profitability
- Payer and product diversification
- Improved employee hiring techniques and co-worker interaction
- Process analysis and improving operating efficiencies
- Survival tips and reimbursement strategies
- Social networking and media marketing
- Specialty product training and education
- Winning customer service strategies
- Best practices roundtable
Among speakers at the show, industry consultants Jeff Baird of Brown & Fortunato and Miriam Lieber of Lieber Consulting will present sessions on "Prepayment Reviews and Post-Payment Audits" and "Customer Service, Diversification and Innovation," respectively. Kenneth Miller, MD, assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and director of the Lance Armstrong Cancer Survivorship Program at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, will present "Walking in Your Patent's Shoes, The Role of Empathy in Medicine."
For more information about the event, see www.essentiallywomen.com, call 800/988-4484 or email Essentially Women's Melissa Bergel at melissa@essentiallywomen.com.