ORLANDO, Fla.--While the minds of Medtrade 2007 attendees were focused on issues like competitive bidding and accreditation, a number of new products unveiled at the show also attracted attention.
One that created a buzz was Inspired Technologies' ViaSpire Liquefier, a device that makes liquid oxygen in a patient's home.
"That probably stole the show for me," said Kevin May, managing partner of Jackson, Mich.-based Lean Homecare Consulting Group. May, who also serves on the clinical staff for the University of Michigan Health System's home care services division, said his department is currently moving patients to non-delivery oxygen systems.
"The thought that we would be able to replace our weekly or every-other-week deliveries with liquid is a great opportunity," May said. However, he added, pointing to the unit's size, heavy power consumption and pricing, "I think it's a technology that needs to be refined more, but I found it very exciting. Just the ability to be able to do this is phenomenal."
May, who attended Medtrade to search out new products, said the U of M's home care division had fielded a team of buyers to take advantage of show specials.
Cindy Ciardo, CEO of West Allis, Wis.-based Knueppel HealthCare Services, said that, along with attending educational sessions and networking, her company also attends Medtrade to buy at special prices, to find new products and identify niche markets. After recently opening a retail store, Ciardo said she was looking for products that are "different," that aren't readily accessible in the local Wal-Mart and that she can sell for cash as opposed to medical items that require insurance billing.
Ciardo said she found several products that fit the bill, including fashion medical ID bracelets from Lauren's Hope, a retail-packaged diabetic skin care line from Masada and the Big John, a wide toilet seat for bariatric clients.
"Medtrade wasn't as good for us as years past," Ciardo said, "but we still were able to bring back some new information, new product ideas and shared time with old friends. So it was worth it."
Dr. Philip Paul Weiner, the owner of Weiner's Home Health Care Center in Pikesville, Md., said his main purpose at the show this year was to attend sessions.
"We've attended seven sessions--three Tuesday, three Wednesday and one this morning," he said on the last day of the show. "If I pick up one idea, something I can change to make my business better, I do it."
But Weiner said he was buying as well. "I usually bring down orders with me and just pretty much hand them to the reps that I already know, because there are specials," he said. "I'm always looking for new markets, especially new niche markets."
One product Weiner liked was the Mediflash, a UBS computer stick that can hold a patient's medical information and be worn as a necklace or bracelet. "I always find something that interests me," he said.
At the show's New Product Pavilion, attendees had a chance to cast their votes for best new products in three categories.
The Innovation Award went to Healthcraft Products for its Dependa-Bar weight-bearing bath safety device. PDG Group garnered the Provider's Choice Award for its Fuze Power Tilt feature, and Life Gear won the Merit Award for its Comfort Zone portable blanket warming system.