By John Wallace
Music City has another hit on its hands – the ICE conference!
The 2023 Imaging Conference & Expo sold out early. The packed exhibit hall was just the beginning of the successful event hosted by MD Publishing. MD Publishing Vice President Kristin Leavoy, CMP, reported close to 450 people in attendance at the imaging conference with 80 exhibits. View photo gallery »
“The 2023 Imaging Conference & Expo truly felt like a pre-pandemic event,” Leavoy explained. “Attendance was up, the exhibit hall had to be expanded to accommodate more vendors and the number of attendees in an imaging supervisor, manager or director role was higher than ever!”
“We turned a corner with this year’s event as we had several new attendees and vendors who decided to attend either because of the close proximity or because they hadn’t been to a conference in several years and wanted to get back out and connect with colleagues,” she added. “It was so refreshing to see new faces!”
Representatives from companies echoed Leavoy’s sentiments.
“There seemed to be a lot more foot traffic then in previous years. We received a lot of great contacts,” USOC Medical’s Amy Hobbs said.
First-time attendee Earl Morris Jr. from Harrison County Hospital was blown away by the conference.
“It was way better than I could have imagined. I didn’t know what to expect to begin with but as soon as I got there, everyone was very welcoming,” Morris said. “I think there were many companies that provided a lot of insight about how they could help out. Being new to the industry, it was very helpful to make some connections.”
Imaging leaders appreciated the signature leadership summit and reverse expo.
“This year’s conference far exceeded my expectations, I left with ideas to build upon within my own departments and new imaging friends to bounce ideas off of. The vendor expo was a good mix of companies, and I was able to establish a few new relationships with companies I had never heard of before,” Director of Clinical Operations-Imaging Services Jessica Chambers, MHA, RT(R)(CT), said.
She said she left ICE with solutions she is ready to implement in her department.
“I have already been in touch with a couple companies,” Chambers said. “One booth gave me some great information regarding a new PET isotope and I am currently working on getting it added to my portfolio so we can offer this scan to our patients. I also was able to connect with a few companies that I currently am doing business with but never have met in person so it’s always nice to reinforce your business relationships in person.”
Angelic Bush, MSRS, RT, FAHRA, administrative director imaging services at The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, agreed.
“As it has in the past, I always walk away with suggestions and/or contact that I will immediately implement and others I will keep in contact with for future projects. 2023 did not disappointment,” Bush said. “I will be looking into my departments DNFB and also working with the vendors to have a contact for MR coil repair and they actually have loaners! So excited!”
“I found two vendors who not only repair MRI coils but will also send me a loaner while they are fixing it,” she added. “Also, there is a vendor who has a product that ‘cleans’ the electricity coming into my equipment. This is very important for my rural hospitals and my seaside hospital as I know the electricity is dirty.”
“I would tell them it’s a great conference to attend,” Chambers said when asked what she would tell someone thinking of attending an ICE conference. “Many imaging directors aspire to attend RSNA however the scale of that conference is so large it can be overwhelming. This is a more intimate setting that actually allows you the time and setting to connect with different leaders and companies that you will actually continue to benefit from when you return to work. While conferences are typically geared towards CEU credits and exhibit halls the biggest benefit in my opinion is the networking. ICE builds networking events into the conference and I think that is huge for us attendees!”
The 2023 conference’s success was also made possible because of the many sponsors who support the event. Sponsors included CM Parts Plus (show bags), Technical Prospects (Leadership Summit breakfast), Tri-Imaging Solutions (Leadership Summit dinner) and Tristate Biomedical Solutions (badge/lanyard).
Sunny California is the next stop for ICE. The 2024 Imaging Conference & Expo is scheduled for February in Irvine, California.
Morris has a message for anyone thinking about attending.
“Do it, you never know who you will meet, and it could help you with your current role at your organization,” he said.
For more information, visit AttendICE.com.
