MEDICA 2022 is reporting a notable increase in attendance and supplier participation as the conference begins Monday to Thursday (November 14 to 17), this week in Düsseldorf, Germany. The conference includes international suppliers from the medical technology industry, and as the leading medical trade fair, includes a robust educational platform unveiling many new advances as part of the program lineup. The trade fair also includes COMPAMED 2022, highlighting healthcare manufacturing advances in device technologies from OEM (original equipment manufacturers), that support the many medical device companies in the industry.
This year’s trade fair theme focuses on ‘Where healthcare is going’, which is evident with the many companies exhibiting and the advanced educational sessions and forums that are focused on new medical developments.
According to Christian Grosser, Director Health & Medical Technologies at Messe Düsseldorf, “At MEDICA 2022, we will be welcoming more than 4,400 presenting companies. At COMPAMED 2022, there will be around 700. We consider this increase of 40 percent for booked areas and many different participants from 70 nations as a huge sign of the trust across borders that is being placed in both events. What the medical technology industry needs in turbulent times such as these are just these strong platforms for international exchange, joint ventures and business. Companies are seeing an increasing necessity to work jointly with their partners in supply and manufacturing to ensure delivery capacity in times when prices increase dramatically and construction parts are becoming sparse.“
Both events offer the professional audience a comprehensive overview of the newest medical products and services including all relevant process steps in product development and product manufacturing.
The scope of medical technologies presented at MEDICA ranges from laboratory diagnostics, infection prevention, equipment for physiotherapy and orthopedic technology, operating room, PPE (personal protective equipment), consumables, diagnostic imaging and robotics, and health IT applications that include telemedicine and artificial intelligence (AI) use in multiple applications.
Apart from the evolving “point-of-care” diagnostics, the pandemic has also given a certain “boost” to the digitalization of the healthcare system in many countries. This is where the digitally driven start-up scene profits, which will have many options next week to present themselves to investors and a professional medical audience.
The MEDICA START-UP PARK includes approximately 40 participants. The evolving technology presented by these companies includes new operating room imaging technology, a compact system for wireless monitoring of fetuses, ophthalmoscopes as diagnostic aids for cancer or stroke, to a variety of solutions involving AI, for example for medical management of nutrition, creating electronic patient files, or even for pre-operative tests concerning the evaluation of cognitive disturbances.
Another special stage for start-ups is the MEDICA CONNECTED HEALTHCARE that is a four-day forum program focusing on applications for medical networks, on the health metaverse of virtual reality and augmented reality (VR/AR) technologies, AI and Big Data and also on robotics. Around a hundred chosen young companies present their businesses on the forum stage, where the finals of the 11th MEDICA Start-up COMPETITION and the 14th Healthcare Innovation World Cup are among the highlights.
A new addition to the MEDICA program in the midst of the physiotherapy themed segment is the MEDICA SPORTS HUB. Throughout the duration of the trade fair, the professional audience is invited to train and engage in a dialogue with some of the most successful Olympic athletes in German history: Heike Henkel (Olympic champion, world champion and world record holder in the high jump) and Lars Riedel (Olympic champion and multiple world champion in the discus).
Short lectures by the Olympic athletes, talk sessions and also audience-participation sporting exercises are planned to alternate every half hour on each day of the fair. The topics range from mental health, nutrition, team success to professional endurance training or even aspects of workplace health promotion.
Stabilizing the financial situation of the public health insurers is one of the issues addressed at the MEDICA ECON FORUM, where Dr. Andreas Gassen, Chairman of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV) will also participate. Sessions also include Dr. Gottfried Ludewig, Senior Vice President T-Systems Health Industry, on the so-called "amazonization" of the healthcare market by tech giants.
