12 Takeaways From HIMSS'Successful, Fully Vaxxed Conference

In late June, Convene spoke with Karen Malone, vice president of meeting services and sales for HIMSS North America, to learn how the organization put together a proof-of-vaccination policy in advance of its 2021 Global Health Conference & Exhibition, held in Las Vegas, Aug. 9-13.

A lot has changed since then. In late July, the Delta variant caused a dramatic spike in COVID cases nationwide, prompting the HIMSS21 team to make last-minute adjustments. That included instating a mask mandate for the entire event campus — which spanned CAESARS FORUM, Venetian-Sands Expo Center, and Wynn Las Vegas — in accordance with local guidelines. The team also saw close to 200 exhibitors drop out.

In the end, the conference drew more than 700 exhibitors and close to 19,000 in-person attendees, with almost as many attending online. Recent feedback has been overwhelmingly positive — 95 percent of

exhibitors said they were very happy with the experience, even with the reduced numbers. “They overlooked quantity for quality,” said Malone. “I know it’s a cliche, but it was so true in this case. They said the quality of the conversations was outstanding — they felt they were just stronger… they felt that people were genuinely looking for solutions.”

From a health and safety perspective, the outcome was also a success. As of Aug. 23, only six out of the 19,000 in attendance reported positive test results since the conference — or .03 percent. It is estimated that the rate of breakthrough infections nationwide is .02 percent.