The final preparations for MEDICA 2024 and COMPAMED 2024 in Düsseldorf have begun. A total of more than 6,000 participants from approximately 70 countries will fill the entire hall space on the trade fair premises, and their innovations will highlight both events’ place as globally unique information and business platforms serving the entire added-value chain of medical-technical systems and products – including manufacture and development (date: 11–14 November 2024).
In the MEDICA halls housing the worlds of experience “Med Tech & Devices” and “Digital Health”, professional visitors can now benefit from thematic hall space allocation and a new location for the accompanying German Hospital Conference. To date, the flagship event for top managers of German clinics was held at the Congress Center Düsseldorf; now it has been moved to the heart of the trade fair in Hall 12. All around the event area, exhibiting companies that fit the theme of the world of experience “Med Tech & Devices” will be grouped together with innovations for hospital equipment and operating theatres.
“Another world of experience that is relevant for our audience of decision-makers in the healthcare sector is “Digital Health”, which we have now placed just next door in Hall 13 including its themed stage programme and the high-traffic special exhibitions”, says Christian Grosser, Director Health & Medical Technologies at Messe Düsseldorf, highlighting the advantages of theme-based synergistic effects and easy access for an efficient trade fair visit. Hall 13 (also near the German Hospital Conference in Hall 12) offers its audience of medical experts the MEDICA ECON FORUM, organised by the Techniker Krankenkasse health insurance fund, that addresses current themes in healthcare policy (particularly regarding the digitalisation of healthcare), the MEDICA INNOVATION FORUM (with its popular start-up pitches) and the special exhibitions “Hospital of the Future” (innovations on the topics of “Digital hospital infrastructure” and “Data usage exemplified by intensive care medicine”), the Wearable Technologies show and the MEDICA START-UP PARK as a hub for networking with the digitally based start-up scene.
Comprehensive range of innovations in five worlds of experience
At MEDICA 2024, there are five worlds of experience promising a comprehensive range of innovations for the treatment of outpatients and clinical use. In the past two years, the database of companies and products at the MEDICA.de internet portal listed more than 12,000 innovations by exhibiting companies at the beginning of each trade fair. The trade fair’s worlds of experience are: Lab & Diagnostics, Med Tech & Devices, Disposables, Physio Tech and Digital Health.
Held in parallel to MEDICA as always, COMPAMED can look back on more than thirty years of success since its first event in 1992 and has become an absolute hotspot for complex high-tech solutions. About 750 exhibiting companies will present their specialised knowledge as manufacturers and suppliers at COMPAMED 2024, also in five worlds of experience: Manufacturing & Devices (e.g., components, parts, manufacturing processes), Services & Advice (e.g., research, development, services), Materials (e.g., plastics, glass, ceramics, metals, composite materials, adhesives, packaging), Micro Tech (such as micro components, microfluidics) as well as IT in Tech (software development and maintenance for medical technology).
All the year’s hot topics live on stage
Dominating market trends are currently causing a huge demand for information and plenty of issues for debate. MEDICA 2024 and COMPAMED 2024 will address them in their outstanding stage programme and the accompanying forums and conferences.
This year, the hot topics at MEDICA include the current examples of AI application and robots and assistive systems in day-to-day medical practice. Another focus is on the increasing connectivity in healthcare provision, specifically on innovations for the point of care, which means diagnostics and treatment in the immediate vicinity of patients (usually outpatients). This includes telemedical applications with the aim of providing optimised cooperation across all sectors by all persons involved in the treatment process.
Another top issue at this year’s MEDICA is the human factor. The urgent lack of skilled professionals also affects almost all companies active in healthcare, leading them to search for solutions. These topics will be discussed in individual forums and at conferences which are appropriate to each target group.
For example, there are the MEDICA HEALTH IT FORUM (that deals with IT topics like big data, artificial intelligence and cyber security) and the new MEDICA INNOVATION FORUM. This forum will replace the former MEDICA CONNECTED HEALTHCARE FORUM. Because digital innovations are not limited to optimised connections between all healthcare players, the MEDICA INNOVATION FORUM will focus on the digital transformation of the healthcare industry in its entirety. The start-up competitions integrated into the forum programme will shine a spotlight on fresh ideas and product solutions by young developer teams on the first two days of the trade fair.
COMPAMED, too, promises excitement, information and open discussions. The agendas at the COMPAMED HIGH-TECH FORUM and COMPAMED SUPPLIERS FORUM reflect the top issues of the supply sector such as AI, robotics and automation, new trends in microtechnology and innovations in materials. The programme is rounded out by contributions and discussions about the best practices of international market cultivation. Supply chain management, questions of product approval and patent law are some of the relevant aspects.
One focus of the world’s leading medical trade fair MEDICA is the area of digital health/medical IT. This topic area has received more and more attention in recent years. This is because the digitalisation of processes in the healthcare industry is being driven forward at full speed worldwide. Parallel to the exhibitors’ innovations, e.g. telemedicine applications, applications based on artificial intelligence or health apps, the MEDICA HEALTH IT FORUM and the MEDICA CONNECTED HEALTHCARE FORUM will offer the trade public a stage programme on current trends. The MEDICA START-UP PARK offers young companies a central presentation area. There they will provide information about their creative digital health solutions and meet potential investors and cooperation partners from the medical technology sector.Information online: http://www.medica-tradefair.com.
Trade Talk Today: updates and insights on every day of the trade fair
The trade fair booths and stages are not the only places where innovations will be presented and highlighted. Messe Düsseldorf’s new video podcast “Trade Talk Today” (which you can view via the landing pages of the industry portals MEDICA.de and COMPAMED.de) will also broadcast important updates on innovations and event highlights so that you can start every day of the trade fair on schedule. “Movers and shakers” grant insights and contextualise industry trends.
Last year, MEDICA and COMPAMED recorded a total of 83,000 visiting professionals from more than 160 countries.
