FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 23, 2004

CONTACT: Jennifer Palcher - HCEA (404) 252-3663

ATLANTA - Superior education on healthcare convention-related topics, such as compliance with industry codes and federal regulations, CME standards, housing, ROI and measurement and leads management, will be presented at HCEA's 2004 Annual Meeting, June 12-15, in Austin, Texas.

The Annual Meeting, themed "Bright Stars in the Lone Star," will be held at the Austin Convention Center. It is the only event that concentrates exclusively on the needs of healthcare exhibit marketers and healthcare exhibition managers.

Featured speakers include Greg Schwem, who will kick off the meeting with his unique brand of industry-specific business humor. Also, HCEA's keynote speaker will be Erik Wahl, an artist who demonstrates how to think outside the box through painting.

Other educational workshops on the schedule will concentrate on such subjects as the HCEA Guidelines for U.S. Healthcare Conventions, what healthcare professionals expect from exhibits, exhibiting best practices, improving creativity, utilizing new technologies and increasing booth traffic. Attendees will find another kind of education in the HCEA Exhibition, where they can learn about the latest products and services to advance their exhibit programs.

The HCEA Annual Meeting also provides attendees the opportunity to earn Continuing Education Units that apply toward the Certified Manager of Exhibits (CME) professional designation. The Certified Manager of Exhibits program was developed by the Trade Show Exhibitors Association and is endorsed by HCEA.

HCEA members and non-members are welcome to attend HCEA's Annual Meeting. Prior to May 11, registration is $545 for HCEA members and $765 for non-members. "Considering what attendees get-almost 40 hours of healthcare-specific educational opportunities and a plethora of quality networking functions-this is a great deal," said Eric Allen, HCEA's Executive Vice President. "And HCEA's hotel rates are among the lowest in the industry." For additional information or to register, visit the HCEA Web site at www.hcea.org or call (404) 252-3663.

HCEA is the only association solely dedicated to improving the effectiveness of all conventions, meetings and exhibitions for the healthcare industry. HCEA represents more than 700 member organizations involved in healthcare exhibitions and conventions.

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