Growing Stronger Together August 4-6, 2026 • Loews Coral Gables • Miami, FL
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Bright Horizons, Stronger Together
Join us at HCEA's Annual Meeting in Coral Gables
HCEA’s annual meeting (GST26) is the leading gathering for healthcare convention marketing professionals, industry partners, and association leaders who are shaping what comes next for medical meetings.
This year, we’re excited to bring the community together at the Loews Coral Gables Hotel, just outside Miami, from August 4–6, 2026.
As the only event dedicated specifically to the needs of life sciences exhibitors—spanning pharma, biotech, devices, diagnostics, and healthcare IT. HCEA delivers education that is practical, relevant, and rooted in real‑world challenges. Every attendee will leave with fresh insights and tools they can put to work right away.
While summer is a quieter season for many, nearly 200 healthcare event professionals choose HCEA as the moment to reset, refocus, and look ahead. Sitting between spring’s busiest meeting cycle and the ramp‑up to fall planning, GST26 offers a rare chance to step back, gain clarity, and elevate your strategy. It’s the space where we shift from simply keeping pace to setting the pace—building on the content you’ve told us matters most and expanding it with new ideas designed to move your program forward.
This year’s conference will explore how innovative approaches, smarter data, and modern engagement strategies can transform healthcare exhibitions and events. Through expert-led education, hands-on learning, and conversations with peers who understand your world, we’ll examine the trends, technologies, and regulatory dynamics shaping the road ahead.
Who Should Attend?
Whether you’re a corporate exhibitor, association professional, or industry partner, this meeting is designed for the people who plan, support, execute, and shape healthcare congresses and medical meetings. Attendees include professionals across marketing, medical affairs, commercial operations, sales, and event planning within pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, diagnostics, instrumentation, animal health, healthcare IT, and related healthcare organizations, along with the associations and supplier partners that help bring these events to life. From exhibit and event companies to agencies, logistics, production, hospitality, and technology providers, the program is built to spark new ideas, strengthen relationships, and help attendees maximize the impact of their event investment
Corporate Members
Gain actionable insights and tools to optimize your program
Network with your peers and representatives at key associations and show organizers
Identify top suppliers who can help propel your program to new levels
Associations and Show Managers
Gain insights into how evolving industry trends may impact your events and the value they represent to both your exhibitors and delegates
Trade insights and solutions with fellow associations and show organizers
Hear firsthand from healthcare exhibitors and the challenges they face
Industry Suppliers
Build relationships with current and prospective clients
Learn firsthand about the issues that healthcare exhibitors and associations face, and become part of the solution
Promote yourself and your company
Share insights and solidify with fellow suppliers and service providers
What to Expect
Expert Perspectives: Hear from a thought leaders on the latest in healthcare event innovation, attendee engagement, and strategic planning.
Educational Presentations and Panel Discussion: Dive deep into hot topics like AI-powered event personalization, evolving compliance regulations, and sustainability in exhibitions.
Industry Expo: Meet the top suppliers and technology providers fueling innovation in healthcare meetings. Interested in exhibiting?
Spotlight Sessions: fast-paced, creative, and topical presentations by leading suppliers.
Industry Roundtables: segmented by member type, discuss the key issues that matter most with fellow corporate, association, and industry suppliers.
The HCEA HCP Panel: The flagship session of our annual meeting, clinicians and other healthcare professionals weigh in on what's important and offer suggestions on how to make your exhibits more effective and memorable.
Three Days Packed with Networking and Learning
This year’s program was built around three ideas we believe are critical to the future of healthcare events: defending the value of the congress channel at a time of growing scrutiny and tighter budgets, embracing strategic simplicity to cut through complexity and focus on what truly matters, and helping shape the future of the industry through fresh thinking, stronger collaboration, and new perspectives on where healthcare meetings are headed next.
Tuesday, August 4
Registration Open 10:00am-5:00pm
11:00am-12:00pm
Sponsor Expo Opens Grab your badge and join us for and reconnect with friends and colleagues as we prepare to open HCEA be sure to visit our sponsors, too
12:00pm-12:30pm
Charting Your Course at GST25 Laine Mann, President of HCEA, welcome you to GST26 and provide some perspective on the future course of HCEA in our industry
12:30pm-1:15pm
Education Session Creating Powerful, Compliant Congress Experiences for Healthcare Professionals
1:15pm-2:00pm
Education Session Maximizing the Opportunity and Impact of Medical Affairs Teams at Healthcare Conferences
2:00pm-2:15pm
Sponsor Spotlight A fast, focused take on the ideas shaping our industry, giving sponsors a chance to share who they are, what they do, and what they’re seeing next, all in 15 minutes or less.
2:15pm-2:45pm
Afternoon Break + Sponsor Expo Take a quick break, recharge, and spend time with the sponsors helping drive ideas and innovation across healthcare events.
2:45pm-3:45pm
Education Session New Perspectives on Measurement and ROI: The Only Five Metrics that Matter
3:45pm-4:00pm
Sponsor Spotlight
4:00pm-4:45pm
Education Session Moving Beyond Demo Counters: Reinventing Medical Device Exhibits with Digital Case Libraries, AI, and Remote Engagement
4:45pm-5:15pm
Welcome to Miami! Representatives from the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau and Loews Coral Gables Hotel will share more about what makes Miami such a dynamic destination for healthcare meetings, events, dining, and culture.
6:30pm-9:30pm
Welcome Reception Unwind, reconnect, and settle into the week at our opening night waterfront cocktail reception at Monty’s Coconut Grove. Set beside the marina where Coconut Grove meets Biscayne Bay, Monty’s captures the easygoing spirit that has defined Miami’s bayside culture for decades.
As the sun drops over the harbor and sailboats drift across the water, enjoy fresh cocktails, coastal flavors, live music, and warm ocean air under the palms. With sweeping waterfront views and the unmistakable energy of Coconut Grove, it is the perfect setting to ease into the week ahead with colleagues, friends, and a few surprises along the way.
A Miami institution since 1969, Monty’s has long been a gathering place for locals, boaters, and visitors drawn to its laid-back atmosphere and iconic waterfront setting.
Wednesday, August 5
Registration Open 10:00am-5:00pm
8:00-9:00am
Breakfast + Industry Roundtables Grab breakfast and join your peers for one of three closed-door discussion groups designed for corporate, association, and industry partners. These candid, freewheeling conversations create space to openly tackle the issues, pressures, and opportunities that are top of mind across healthcare events today.
9:00am-10:00am
Education Session Challenging Assumptions and Resetting the Conversation Around AI in Healthcare Event Marketing
10:00-10:15am
Sponsor Spotlight
10:15am-10:30am
Break
10:30am-11:15am
Education Session Is Build and Burn Sustainable? New Perspectives on Global Exhibiting
11:15am-12:15pm
Education Session Where Data Meets Dialogue: The Trends, Behaviors, and Business Realities Shaping Smarter Convention Investment Decisions Going Forward
12:15pm-12:30pm
Sponsor Spotlight
12:30pm-1:30pm
Lunch and Learn Grab a plate, choose a table based on the topic that interests you most, and join an informal exchange of ideas with peers across healthcare events. From AI and association relationships to medical device trends, budgeting, measurement, and more, these are freewheeling discussions built for honest perspectives, practical insights, and real conversation.
1:30pm-2:30pm
Education Session Sustainability: New Data, Changing Expectations, Practical Realities, and Fresh Thinking
2:30pm-2:45pm
Sponsor Spotlight
2:45pm-3:15p-m
Afternoon Break + Sponsor Expo Enjoy an afternoon break and visit our sponsors
3:15pm-4:00pm
Education Session Voice of Young Professionals: What They Seek and What Sparks Their Interest on the Show Floor
4:00pm-4:15pm
Sponsor Spotlight
4:15pm-5:00pm
Education Session Tap Into the Power of Your Community: Turning Fresh Ideas, Shared Experiences, and New Perspectives into Stronger, Smarter Exhibit Programs
5:00pm-5:15pm
Wrapping Up Wrap up day two with key takeaways from the day’s discussions and looking ahead at what’s in store for day three.
5:30pm-6:30pm
Annual Meeting Meetup Modeled after the informal meetups many of us have come to enjoy at major meetings, we’ll gather for refreshments and conversation before heading out for dinner around Miami.
Evening Free for Industry-Hosted Events
Thursday, August 6
Registration Open 8:15am-9:45am
8:00am-8:30am
Breakfast + Sponsor Expo Enjoy breakfast and visit our sponsors
8:30am-9:15am
Education Session Elevating Conference Value Through Ancillary Meeting Strategy
9:15am-9:30am
Sponsor Spotlight
9:30am-9:45am
Break
9:45am-10:45am
Education Session Annual HCP Panel: Firsthand Perspectives on What Clinicians Really Value at Conventions
10:45am-11:00am
Sponsor Spotlight
11:00am-11:45am
Education Session HCEA Members Weigh In: Adapting and Rethinking the Convention Playbook
11:45am-12:00pm
Closing Remarks
Sessions and speakers are subject to change. Visit this page for an up-to-date program.
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Logistics
HCEA's annual meeting will take place at the Loews Coral Gables Hotel, centerpiece of The Plaza Coral Gables, a new mixed use development. Just minutes from downtown Miami, the Loews offers plush accommodations, myriad dining options, and easy access to both downtown Miami and Coconut Grove.
HCEA has reserved a limited number of discounted sleeping rooms for GST26 attendees. We will provide a booking link with confirmation of your registration.
Miami International Airport (MIA) offers non-stop flights to and from hundreds of cities, and is a short 15 minutes away.
Register Today
If you are a current HCEA member, please log in before registering for GST26. If needed, you can reset your password.
Key contacts may register additional people from their company, provided those individuals have a linked profile under the organization’s HCEA profile. If you have questions, please email [email protected].
Please note that all registration fees are non-refundable. Registrations may be transferred to another HCEA member in good standing at any time prior to opening day.
