Tom Jamison, Tom Meccariello and Mike Schmit were there from GE and I believe there might have been one or two other GE people that I did not exchange cards with. Tom Jamison never ages. I believe he must drink from the Fountain of Youth and he is always charming and pleasant to be around. Mike and Tom are big supporters of IAMERS and also attend the meetings. I think they have done everything they can to help our IAMERS members whenever they can.

Guido Stomp from Philips in the Netherlands works on the Philips trade in desk so you know he was very popular at the meeting, both because he is a warm and friendly fellow but because he offers equipment in the market.

Do not worry...I am still going to summarize Joe Shrawder's comments...

Diana Upton and Rob Kerwin did a great job anchoring the event.

I am friendly with Diana outside of work and I know that she takes her responsibilities to bring together a successful event very seriously. She worries about the smallest detail and over the years the events are better and better. This meeting was one of the best yet. Everyone had plenty of time to visit, we learned a little bit about a lot of important things and the food and venue were good (although I will never stay in the Tivoli hotel again, the meeting facilities were great).

Diana announced that Rob Kerwin is going to join IAMERS as its attorney on a full time basis. Initially, I was against this because the association is going to issue an assessment and we are all going to have to chip in but after the meeting and learning a little more, I am now in favor of it. It's important to have a convincing voice in the marketplace, not to mention one coming from someone as good looking as Rob.

There are so many things going on in the industry and in Washington, DC that I think it is a great idea to have IAMERS beating the drum to support alternative service.

I still believe that brokers are going to go the way of the dodo bird but alternative service companies and alternative parts providers, I believe, will continue to thrive because they play a role in the health care echo system.

Alternative providers help to keep equipment running that may have reached OEM end of life. Alternative providers provide competition in the marketplace and competition keeps parts prices and service prices low. Alternative providers are frequently local and offer a faster response time.

Alternative providers cannot do everything and fill a relatively narrow niche but in my opinion, with more people alive and people living longer, without alternative providers and alternative parts, patient outcomes would pay the price.

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