Time flies when you’re having fun

I go back to the beginning with HME News. I was there in the mid-90s, when founder Neil Rouda dressed up like a newsboy to pass out the inaugural issue to everyone at Medtrade Spring in Las Vegas. At the time, I was senior editor with MPS (Medical Product Sales) and after reading the first issue, I was impressed by the depth and scope of the editorial staff’s HME industry knowledge. When I hung out my freelance shingle in January 2000, former HME News Editor Jim Sullivan inquired about my availability as a contractor. Of course, I climbed aboard and didn’t look back. 

My first industry trade show was HIDA (Health Industry Distributors Association) in Las Vegas in 1991. It was there that MPS founder Bill McKnight predicted I would have a long relationship with the HME industry based on my immediate bonding with show exhibitors and attendees. I knew he was right. From my first interview with Cara Bachenheimer to my last with Jim Greatorex, I enjoyed every minute of it. 

I have witnessed dramatic changes in both the HME and publishing industries. My first Atlanta show in 1991 was known as the NHHCE (National Home Health Care Exposition) and sponsored by Ted Conrad and John Porter. Forerunners to AAHomecare were HIDA and NAMES (National Association of Medical Equipment Suppliers). When I started, the big topic was TQM (Total Quality Management), which didn’t really go anywhere, though outcomes, another concept in its infancy, quickly gained traction. Putting together HME News Medtrade Show Dailies on site was once a long, drawn-out process that required full participation of the entire team. Now it can be done digitally in a fraction of the time. Where I used to conduct several phone interviews a day, most correspondence is now done by text and email. 

I haven't attended a conference or trade show since 2014. I do miss the camaraderie, seeing folks in person and sharing drinks and meals. I have forged some great friendships during my three-and-a-half decades, some of whom, like Vince and Jeanette DeStigter, Jack Evans, Wallace Weeks, Louis Feuer and Terri Maggio I still interact with on social media. Many have left the industry, while some of my favorite people have passed away, including my MPS publisher and mentor Chris Bale, billing gurus Lisa Thomas-Payne and Jane Bunch, insurance expert Marty Haver, and HME conference stalwart Joe Throneberry. 

I started covering the HME industry when I was 30. I’m 65 now, but regardless of age, the time has come for me to retire. I didn’t plan it this way, it just happened. Battling three types of chronic cancer (leukemia, lymphoma and Waldenstrom’s) has commanded my full attention, so after 25 years with HME News, it’s time to step away. Yet I’m not planning on going anywhere soon. I’ll keep fighting the good fight while utilizing the Medicare system I ironically made a career writing about. 

Thanks to all who made my HME industry experience so memorable and enjoyable, I will miss everyone!