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Sponsors & Exhibits
Unlike most medical meetings, the PHA International conference draws together the entire community dealing with all aspects of the illness. It is not a doctors-only conference, although much of the medical community involved with pulmonary hypertension is present – teaching and learning. It is not a patients-only conference, although hundreds of patients and their caregivers attend, sharing information and encouragement. It is a coming together of all segments of an active and engaged community, including the companies who aid in the care and treatment of pulmonary hypertension.
Our 2008 theme, A Journey of Hope and Discovery, reflects the possibilities that exist today, that were not available a mere decade ago. It is a statement of where we have been, where we are, and the path that yet lies before us. It is a declaration that, while only a few years ago, doctors dare not put the hope of a cure before patients...now such hope lies just over the horizon. Sponsor Recognition | Exhibit & Advertising Info | Conference 2008 Sponsors | Available Sponsorships | About Conference 2008 Events and Materials Sponsors are recognized in Pathlight, on PHA’s website and in the conference program. In addition to recognition for specific event sponsorships, PHA recognizes combined conference-related gifts (sponsorships, exhibit space, program ads, and scholarship fund donations) according to the following levels: $100,000 or over……………..………………….Platinum
Exhibit and Advertising Information Exhibits Exhibit placement is excellent in the midst of most Conference traffic to plenary sessions, meals and larger workshops. Exhibit space includes one skirted table, sized at 6’ x 2 ½’ and two chairs. Two registrations are also included in the exhibit space price. Conference exhibit space is offered on a first come, first serve basis. Larger sizes are also available. (Double size, with no additional registrations, add $3,000.) Note: Platinum and Gold sponsors are also provided an exhibit booth and two registrations at no charge. Sponsorship level information appears at the top of this document. Advertising The Conference Program is the official guide to the conference. It is carried by participants throughout the conference. Promotional and congratulatory advertising is available at the following rates: Front Cover (Inside) $3,000 *Line includes: “in honor of __________ by _________. Conference Bag Name Listing Your company’s name can be listed on the conference bags distributed to all conference attendees during registration. Also, souvenir inserts in the tote bag are available. Items provided for the Conference tote bags must be provided in a minimum quantity of 1,200 and are subject to approval by the Conference Committee.
University of Michigan Pulmonary Hypertension Program
Available Sponsorships (updated weekly)
About Conference 2008 Events and Materials Opening “Journey of Hope and Discovery” Dinner: The Opening Dinner is the first meal gathering of the patients, caregivers, doctors and nurses who attend Conference. It sets the tone for and carries forward the theme of the Conference, “A Journey of Hope and Discovery”. PHA’s medical leadership will plan a scientific presentation that will describe the advances in understanding and treating pulmonary hypertension, with particular focus on future developments. During the dinner, the first PHA awards will also be presented, including the Award of Excellence in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) Care. Journeys Luncheon: This luncheon is themed around the journey that patients and their doctors share. This Conference tradition – composed of three to four physicians, each presenting with a patient of his or her choice – breaks down barriers and underscores the partnerships that make the PH community both unique and successful. International Breakfast: More than 15 countries were represented at PHA’s last conference. What began around a Florida kitchen table in 1990 is now an international movement. The International Breakfast will include “Snapshots from Around the World” during which leaders from different nations will present their stories to the assembled PH community. “Celebrating Leadership” Breakfast: From patients to family members to medical professionals, the spirit of volunteerism is the force that has driven our engine forward. At our last Conference, we focused on our founding roots. It is our hope during this breakfast to acknowledge the work being done by a new generation of leaders. “I start with the premise that the role of leaders is to produce more leaders, not more followers,” wrote Ralph Nader. It is in that spirit that the centerpiece of this breakfast will be a panel featuring the hows and whys of leadership in the PH community. Scientific Sessions Luncheon: In 2006, over 300 researchers, clinicians and other medical professionals attended the Scientific Sessions preceding the formal opening of the PHA Conference. This luncheon will provide a networking opportunity, as well as allowing for continuing medical education. Support Group Leaders’ Networking Luncheon: PHA currently has more than 145 local support groups led by volunteers across the nation (and, indeed, outside the U.S. as well). The Support Group Leaders Session is designed to encourage and recruit new leaders, while sharpening skills and supporting current leaders. The two-hour program will be educational as well as motivational. Conference Online Registration Page: PHA’s website receives over 390,000 visitors per month. In Conference years, the Conference section is one of the site’s most popular areas with over 70% of Conference registrations made online. Here, Conference registrants can find information from session topics to video clips to scholarship information to international travel guidelines, and everything in between. Complimentary Audio CD: A coupon will be enclosed in every participant’s conference tote, entitling them to one free conference audio CD of their choice. We know this will be a valued gift to many who will want to extend their experience beyond Houston and enhance the educational value of Conference 2008. Conference T-shirt: PHA will produce a limited edition Conference T-shirt, which will include a Conference design on the back. Each participant will receive a coupon in their Conference bag, redeemable for one free shirt. Founders Dinner and Entertainment: The Founders Dinner is the premier social event of the PHA Conference. It has also become famous during the past four Conferences, affectionately named “The Video Dinner.” A conference video will be filmed, edited and produced during the pre-sessions, arrivals and the first day of Conference. The completed film is shown during the meal as a 15 minute video capturing and reflecting the spirit of the PH community. In addition to the dinner and video presentation, awards will be presented along with a presentation, themed Progress of the Past, Promise of the Future. PH Resource Network Dinner & Meeting: The PH Resource Network is a rapidly developing professional association of over 550 nurses, pharmacists, respiratory therapists and medical technicians within PHA. They will continue their tradition of networking and growth by holding a dinner and meeting before the conference. The meeting agenda will be set by the PH Resource Network Education Committee. PHA Chair’s Reception: PHA’s key patient and medical leaders and volunteers will be invited to a reception celebrating all they have made possible and the advances of the past two years, both in the field and the PH community. Attendees will include current and past Board of Trustees, SLC members, leaders of the PH Resource Network, support group leaders, Helpline responders, Survival Guide volunteers, fundraising volunteers and corporate supporters. Scientific Program Sponsorship: PHA’s Scientific Sessions are designed as an opportunity for researchers and medical professionals to exchange and absorb new ideas in pulmonary hypertension research. The theme for the 2008 Sessions is Determinants of RV Function on Molecular, Pharmacogenomic and Metabolic Levels, and will feature experts from related fields applying their knowledge to the study of PH, as well as a poster session with abstract presentations. In addition, PHA will be presenting Young Researcher Awards to the winners of this year’s competition for research in the field. We’ll be bringing about six new and currently active research award winners to the Conference for recognition and participation. Lunch Coolers: Back by popular demand, souvenir lunch coolers will be provided for all attendees. Offering ongoing use, the Coolers have a zip top, a carrying strap, two side mesh bags and room inside to hold a lunch. Break Package Sponsorship: Morning and afternoon breaks are opportunities for social gathering during the Conference, offering the chance for those attending to renew old acquaintances, begin new friendships, and ultimately broaden their network of support. Children’s Program: Many children attend the Conference. Some are patients, others are children of patients, and still others are children of medical professionals. The children’s program assures that the PHA Conference is as extraordinary an experience for them as it is for their parents. Sponsorship includes support for different age levels throughout the Conference.
Scientific Sessions Proceedings Program Publication: Included in this program will be presentation summaries and poster abstracts from the Scientific Sessions presenters, who are highly regarded and expected to bring significant new thinking to the field. A presentation of PHA's and other PH-related research activities will also be included in this publication. Conference Program Guide: The Conference Program Guide is the essential tool for navigating Conference. Conference-goers scan it continuously throughout the event and many return home with it as both a souvenir and as a way to describe what took place to their support groups and others. Fashion Show: A Conference tradition, the fashion show features PH patients as they display the ingenious ways they hide their pumps. The event goes far beyond cleverness to demonstrate ways that patients can cope with a life-threatening illness and normalize their lives. Souvenir Door Keys: From the moment they register at the Hilton Americas, guests from our PH community will enter the unique environment of PHA’s International Conference. This sponsorship will welcome them with imprinted door keys, featuring a welcome or congratulatory message from the sponsor. Filming of Selected General Sessions: Over the last three years, PHA has produced over 20 CDs and DVDs; these have taken the best of our medical education and patient programming and given it a shelf life far beyond the day of presentation. Most particularly, programming developed for patients is being made available to enhance support group meetings, special events, and other gatherings. At Conference 2006, PHA began to film key presentations at Plenary Sessions. Multiple DVDs have been produced featuring at least six programs/presentations, including the “Journeys with PH” session that defines the relationship between physicians and patients, and the inspiring “Why I Fight PH” speech by Carl Hicks. We seek to continue the development of these enduring materials at this year’s Conference. The DVDs will be released beginning in Awareness Month 2008 and periodically through Awareness Month 2009. Filming of Scientific Sessions: During the PHA 2004 Conference, PHA filmed our entire Scientific Sessions. These were then distributed over 18 months in four sets to 1,500 PH treating physicians in the U.S. and in other nations. Better compression after the 2006 sessions allowed PHA to produce a three-DVD set while increasing our distribution to 8,000 (through targeted mailing and medical conference distribution). Responses from the community have been very positive and PHA looks forward to continuing this important educational opportunity. Audio Visual: This sponsorship will provide an enriched learning environment for many of the Conference sessions through increased audiovisual support for various speakers throughout the Conference. Scientific Sessions Continental Breakfast: PHA’s Scientific Sessions open with a low-key continental breakfast where medical professionals will have an opportunity to renew acquaintances and meet new colleagues. NEW! Patients’ Meet-and-Greet: Conference 2006 evaluations showed how anxious patients and caregivers were to meet each other when they arrived the day before Conference begins. In 2008, PHA seeks to solve that issue with a patient Meet-and-Greet on the evening of Thursday, June 19, complete with refreshment and low-key “mixer” entertainment. In addition, PHA will offer to take names and contact information from those attending. This will be used to create a free batch of Conference Cards which can be picked up the following day at the sponsor’s exhibit. Patients and others can exchange these cards with new friends they meet at Conference to help maintain lasting friendships. International PH Associations Exhibit, Meeting Site & Theater (includes scholarships): At its 2006 International Conference, PHA provided a shared exhibit booth for PH associations from throughout the world. The exhibit was very successful. Leaders gave brief lectures on their activities, showed new media productions and hosted discussions. In addition, the exhibit became a meeting and exchange point for registrants from nations other than the United States. At the 2008 Conference, PHA seeks to build upon this success by providing an expanded area with theater seating for about 30, with ample A/V support. In addition, the international area and scheduled programming will be featured more prominently in the Conference Program Guide. Finally, funding from this co-sponsorship will be used to provide scholarships to international attendees. Note Portfolios: Building on the smash success of these items at the 3rd Biennial PH Resource Network Symposium in October 2007, PHA would like to provide high quality note portfolios to all Conference registrants. They will be placed in Conference bags for use throughout Conference and beyond. The folios will include a writing pad, file and business card holders and pen loop. PHA: An Oral History DVD: With the launch of our Oral history project at the 2006 Conference, PHA is finally beginning to tell its own story – the unlikely progression of four women around a kitchen table in Florida in 1990 to the organization PHA has become and continues to evolve towards. This DVD will provide a comprehensive oral history of PHA. NEW! Conference PHA-Tube: PHA believes that our strength is in our stories. To that end, we have collected well over 100 stories from our community and placed them in the Journeys section of our website. In addition, we have created many professionally developed CD-ROMS and DVDs that capture our story on film. At Conference 2008, we seek to add a new – and fun – twist. We will supply up to 20 volunteers with digital mini-camcorders and suggest several questions about Conference and living with PH. The results will then be placed on our website. It is our expectation that this process will soon become an ongoing part of our story-collecting through support group and individual submissions. NEW! Fellows Scholarship Fund: This is a new scholarship fund to encourage trainees in internal medicine, pulmonology and cardiology to develop clinical interest and scientific curiosity in pulmonary hypertension. These scholarships will provide airfare, hotel and registration for the meeting. It is hoped that these scholarships might become a prelude to the ultimate development of an annual fellows symposium, designed to develop a pipeline of bright interested dedicated clinicians. International Attendees’ Reception & International Meetings: At the 2000 and 2002 Conferences, PHA hosted a special session for international attendees. At the 2004 Conference, PHA hosted two special sessions and a breakfast featuring international PH leaders. In 2006, in addition to hosting a special meeting for the leaders of PH associations and meeting leaders one-on-one, PHA is looking to host a special reception for all attendees coming from outside the United States. This will give them an opportunity to meet others from the same country or with the same native tongue. It will also let them know we appreciate their extra efforts to attend. Journeys Café: As part of PHA’s Conference exhibit, a kiosk of computers will be set up, drawing patients, family members and caregivers to create and submit for sharing with the entire PHA community their thoughts and observations on their time in Houston – their personal Conference journey - and their stories of living with PH. The café will also act as a home base in which several volunteers will upload Conference footage addressing questions such as living with PH and captured on digital mini-camcorders provided by PHA. Conference participants will then have the opportunity to view this footage. Finally, PHA staff will utilize the café to conduct “how-to” demonstrations on topics such as how to effectively navigate PHA’s extensive website. NEW! Endowed Memorial Lecture: Dr. Jane Morse: Jane Morse, M.D. was Professor of Clinical Medicine at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. She was indeed much more to the PH community. Her role in the discovery of the genetic basis for familial pulmonary hypertension was an enormous contribution to the field. At its meeting in February, PHA’s Scientific Leadership Council asked PHA to consider the creation of endowed talks at future PHA conferences for both Dr. Morse and Rep. Tom Lantos as a way to keep their spirits burning brightly in our community. Dr. Morse’s lecture would take place during PHA’s Scientific Sessions. NEW! Endowed Memorial Lecture: Congressman Tom Lantos: Tom Lantos entered our community after his granddaughter, Charity, was diagnosed with PH. His family’s first connection with the organization was through their attendance at PHA’s 2004 Conference. The following year he introduced himself to PHA and drove our advocacy activities to astonishing new heights. The lecture honoring Tom Lantos’ spirit would take place at a Conference plenary session and focus on enhancement of PHA’s advocacy and public awareness goals. NEW! Support Group Training DVD:At this Conference, we will be hosting a support group leaders’ training. This invitation-only meeting will encourage support group leaders representing all regions of the U.S. and a diversity of sizes and strengths to attend. The training will be a dynamic opportunity to brainstorm and implement ideas such as how to develop materials to improve meeting agendas, organize new groups, recruit and retain new members, develop newsletters, work with medical centers and use the internet more effectively. Footage from this unique training will be developed into a Support Group Leadership Training DVD and will be used as a means to encourage support group leaders in continuing their work, as well as to cultivate future support group leaders in areas still unreached by our network of over 160 support groups. NEW! CMEs/CEUs: PHA will once again provide CMEs and CEUs for the 2008 scientific and other sessions, enhancing the value of attendance for medical professionals. NEW! Support Group Shadow Meetings: While Conference is the largest gathering of the PH patients, their families, and medical professionals in the world, the reality remains that thousands in the PH community are not able to attend this extraordinary event. In 2008, we hope to develop a stronger Conference linkage with support group members who cannot attend. We will arrange for a teleconferencing system to encourage our network of 162 support groups to hold Saturday “shadow meetings” on June 20. These groups, situated around the country will have the opportunity to dial-in during their respective meetings to receive live updates from their fellow support group members personally attending the Conference in Houston. NEW! Enduring Materials in Spanish: This year Conference offers a unique opportunity to reach out to the Spanish-speaking PH Community. The participation of groups from Spanish-speaking countries and the development of Spanish-language support groups in the U.S. have both grown since Conference in 2006. Before the 7th International PH Conference there was one Spanish-language support group that met occasionally by teleconference, today there are three Spanish-language support groups spread throughout the country and meeting regularly. Furthermore, having Conference situated in Houston allows for more international participation from Mexico and South America. PHA would like to take this opportunity to translate and print in Spanish three of our most popular materials: our Ten Things to Do When First Diagnosed brochure insert, the Understanding PH brochure, and our Community of Hope membership brochure. These items will be premiered at Conference and used throughout the year and into 2009. By providing enduring materials in Spanish, PHA can offer Spanish-speaking Conference participants important information, and encourage growth of the PH community.Community of Hope Patient Scholarship Fund: Given the extraordinary expense of PH and the restricted ability of many patients to work, there are patients who have the strong desire to attend Conference but simply cannot. Our Scholarship Fund fills the gap for as many qualified patient applicants in need as we can support. Based upon need, PHA conference scholarships are awarded at 3 levels:
All scholarship decisions are made by a patient-led committee. At our 2006 Conference – thanks to the Community of Hope Scholarship Funds – PHA more than doubled the number of patients who received scholarships. This allowed us to make attendance possible for well over 100 patients and caregivers. The Funds also allowed us to create a small reserve that is permitting us to publicize and respond to scholarship requests for 2008 earlier than ever before. Beginning in November 2007, for the first time, scholarship applications can be made online. Patient presence is important not only for the patients themselves but for the success of the Conference and organizational models PHA has established. Face-to-face contact allows us to recruit and train enthusiastic new leadership. For a minimum contribution of $15,000, PHA will set up the “[Name of Company] Community of Hope Fund” as part of our overall Scholarship Fund. Such named funds will be advertised as part of our promotion of Conference and the scholarship program.
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PHA’s International Conference and Scientific Sessions has become the largest PH meeting in the world. This event is held every two years and the most recent – held in 2006 – achieved participation from over 1,100 registrants from 22 nations. 
