Review of Conference 2010
In the words of Mike Hall, HCA Vice President and Presenter of the HCA National Conference 2010 – ‘Raising the Bar’ – during the Closing Ceremony: “What a cracking Conference that was...”
More than 400 HCA Members, Exhibitors and Guests gathered in Blackpool in April for two lively, energetic, engaging and inspiring days, hosted by the HCA North West Branch, to tackle the key business issues facing our industry today.
Many were attending their very first HCA Conference – thanks to the ongoing drive to encourage new Members to join and to broaden the scope of the Organisation. And all came away reinvigorated not just by the fresh sea breezes of this popular North West resort, but with a renewed energy not only to ‘raise the bar’ – but to positively leap over it!
Participants took inspiration from an outstanding lineup of experts and advisors representing the NHS, governing bodies and industry who covered a wide range of very relevant issues in their keynote sessions. Topics covered ranged from ‘Raising the Bar – An Inspector Calls’, and ‘Leadership and Management – Our Performance’ to ‘Our Partners – What Can We Learn? and ‘Raising the Bar at the Patient’s Bedside’.
They brought us up to speed on the current position of NHS healthcare catering both from the perspective of the governing bodies and from those working at the coalface of our industry – the medical teams, the facilities staff and the caterers themselves.
But it wasn’t simply a case of sitting back, listening and taking note. The spotlight was turned on Delegates during two interactive Workshops, themed ‘Raising the Standard’, when everyone was challenged to help the Association formulate a series of Qualitative and Quantitative performance standards and measures that will influence the future direction of NHS Catering.
And their enthusiastic input will now form the starting point for the HCA response to the NHS Performance Agenda and provide the basis for minimum standards and the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that could be used throughout the NHS.
An integral part of this year’s Conference proceedings was the Exhibition featuring Stands from 73 of the food service industry’s leading suppliers. And, once again, commitment and dedication to healthcare catering and patient care was recognised with the presentation of the 2010 HCA National Awards.
The vibrant spirit and fun atmosphere of this popular North West holiday resort permeated all aspects of Conference 2010 – from the warm and welcoming hospitality during the informal Pre-Conference Ice Breaker (with, appropriately, an ice sculptor who carved a spectacular polar bear out of a block of ice as the evening progressed), right through to the fabulous HCA Branch Dinner finale when the Hilton Hotel’s Royal Suite was transformed into a circus fairground, complete with fire eaters, acrobats, a coconut shy, the obligatory popcorn and candy floss, and much, much more.
Reflecting on this year’s event, Sonja Brine, 2010 Conference Secretary, said,
“I’m delighted with the way everything went. We had an excellent Organising Committee, who had a massive amount of experience to share, and we received endless support throughout the year Conference was in development from Audrey Hall and Adrian Wright at Lansdowne Publishing.
“We definitely achieved the objectives set out in the Programme,” she continued. “Delegates worked hard during the Workshop Sessions and I truly believe that we have raised the bar higher than expected in so many ways and a lot of work now needs to be done to move the Association forward. We all need to contribute to make this happen – so no keeping your head down and leaving the work to others!”
Sonja concluded, “We have had nothing but positive feedback since Conference closed. One first time attendee told me that Conference had renewed his enthusiasm for his work and he couldn’t wait to get back to start putting into practice some of the things he had learnt. That, to me, is what Conference is all about.”
You will shortly be able to read some of the Feedback from Conference on the HCA 2010 website and if you’ve not yet filled in the Evaluation Questionnaires you received in your Conference packs, please do so as soon as possible and preferably well before the deadline of Friday, 14 May 2010. You comments will help to inform what happens at National Conference in the future.