Tony Prusak, director of convention sales for Cleveland Medical Mart & Convention Center (MMCC), was selected as vice president for communications and technology of the International Medical Meeting Professionals Association (IMMPA) at its annual meeting on May 17-19, in St. Louis, MS.
Prusak was also named to the board of directors for the St. Louis-based organization dedicated to providing education, certification and resources to a full spectrum of healthcare meeting professionals.
As Vice President for communications and technology, Mr. Prusak will reach out to the medical meeting planning industry, including current IMMPA membership, to provide the latest information in the profession, as well as overseeing a web site resource for news and information critical to medical meeting planners.
“It is vital that we provide current information to our membership and Tony’s task will be to provide up-to-date communication links to the medical industry and resource links for our membership, the profession and our sponsors,” said Lisa Keilty, former team leader at Pfizer and current IMMPA president.
IMMPA was launched in the fall of 2009 with the creation of a board of directors, an advisory board and educational sessions. Its members of medical meeting professionals work in pharmaceutical, biomedical and medical device companies, hospitals and medical centers, animal health, allied health, medical societies and independent planners. IMMPA will offer certification in medical meeting planning.
“Tony reached out to our organization and has been with IMMPA since day one,” said Keilty. “His level of expertise brings a great deal to the organization. We were very excited to visit with Tony several months ago to learn about Cleveland Medical Mart & Convention Center and what MMPI is doing as an organization. Tony has been instrumental in delivering quality and timely information about Cleveland Medical Mart & Convention Center. His level of interest is not only valued, but very impressive. On any board of directors, an organization needs members willing to add knowledge and commitment and Tony brings both of those qualities to IMMPA.”
Cleveland MMCC is scheduled to open in the fall of 2013 and will integrate world-class tradeshows, and conference facilities with permanent showrooms in a single structure designed specifically for the medical industry.
“Cleveland Medical Mart & Convention Center will be the perfect venue to host medical and pharmaceutical meetings with outstanding medical industry speakers and facilities close by,” said Keilty. “With the opening of Cleveland MMCC, we look forward to hosting IMMPA professional certification, annual conferences and regional conferences in line with other national medical events. The Cleveland MMCC is a valuable resource for our organization.”
IMMPA will begin offering a three-year certification program for medical meeting professionals, issuing the Certified Medical Meeting Professional (CMMP) designation. The certification program will include classroom instruction and an extensive testing program designed to keep medical meeting professionals current with the profession. The organization is working with a local university to administer the certification program. The educational component will also be an important part of Cleveland MMCC.
“We were setting up a meeting on AIDS that required a lab with patients, needles and other materials that we were setting up in a hotel room,” said Vidgis Tonne, vice president of meeting and event services with Publicis Medical Education Group, located in the Merchandise Mart. “Cleveland MMCC eliminates the need to create a hospital setting in a hotel room, meeting room or some other location. Cleveland MMCC will already have this type of technology in place and will make medical conferences and educational programs much easier to set up as well as more efficient and educational. Working in the Merchandise Mart in Chicago, Illinois, I have been able to see up close how effectively the permanent showrooms work for bringing buyers and sellers together. Cleveland MMCC will bring experts in the medical profession together and will enhance education programming.”
