IHHC announces national conference details

The Institute of Hospitality in HealthCare (IHHC) will be holding its 39th National Conference from 21–23 September at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Unlike many healthcare conferences, which focus on one specific health or support-services area, the IHHC conference has a holistic focus, and as such brings together delegates from a variety of health and aged-care organisations across a range of positions — from chefs and foodservice managers to dietitians, speech pathologists, environmental services officers and other operational and support-service managers.

The theme for this year’s conference is ‘The Future Landscape: Expertise for Changing Times’, and presentations and speakers have been chosen with that focus in mind.

The program of events will include a focus on acute care and aged care, and feature presentations on sustainability, waste management, cleaning, engaging with gender-diverse people, how our changing environment impacts aged-care practices, patient-centred dietetic care, food safety, allergen management, digitisation of support services, robotics and automation, and more.

Five keynote speakers have been selected to provide inspirational advice and practical insights. World Champion Olympic swimmer James Magnussen will share his story with attendees, while body language, voice and emotion expert Dr Louise Mahler, recently name PSA Keynote Speaker of the Year, will provide tips and strategies on dealing with difficult situations and communications in the workplace. Queensland Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young, who is also the State Health Incident Controller for the management of the COVID-19 pandemic, will provide an insight into the challenges of recent times, as will Dr Robyn Littlewood, Chief Executive Officer of Health and Wellbeing Queensland, while Dr Mary Hannan-Jones of Queensland University of Technology will examine foodservice systems in large hospitals in Australia and ask which features are best for quality and patient-focused outcomes.

In addition to the extensive presentations, the program of events has been structured to ensure plenty of opportunities for attendees to catch up and network after more than 12 months of COVID-restricted contact.

The conference also incorporates a trade exhibition component, which provides an opportunity for delegates to see the latest product/service innovations and new technologies from leading suppliers and manufacturers — this will be opened with a cocktail event on the first evening and then will be accessible every morning.

The inaugural IHHC Culinary Competition will be held as part of the conference, starting at 5 pm on 22 September and running into the evening. Entrants can be either individuals or teams, and will be challenged to make dishes which could potentially be used in aged care, using specified ingredients against a set budget. Details on how to submit an entry can be found at https://www.ihhc.org.au/conference/2021-conference/culinary-competition/.

The final day will conclude with the presentation of the annual IHHC Awards for Excellence and the new IHHC and Flavour Creations Texture Modified Food Award. These will be presented during the conference dinner, which will have a ‘roaring twenties’ theme complete with tap dancing! Following the dinner there will be an afterparty at the Terrace Bar at the nearby Emporium Hotel, providing an opportunity for everyone to let their hair down in an informal setting.

More details of the conference can be found on the IHHC website (https://www.ihhc.org.au/conference/2021-conference/overview/) and the full program of events will be posted there as soon as it is finalised in the coming weeks.

Early-bird registration is available at a reduced price until the end of June.

Supporter and exhibitor information is also available on the website: see www.ihhc.org.au for more information.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Gennady Danilkin