The best healthcare networking events for marketers and practice leaders through 2027 are SHSMD Connections (Phoenix, September 26 to 28, 2027), the Healthcare Marketing & Physician Strategies Summit (Austin, May 23 to 26, 2027) and HCIC (Orlando, October 25 to 28, 2026). For the wider industry, HIMSS27, ViVE, HLTH and AHIP are the largest meetings, and specialty groups like the National Council, NAATP, ASHA and AmSpa run the rooms where practice owners in their fields meet.
Every date below was checked on the organizer's own website. Dates checked on 2026-10-08. Where the next edition has not been announced, the table says so and gives the most recent edition with a link, so you can watch for the announcement. Events move, so confirm on the official page before booking travel.
Large healthcare conferences
These are the biggest general meetings. They suit health system leaders, digital health companies and vendors. A small practice will find more value in the specialty events further down.
| Event | Who it is for | Next date | Where | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HLTH USA | Health system, payer, startup and investor executives | November 15 to 18, 2026 | Las Vegas, The Venetian | In person |
| ViVE 2027 | Digital health leaders: CIOs, CMIOs, payer and provider executives | March 14 to 17, 2027 | Nashville, Music City Center | In person |
| HIMSS27 | Health IT, clinical and executive leaders worldwide | April 5 to 8, 2027 (April 5 is preconference) | Chicago, McCormick Place | In person |
| AHIP 2027 | Health plan leaders and partners | June 10 to 11, 2027 (opening reception June 9) | Las Vegas | In person |
| HLTH Europe 2027 | European health system, payer and startup leaders | June 21 to 24, 2027 | Amsterdam, RAI | In person |
| HFMA Annual Conference | Healthcare finance and revenue cycle leaders | June 27 to 30, 2027 | Denver | In person |
| AHA Leadership Summit | Hospital and health system leaders | 2027 dates not yet announced. Last edition: July 12 to 14, 2026, Denver | In person |
HIMSS says its last conference drew over 24,000 attendees, and HLTH lists 12,250+ attendees for its US event. Size cuts both ways: more people, and more noise. If you go, go with a list of named people to meet.
HFMA also runs two smaller 2027 meetings: the Revenue Cycle Conference (March 10 to 12, Orlando) and the HFMA Leadership Summit (April 18 to 20, Atlanta).
Healthcare marketing conferences
These are the rooms where hospital and practice marketers, strategists, physician relations teams and digital leads meet each other.
| Event | Who it is for | Next date | Where | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HCIC (Healthcare Interactive Conference, run by Greystone.Net) | Digital marketing, web and martech leaders at hospitals and health systems | October 25 to 28, 2026 | Orlando, Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate | In person |
| Ragan Social Media & Marketing Conference | Communicators and marketers across industries | March 3 to 5, 2027 | Orlando, Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin | In person |
| HMPS27 (Healthcare Marketing & Physician Strategies Summit) | Marketing, communications, digital, strategy and physician relations executives | May 23 to 26, 2027 | Austin, JW Marriott | In person |
| SHSMD Connections 2027 | Hospital marketing, strategy, communications and business development teams | September 26 to 28, 2027 | Phoenix | In person |
| AAPL Annual Leadership Conference | Physician leaders and executives | October 22 to 24, 2026 | Scottsdale, Westin Kierland | In person |
SHSMD Connections 2026 ran September 27 to 29 in Baltimore. SHSMD says membership is included in the conference registration rate, so first-time attendees get a year of the online community with the ticket.
Greystone.Net appears on many lists as "Greystone". Its flagship in-person event is HCIC, so the two are the same trip.
Specialty, practice management and behavioral health events
Practice owners meet peers, vendors and referral partners at the meeting for their field. These are the ones with confirmed dates.
| Event | Who it is for | Next date | Where | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MGMA Financial Conference | Medical practice finance and revenue leaders | March 4 to 6, 2027 | Atlanta | In person |
| MGMA Operations Conference | Practice administrators and operations managers | May 2027 (MGMA lists May 2 to 4 and May 4 to 6 on different pages) | Seattle | In person |
| MGMA Annual Conference (formerly the Leaders Conference) | Medical practice leaders of all sizes | 2027 dates not yet announced. Last edition: September 27 to 30, 2026, San Antonio | In person | |
| NatCon 2027 (National Council for Mental Wellbeing) | Mental health and substance use treatment leaders and clinicians | April 12 to 14, 2027 | New Orleans | In person |
| NAATP National 2027 (Addiction Treatment Leadership Conference) | Addiction treatment owners and executives | May 23 to 25, 2027, then Hill Day May 26 | Washington, D.C. area (Crystal Gateway Marriott) | In person |
| ATA Nexus (American Telemedicine Association) | Telehealth and virtual care leaders | 2027 dates not yet announced. Last edition: May 12 to 14, 2026, Orlando | In person | |
| ADA Scientific Session (the ADA's annual meeting, formerly SmileCon) | Dentists and dental teams | October 8 to 10, 2026, Indianapolis. 2027 not yet announced | Indianapolis | In person |
| Greater New York Dental Meeting | Dentists, hygienists, assistants and practice teams | November 27 to December 1, 2026 | New York, Javits Center | In person |
| ASHA Convention | Speech-language pathologists and audiologists | November 19 to 21, 2026; then November 18 to 20, 2027 | Indianapolis (2026), New Orleans (2027) | In person |
| APTA Combined Sections Meeting | Physical therapists and practice owners | February 4 to 6, 2027 | Philadelphia | In person |
| Medical Spa Show (AmSpa) | Med spa owners, providers and medical directors | April 15 to 18, 2027 | Las Vegas, Wynn | In person |
The ADA says its board is reviewing the format of the national meeting after 2026 and will announce details later, so do not plan around a 2027 date until it is published. The Greater New York Dental Meeting reports 32,012 registrations in 2025, which makes it one of the largest dental meetings in the US.
Virtual events and online series
Virtual events cost little or nothing and fit around clinic hours. They are weaker for relationships, so use them to learn and to find the 2 or 3 people worth meeting in person.
| Event | Who it is for | Next date | Where | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SHSMD Social Media Strategies in Healthcare certificate course | Healthcare social media and communications staff | Starts October 13, 2026 | Online | Six modules |
| SHSMD Catalyst Conversations | SHSMD members by track (marketing, communications, planning, small and rural) | Monthly, see the calendar (next: October 21 and 22, 2026) | Online | 1-hour small-group discussions of 15 to 20 people, not recorded |
| Ragan Communications Week | Communicators across industries | November 9 to 13, 2026 | Online | Virtual week |
| Ragan Writing & Content Strategy Virtual Conference | Content and communications teams | December 3, 2026 | Online | Half-day |
| MGMA Summit | Medical practice leaders | December 8, 2026 | Online | Digital event, $100 |
SHSMD also runs sponsored webinars most weeks (two are scheduled for October 21 and 28, 2026), listed on the same calendar.
Online communities and associations worth joining
A membership gives you a year of forums, webinars, salary data and directories, which often costs less than one conference ticket. Prices below are as published on each association's site on 2026-10-08.
| Association | Best for | Published price | What you get for networking |
|---|---|---|---|
| SHSMD (Society for Health Care Strategy & Market Development, part of the AHA) | Hospital and health system marketers and strategists | $235 a year | 3,700+ members, 12 chapters, Catalyst Conversations, member discounts on Connections |
| MGMA (Medical Group Management Association) | Practice administrators and owners | $399 a year ($349 with auto renew; $199 early careerist) | State and local chapters, member resource groups, conferences |
| HFMA (Healthcare Financial Management Association) | Finance and revenue cycle staff | $495 a year for professionals ($535 business partner, $50 student) | Local chapters, Revenue Cycle and Leadership events |
| AAPL (American Association for Physician Leadership) | Physicians moving into leadership | See site | Annual leadership conference, courses |
| HIMSS | Health IT and digital leaders | See site | Local chapters, HIMSS conferences |
Specialty owners usually get the most from their own association: the National Council or NAATP for behavioral health and addiction treatment, AmSpa for med spas, the ADA and its state societies for dentists, APTA for physical therapists.
We only list communities we could verify. LinkedIn groups and Slack workspaces come and go quickly, so none made this list. Before you invest time in one, check that the last 10 posts are recent and come from real practitioners.
How to choose events and get your money back
Conferences are expensive once you add travel and time away from patients. A simple plan stops them becoming paid holidays.
Choose by goal
| Your goal | Best fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Learn what other hospital marketers are doing | SHSMD Connections, HMPS, HCIC | Case studies from peers with the same problems |
| Find referral partners | Your specialty meeting, local MGMA chapter | The people who send you patients are there |
| Buy software or an agency | HCIC, HIMSS, HLTH exhibit halls | Many vendors in one place, easy comparison |
| Raise your profile | Any event where you can speak | A speaker slot gives you a page and a link on the event site |
| Learn on a tight budget | SHSMD webinars, MGMA Summit, Ragan virtual events | No travel |
Before, during and after
- Set a budget per event that includes registration, flights, hotel and lost clinic hours. Ask if your association membership cuts the registration price (SHSMD and AmSpa both list member rates).
- Write one goal you can measure: 5 conversations with potential referral partners, 2 vendor demos, 1 speaking pitch.
- Book meetings before you go. Most event apps open attendee messaging a few weeks before. Message the 10 people you most want to meet.
- Go to the small sessions. Roundtables and Catalyst-style discussions are where conversations start.
- Take notes on each person right after you talk: name, what they need, what you promised.
- Follow up within 48 hours with something useful, such as the article or contact you mentioned.
- Review in 90 days: what did the trip produce? Keep the events that paid off and drop the rest.
Turn events into search visibility
Most organizations treat a conference as a cost. Done well, each one also produces links and content that keep working for years. This is where networking meets SEO.
Speaker and sponsor pages
When you speak or sponsor, the event site usually publishes a speaker bio or sponsor listing with a link to your website. Event and association sites are often old, trusted domains, the kind of links that are hard to earn any other way (see our backlink statistics for why links still matter). Send the organizer your exact practice name, a short bio and the right URL. Link to your most relevant page, such as the service page that matches your talk.
Event pages on your own site
If you host events (a free community health screening, a lunch-and-learn for referring physicians, a support group), give each one its own page with the date, time, address and how to register. Mark it up with Event structured data so Google can show it in event results. Our healthcare schema markup guide covers the other types worth adding.
Recap content
Write a recap within a week: the 5 ideas you are taking home, with credit to each speaker. Recaps rank for "[event name] 2026 takeaways" style searches, and speakers often share recaps that mention them, which brings social traffic and sometimes links. Keep any patient details out, and check your recap against your HIPAA-compliant content process if you mention cases.
Your own talk
Turn your talk into an article on your site, with the slides embedded and a summary of audience questions. A strong talk can become a cornerstone piece in your healthcare content marketing plan.
Being named in AI answers
AI assistants build their answers from pages that mention you: association directories, speaker pages, news coverage. Each verified mention on a trusted healthcare site adds to that picture. The free Rank.ai AI grade shows whether ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini name your practice when someone asks for one like it, and which pages they read.
FAQ
What is the biggest healthcare conference in the US?
HIMSS is one of the largest, with over 24,000 attendees at its last conference according to HIMSS, and HIMSS27 runs April 5 to 8, 2027 in Chicago. HLTH USA lists 12,250+ attendees. For a single specialty, meetings like the Greater New York Dental Meeting (32,012 registrations in 2025) can be larger still.
What conferences should healthcare marketers attend?
Start with SHSMD Connections (September 26 to 28, 2027, Phoenix), the Healthcare Marketing & Physician Strategies Summit (May 23 to 26, 2027, Austin) and HCIC (October 25 to 28, 2026, Orlando). All 3 are built around hospital and health system marketing, strategy and digital teams. Add your specialty's meeting if you market a practice in one field.
Are there free or low-cost healthcare networking events online?
Yes. SHSMD runs virtual Catalyst Conversations and webinars for members, Ragan runs virtual communications events, and MGMA's December 8, 2026 Summit is a $100 digital event. Your state association or local MGMA chapter also runs low-cost local meetings that are often the best value for a single practice.
Is it worth joining a healthcare marketing association?
For most marketers, yes. SHSMD costs $235 a year and includes webinars, small-group discussions, chapters and conference discounts, which is less than most single conference tickets. Practice administrators get similar value from MGMA ($399 a year).
How do I network at a healthcare conference if I am new?
Book 5 to 10 meetings through the event app before you arrive, go to roundtables and small sessions, and ask people about the problem they came to solve. Write notes after each conversation and follow up within 48 hours with something useful. Most first-time attendees skip the follow-up, so doing it sets you apart.
Can attending conferences help my SEO?
Indirectly, yes. Speaking and sponsoring usually earn a link from the event site, recaps and talk write-ups give you useful content, and mentions on trusted healthcare sites help both Google and AI assistants understand who you are. None of this guarantees rankings, but it adds up over several events.
