In the face of the current economic downturn there is still good news coming out of the trade show industry. Nearly 2,000 medical coders and health care professionals showed up in Las Vegas April 5-8 for the American Academy of Professional Coders’ (AAPC) National Conference. This four day event included the AAPC’s first ever Anatomy Expo led by nine physicians who provided attendees with an in-depth look into the different functions and parts of the body through the use of anatomical models, devices and videos.

The AAPC is the nation’s largest medical coding training and certification association for medical coders. It provides credentials to medical coders in physician offices, outpatient facilities, and payer environments.

This year’s conference included more than 45 educational courses designed to keep members updated on many topics and a keynote presentation by three-time cancer survivor Matt Jones on winning strategies for the “race of life.” The conference address focused on the state of the health care industry and its impact on conference attendees. Also presented was the training plan for the transition to the new ICD-10-CM code set which will be implemented in 2013.

The AAPC’s 2010 National Conference will be held June 6-9, 2010 in Nashville, Tennessee at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. The AAPC will also be hosting two regional conferences later this year. The first will be held in Oahu, Hawaii in September and the second in Norfolk, Virginia in October. You can get more information on the American Academy of Professional Coders and their conferences at their web site at http://www.aapc.com.