I’ve talked about the friendships made and knowledge shared at the UOAA Conferences, but I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about the exhibit hall. These exhibitors (and tons of other small companies!) are the folks who work every day to make our lives more manageable with an ostomy. Give them a mental round of applause and say thank you, because without them our quality of life with an ostomy would be much less than it is today. Yay for technology and innovation!
The exhibitors included multiple appliance and accessory manufacturers, distribution companies, products geared toward ostomates, support associations, and surgeons. I won’t lie, I didn’t stop at every single booth, but I definitely stopped at the ones that I felt would be most beneficial for me and left the exhibit hall with a little more knowledge than I entered it with.
Many of the vendors had fun stuff to give away too! Mostly notably, a few lucky people got cute little teddy bears with stomas from 11 Health, Coloplast and Hollister had fun photo booths, Convatec had cupcakes and was selling shirts for Ostomy Awareness Day (October 7, 2017), Hollister gave away books by ostomy humorist Brenda Elsagher, Shield Healthcare had Laura Cox at their booth (she’s the bubbly inspiration from the YouTube channel Ostomystory and her segment on Tosh.O), and Stealthbelt featured race car driver Ray Ciccarelli and runner Collin Jarvis.
Here’s the contact information of the vendors that you missed if you missed the UOAA Conference:
Support Associations & Surgeons
ASCRS – Colon/Rectal Surgeons
Have questions about the scope of colon and rectal surgery? I’d bet their website is filled with tons of information.
www.fascrs.org
Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation
They advocate for and provide support groups for patients who have Crohn’s or Ulcerative Colitis.
www.crohnsandcolitisinfo.com
Friends of Ostomates Worldwide
They provide ostomy supplies to ostomates in need around the world. If you’ve got extra supplies and aren’t sure what to do with them, you can send them to FOW to donate them to a good cause.
www.fowusa.org
Gay and Lesbian Ostomate’s
A support network for gay, lesbian, trans-sexual and bisexual ostomates, their caregivers, and their friends and families.
www.glo-uoaa.org
NCACOA Ostomate Association
North and Central America and Caribbean Ostomy Association
www.ostomyamericas.org
Quality of Life
A place for continent ostomates (Koch, J-pouch, Barnett Continent Intestinal Reservoir, etc) to find support and exchange information.
qla-ostomy.org
Quinton PHSH
University of Washington engineering students who are working on developing a hernia belt.
St. Joseph’s Center for Cancer
Located in Orange County, California, this is one of the few cancer prevention and treatment centers in the nation offering access to the latest in prevention, diagnosis, treatment and clinical trials.
www.sjo.org
Products & Pouch Accessories
11 Health & Technologies Inc
They make the Ostom-i Alert sensor which you can place on your pouch and connect to a Bluetooth device to notify you when your pouch is full. Perfect for the newbie who hasn’t quite gotten comfortable trusting that they’ll know, a person who is afraid to sleep at night because they’re worried their pouch will fill without them knowing, or for a care person to utilize if you rely on someone to help you care for your ostomy.
www.11Health.com
Calmoseptine, Inc
An ointment to help heal skin irritations from moisture. If you’ve been struggling with leaks and/or have weepy, itchy, or wet skin, maybe this could help!
www.calmoseptine.com
Colo-Magic Enterprises LTD
Flushable liners that are used with a two-piece pouching system so your pouch stays cleaner and can be emptied more quickly.
www.colomagic.com
H2ORS
They offer an electrolyte drink mix to help reverse moderate hydration, we all know how important staying hydrated is!
www.h20rs.com
Hy-tape Int.
A zinc-oxide based adhesive that’s gentle on the skin and great for extending your wear time and easing your mind from worry about leaks.
www.hytape.com
KEM Enterprises, Inc
They make the Osto-EZ-Vent that lets you release the air pressure in your pouch.
www.kemonline.com
Nu-Hope Labs
In my mind they’re most known for their hernia support and hernia prevention belts, but they have other products as well such as oval convex pouches and stoma wafer hole cutters.
www.nu-hope.com
Schena Ostomy Technologies, Inc.
They make the EZ-Clean Pouch system that connects to your toilet and lets you clean out the inside of your pouch quickly when you are emptying.
www.ostomyezclean.com
Shire
They are a biotechnology company that focuses on people with rare diseases and other highly specialized conditions like Short Bowel Syndrome.
www.shire.com
Stealthbelt
The stealthiest support belt on the market, I would definitely not known there was an ostomy inside a stealth belt if I’d seen one on someone before my surgery.
www.stealthbelt.com
StomaDome
This newer company created a stoma guard that attaches to your pouch via velcro applicators giving your stoma an extra level of protection from impact. The dome is reusable, you just apply a new velcro strip to each new pouch.
www.stomadome.com
Manufacturers
B Braun Medical
They make a 2 piece ostomy appliance with a system that helps you line the two pieces up more easily when you’re snapping them together and have high-output bags newly available in the US.
www.bbraunusa.com – Click Products, then Ostomy Care. You could probably call them to get samples!
Coloplast
One of the “Big Three” appliance manufacturers with a full range of ostomy, urology, continence care, and wound and skin care products.
www.coloplast.us
Convatec
One of the “Big Three” appliance manufacturers, Convatec also owns OstomySecrets, and is selling shirts for the 2017 Ostomy Awareness Day 5k (this year’s theme is Navigate the Journey Together and there’s a way to run the 5k virtually if you’re not located in a city where there’s an in person run happening). All proceeds of the shirts go to UOAA.
www.convatec.com
Costa Medical
Owned by a former-ostomate, they sell aqua seals and stoma seals to help prevent leaks and tissue breakdown when you’re in the water or in everyday life.
www.costamedical.org
Cymed
Their wafers use a microskin that promote breathability, are waterproof and comfortable.
www.cymed.us
Hollister Incorporated
Employee-owned and one of the “Big Three” appliance manufacturers offering a large range of products for ostomy, continence, critical and wound care.
www.hollister.com
Marlen Manufacturing
Their focus is on convex pouching systems, so if you need a convex appliance you should sign up for free samples on their website to see if they’re a fit for you.
www.marlenmfg.com
Safe n Simple
They don’t make appliances, but they do make many other ostomy accessory products like peri-stoma cleanser, adhesive remover wipes, hernia/support belts, tapes, seals, and more.
www.sns-medical.com
Distributors
Byram Healthcare
Call Byram or visit their website to see if they take your insurance and would meet your needs for your next supply order.
www.byramhealthcare.com
Comfort Medical
They pride themselves on their customer service and attention to detail and would love to help you place your next supply order.
www.comfortmedical.com
Edgepark
Call Edgepark or visit their website to see if they take your insurance and would meet your needs for your next supply order.
www.edgepark.com
Parthenon Co., Inc
Family owned ostomy supply manufacturer and discount retailer.
www.parthenoninc.com
Shield Healthcare
In addition to being ready to fill your next supply order, they have an OstomyLife Community to offer information and support for you.
www.shieldhealthcare.com
Whew! That’s a lot of exhibitors! If you missed the event, go to their websites or call them and get some information. Then when you go to the conference in Philadelphia, PA 2019, you can chat them up! Can’t wait to see you there, and see what new vendors the UOAA brings in!
This is part three of a three part series on the UOAA 2017 National Conference in Irvine, CA. You can read about other people’s experiences with friendship and education in part one, Ostomy Camaraderie, and part two, There’s Always Something New to Learn.