Top 5 Healthcare Conferences in 2026: Facility Guide
Attending healthcare conferences is a great way for facility executives and leaders to network with diverse professionals and learn about new industry trends. Each year, leading healthcare organizations across the country offer a wide range of conferences and conventions for healthcare professionals.
The topics and quality of information covered at these conferences can vary, so it’s important to put your time and resources into those that are professionally vetted. We’ll outline five popular types of healthcare conventions for facility leaders and provide recommendations on which events to attend in 2026.
Why Attend Healthcare Conferences?
Conferences connect healthcare professionals from all walks of life and enable them to share information to help one another grow. For hospital leaders, strategically attending the right conferences can bring many benefits, such as the following:
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Networking |
Individuals attending conferences are highly invested in the industry. This means that you’ll be meeting other talented professionals who may want to partner with, or support, your organization in the future. |
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Marketing |
Many leaders attend conferences to share the contributions that their organizations are making to the healthcare field. Being a panel speaker or hosting a presentation is a great way to get your facility’s name out there and share your strengths with like-minded professionals. |
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Development |
These events give you access to dozens of workshops and presentations from healthcare innovators outside of your organization. You can learn about new industry trends, technological advancements, or research that may provide insight on how you can improve your operations. |
Top Healthcare Conferences (2026)
There are hundreds of healthcare leadership conferences held each year, so it’s important to narrow it down to those that are best suited to your facility’s goals. Below are five popular types of healthcare conferences for facility leaders and upcoming events from notable organizations.
1. Healthcare Technology Conferences
Health tech conferences and innovation-focused events can help today’s leaders keep up with rapidly-advancing technologies, like artificial intelligence (AI) and workflow automation. Indeed, these developments are quickly becoming essential to operational relevance. Stay on top of all the latest digital tools and trends by attending a healthcare technology conference.
Recommended Conference: Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Global Health Conference
Dates and Location: March 9-12 in Las Vegas, Nevada
Summary: HIMSS is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving care delivery through information technology. Their global conference brings together thousands of professionals from all over the world to share the latest cutting-edge technologies impacting the healthcare industry.
What It Offers: Attendees will have access to exhibits from over 1,000 healthcare IT vendors and companies, continuing education (CE) courses, and various panels to discuss the latest healthcare technology issues and innovations.
2. Healthcare Revenue and Policy Conferences
It’s crucial for those at the executive level to keep up with emerging healthcare trends and policies that affect facility finance. Attending a conference is a valuable way for finance professionals across different healthcare organizations to exchange ideas on improving workflow and budgetary management.
Recommended Conference: Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA) Annual Conference
Dates and Location: June 7-10 in National Harbor, Maryland
Summary: HFMA’s annual conference brings together thousands of healthcare finance and operations leaders to exchange insights and best industry practices. Discussions will center around executive-level strategies to improve regulatory compliance, optimize payment and reimbursement models, enhance operational efficiency, and address today’s most pressing financial challenges.
What It Offers: Attendees will have access to 4 days of more than 70 educational sessions alongside over 4,000 other participants. Healthcare’s current business priorities will be explored by industry-leading solution providers with topics featuring government policy considerations, insurance and payment model systems, and hospital and healthcare system management.
3. Nursing Management Conferences
It can also be quite valuable to attend executive and leadership conferences that are specific to your professional focus within the healthcare industry. If you’re a nursing leader, attending one of this year’s healthcare leadership conferences (2026) for nurse managers may be a good connection point to the managerial network you’re looking to learn and grow alongside.
Recommended Conference: American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL) Annual Conference
Dates and Location: March 29-April 1 in Chicago, Illinois
Summary: If you’re looking for healthcare conferences geared specifically toward nursing leaders, AONL’s annual conference is for you. Each year, the AONL invites hundreds of nursing professionals across all levels to connect with one another and learn about the latest nursing management strategies.
What It Offers: Attendees will have vast networking and learning opportunities led by other nursing leaders, practitioners, and educators. There will also be nearly 350 exhibitors and more than 50 high-impact sessions offered, with sponsors offering workshops and presentations on the latest care delivery models.
4. Healthcare Recruiting Conferences
Recruitment can be challenging in any industry, but it’s especially difficult in healthcare. This is often compounded by the rising costs of understaffing in addition to nationwide nursing shortages. By attending a conference on healthcare recruiting, you can learn novel hiring and retention strategies, while connecting with experts who can help you better address any staffing-specific challenges at your own facility.
Recommended Conference: National Association for Healthcare Recruitment (NAHCR) Annual Conference
Dates and Location: July 15-17 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Summary: NAHCR’s annual conference is made by and for healthcare recruiters, so it’s a great event for professionals seeking innovative solutions for driving effective hiring practices in healthcare. This conference welcomes and provides opportunities for recruiters at all stages of their careers, from hospital executives to recruiting directors and managers.
What It Offers: Attendees will be trained on proven recruitment strategies from leading experts, learn how other recruiters tackle challenges in the healthcare space, and connect with vendors offering individualized recruitment tools.
5. Healthcare Administration Conferences
For facilities, stronger leadership leads to a more effective and resilient workforce. It’s never a bad time to expand your leadership skills and strengthen your administrative practices through innovative approaches or new, expert-reinforced developmental goals. Attending a healthcare administration conference can also help connect you to other C-suite executives and facility leaders, strengthening intersystem cooperation and innovation.
Recommended Conference: American Hospital Association (AHA) Leadership Summit
Dates and Location: July 12-14 in Denver, Colorado
Summary: The AHA Leadership Summit is an annual event bringing together top healthcare leaders and experts to discuss approaches to hospital management. There are a lot of different topics covered, such as ensuring financial stability, addressing current workforce challenges, and improving the patient experience.
What It Offers: Attendees will connect with hundreds of other healthcare executives, leaders, and providers across the field. There will be dozens of workshops and panels that educate trustees about current governance issues and train emerging leaders on management competencies.
Take Practical Steps to Enhance Your Operations
Not sure how to translate the knowledge you gain from healthcare conferences into practice? We’ve got your back. Our free, expert-written healthcare management guides are available whenever you need insight into policy updates, patient-centered practice considerations, and more.