Reading time: 4 minutes
Our apps are also being used more and more for medical congresses. Today, we have invited one of them for an interview. Burkhard Lebert from the Heidelberg Academy for Health Professions used LineUpr in 2019 for the Heidelberg Oncology Nursing Congress.
In this conversation, Burkhard will tell us more about his event, the use of LineUpr, and the hurdles of using the first event app. Have fun while reading. 😊
LineUpr: Hello Burkhard. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. Please introduce yourself and the Heidelberg Academy for Health Professions.
Burkhard: The Academy for Health Professions is under a sponsoring community and the main sponsor is the Heidelberg University Hospital. At the Academy for Health Professions ten training courses, various advanced training courses and several in-service training courses in health professions are offered.
I am responsible for advanced training in the area of nursing-care for cancer patients.
LineUpr: For which event did you use LineUpr?
Burkhard: This event, the Heidelberg Oncology Nursing Congress, has nurses in oncology from German-speaking countries as its target group and it takes place every two years. The congress enjoys an excellent reputation among the target audience. The congress was booked out with 400 participants already eight weeks before the actual date. More information about the congress can be found here.
LineUpr: Please tell us more about this event.
Burkhard: The unique feature of this congress is the program that specifically follows a motto and lasts for over three days, and which includes very practical lectures and workshops. The motto of this congress was: “My cancer is not curable” – about the arduous path of chronic cancer.
Experienced oncology nurses from German-speaking countries regularly accept the invitation to Heidelberg and make this event an experience.
It also takes place in a great atmosphere, the Communication Centre of the German Cancer Research Centre in Heidelberg, and in fully air-conditioned room, this is really important here in summer.
LineUpr: If you compare a printed program with an event app, what are the advantages and disadvantages of both variants?
Burkhard: The event app is very flexible and can be adjusted at any time, for example, if something needs to be shifted or if a lecturer can’t make it. Also, the creation of the event app is much easier and faster. The app is very lively; it can also be used didactically with the surveys and to have participants actively participate in the event. After each lecture, we used the survey function for questions from the audience. This function was used very intensively.
The original reason to use the app was to receive feedback about the congress on through an app.
LineUpr: You’ve used LineUpr for the first time. How did you learn about LineUpr and what added value does an event app offer you?
Burkhard: I found LineUpr after a short research on the internet.
LineUpr: Did you also present your sponsors and partners in their own profiles?
Burkhard: Yes. The sponsors all received individual profiles in the app from us. In it, we presented them with a short description and links.
The event app was received very positively.
LineUpr: Did you also use the survey features?
Burkhard: The original reason to use the app was to receive feedback about the congress on paper no longer but through an app. This saves us from having to enter the documents in an Excel file.
Of course, I noticed that, compared to previous congresses, the feedback response rate decreased by about 30%. This is probably due to the fact that the target group consists of a very mixed age group and there are many who only use their smartphones to make phone calls and maybe just for WhatsApp, and also the internet in the congress building was not working and the Wi-Fi was not quite stable. So it is good to have a closer look at the internet connection in the event building and here we will look for solutions next time.
LineUpr: When and how did you inform your participants about the event app?
Burkhard: It was mentioned at the opening of the congress and we also had a description in the program. It included the QR code, this works very easily with iPhones but for other smartphones, the QR scanner had to be downloaded first. To get around this, we also included a shortened homepage, see here:
LineUpr: How did your visitors react to the app?
Burkhard: The event app was received very positively.
LineUpr: What hurdles and difficulties did you experience in launching an event app for your event?
Burkhard: One hurdle was the unstable Wi-Fi when several hundred people went online at the same time.
LineUpr: Thank you, Burkhard, for the great interview. I always find it very exciting when organizers report on their first experiences with LineUpr.
We are already looking forward to more events with you.
