MCI’s global endoscopy conference won them an award with the Association of British Professional Conference Organisers. CMW explores the event.
King’s Live is the flagship annual conference and masterclass of the KL Foundation. The meeting brings together global medical trainees, consultants, and leading experts in the field of endoscopy for a five-day scientific programme. The educational content and live surgical demonstrations are key to the advancement of gastroenterology and endo-surgery.
MCI has worked with the registered charity since 2016 as their PCO and 2020 provided a great opportunity to showcase the agency’s creative approach as well as their knowledge of digital transformation. Historically, the annual conference had live surgeries in front of audiences of around 250 in-person attendees, alongside a series of hands-on masterclasses in endoscopy procedures. Covid would change all of that.
In 2020, the face-to-face meeting was not possible due to Covid restrictions; meaning that the scientific programme and live endo-surgery had to be redesigned into a virtual format. The digital experience needed to facilitate interactive learning and the sharing of professional best practice; while allowing trainees and consultants to connect and engage with expert-led content.
For the virtual conference, a live studio was created in King’s Hospital with three operating theatres connected to a live video feed. Setting up a live broadcasting studio with multiple feeds from live surgeries proved challenging within a working hospital environment. Extra power and internet connectivity had to be carefully scoped out as well as production installations coordinated around hospital access.
Each operating theatre had three to five patients undergoing endo-surgery – broadcast live while a panel of surgeons in the studio commentated on the procedure. Sponsor representatives were also streamed into the panel, when relevant, to discuss their products during real-time usage. These multiple live streams allowed attendees to have a dynamic learning experience, while live questioning the panellists and surgeons. The attendees could personalise their experience by choosing which stream they wanted to prioritise. This represented a significant change and improvement from the face-to-face conference, where the audience historically had a single fixed feed – for Kings Live 2020 they could tailor their learning to their specialism.
A dedicated digital platform was designed to enable both pre-recorded and live presentations from renowned international speakers. The audience was able to engage in live Q&A sessions as well as interactive questionnaires to reinforce their learning. Of particular use was the fact that the virtual platform was supported by artificial intelligence that enabled person-to-person matchmaking as well as person-to-item. This meant that delegates were presented with the most relevant networking opportunities as well as content that matched their specialisms and interests. Sponsors were also able to engage with interested delegates
The King’s Live organising committee place great importance on the educational development and knowledge sharing of the profession with students and trainees. The conference is seen as a crucial investment in promoting excellence in interventional endoscopy, which is a key reason they were so pleased with a 74% increase in attendance, made up of delegates from more than 24 countries, unlike previous event where attendance was primarily from the UK.
To extend the legacy of the expert and sponsor-led content and allow trainees to re-engage with the live demonstrations, a dedicated online community was created. All content from the virtual conference can still be accessed on-demand with discussion forums and networking capabilities alongside. Sponsors benefit from significantly enhanced brand exposure opportunities within the community and important analytics that help inform product development. This online community enables the attendees to not only extend their learning with free access to legacy content, but they are able to build on relationships fostered at conference on a global scale to continue their conversations 365 days of the year.
Bi-monthly content uploads in specialist discussion forums enables organic sharing of best practise for a grassroots-led, voice of customer. Through data analytics within the online community, MCI helps the KL Foundation spot trends in the types of content and topics that are most relevant to their audiences. This agile approach enables MCI and King’s Live to tailor the programme for future congresses to their community and deliver on their educational value proposition.
The King’s Live community provides legacy for the conference content and a hub for the continued sharing of knowledge and best practice. Ultimately, the virtual format of King’s Live showcased the next level of engagement and education achievable through digital transformation.
As Amyn Haji, consultant colorectal surgeon & interventional endoscopist, King’s College London said: “Thank you again for your work on King’s Live 2020 and your flexibility in converting the event from face-to-face to virtual – I think it set the standards for events of this type. The partnership with MCI over the past years has been excellent and has allowed King’s Live to grow and it has gone from strength to strength.”
The event won Best Conference by an Agency PCO at UK-association ABPCO’s 2021 Excellence Awards in 2021. Taking place in December each year the Awards highlight best practice, creativity and success in association conferences. The winners were chosen from a shortlist by their fellow professionals and peers, ensuring only the best receive the ultimate accolade each year.
Click here to read the feature in the CMW March/ April 2022 Magazine.
