Your First HCD Conference + Expo Starts Here
First-time attendees can get Full Conference access for just $899
(That’s a savings of more than $1,000!)
If this is your first time, it’s the right year to be here. With a co-located IFHE World Congress, HCD Conference + Expo adds global engineering and facility expertise to an already comprehensive conference program. Click below to get your exclusive first-time attendee promo code or email [email protected].
WHY YOU SHOULD BE AT HCD
Your time away from projects is worth protecting
Here’s what your first HCD delivers
Learn what’s shaping healthcare spaces
More than 110 expert-led conference sessions connect design decisions to safety, operations, experience, and clinical outcomes
See what’s next in person.
Explore more than 60,000 square feet of expo hall space filled with the newest products and services specifically designed for the requirements of healthcare spaces
Meet your peers, colleagues, and clients
Architects, interior designers, facility leaders and executives who face the same pressures you do, and are happy to share the solutions they’ve found
Earn continuing education credits.
Sessions count toward the certifications you’re already working to maintain—including plenty of HSW credits!
HOW TO PLAN YOUR SESSIONS
The 2026 program tackles the issues on your desk right now
More than 110 sessions span the full healthcare design ecosystem, with each one tying design to real-world impact
Program Tracks
DESIGN FORWARD
MENTAL & BEHAVIORAL HEALTH
Delivers an overview of recent developments in behavioral and mental health treatment and the various environments and design factors that support effective care delivery.
RESILIENCY & HIGH-PERFORMANCE DESIGN
Offers fresh perspectives on the building systems, operations, and environments that help healthcare systems and facilities achieve enhanced sustainability and resiliency across varying building types, locations, and budgets.
OWNER/PROVIDER TOPICS & PERSPECTIVES
Navigates issues that are top of mind for leaders of healthcare systems and facilities, with a focus on new initiatives and innovations in the built environment that help manage costs, improve patient and staff experience, and streamline operations and care delivery.
PROJECT PLANNING & DELIVERY
Dives into the project delivery process and the teams, methods, and innovations that are being tested in the healthcare construction market today. Understand lessons learned and how they might influence your next project.
RESEARCH, OUTCOMES & LESSONS LEARNED
Offers overviews of research studies and post-occupancy evaluations across various types of healthcare settings, with a focus on outcomes and the key takeaways that should inform future design work.
SPECIALTY POPULATIONS & CARE ENVIRONMENTS
Offers a specialized look at units, departments, and facilities designed to support the needs of specific populations, both geographically and by diagnosis. Solutions discussed respond to the unique needs of these patients, families, and medical teams.
SUSTAINABLE HEALTHCARE
Description to come
TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION
Description to come
AIA-AAH FORUMS
Addresses critical themes related to major issues and trends in healthcare facility design, brought to you by AIA’s Academy of Architecture for Health (AIA-AAH) thought leaders.
Presented by AIA-AAH
CLINICAL VOICES
Shares clinical perspectives and information in relation to healthcare design solutions. These programs are CE-certified for nursing clinicians but applicable to all attendees.
Presented by Nursing Institute for Healthcare Design (NIHD)
AMFP FACILITY, PROJECT & ASSET MANAGEMENT
Presents an array of topics that cover the spectrum of facility management and today’s critical issues.
Presented by Association for Medical Facility Professionals (AMFP)
INTERACTIVE ROUNDTABLE
Offers a focused yet fun and informal prgramming experience on an array of topics and interest areas. Through a roundtable format, session leaders will share the latest information about the topic at hand and set the stage for facilitated dialogue with participants. Plan to listen, ask questions, and share your own thoughts and ideas.
HOW TO WORK THE EXPO FLOOR
Some decisions can’t be made from a screen
The expo floor puts the products and services you need for your work, all in one place
Compare innovative products shaping attractive and effective care environments
Meet the manufacturers and service providers behind the solutions
Bring your active project questions and get real answers from the people who know
Build relationships you can rely on, for your current project pipeline and well into the future
It’s product sourcing with context, depth and the full picture in one visit
Also on the expo floor, the Solutions Theater features short, focused presentations from industry leaders
It’s a practical way to discover products and technologies in context, learn how they perform in real healthcare environments and connect directly with the people behind them
THE INDUSTRY’S BEST NETWORKING
The connections you make here carry well past the show
HCD brings together a respected community of professionals who plan, design, build and operate healthcare spaces, and the 2026 program gives you more ways than ever to meet them. As a first-timer, networking is built into the experience, not bolted on.
Here’s what’s included:
Opening Night Reception
Close out the first day of sessions with complimentary drinks and heavy appetizers as the expo hall officially opens for the first time.
Conference Lunches
Lunch is on us Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. The Awards Lunch is the only plated meal, but every lunch is a chance to make lasting connections
Morning Networking Breakfasts
Start each conference day with a full hot breakfast and easy conversation alongside fellow attendees before sessions get underway
Off-site Networking Party
Take the evening off-site for complimentary drinks, light fare and a shared experience with fellow attendees at one of New Orleans’ most distinctive settings
YOUR FIRST-TIMER DISCOUNT IS WAITING …
Your registration comes with a discount built to make your first year easy to justify
Full Conference access for just $899, saving you over $1,000!
Click the button below to be approved to claim your first-timer discount
Note: Eligibility for the first-time rate will be verified
PAY IT FORWARD
Know someone who should be at HCD? Send them our way
If you know a designer, architect or facility leader who would benefit from focused education, peer connection and product discovery, send them to this page or have them email [email protected]
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ) FOR FIRST-TIMERS
What Is HCD Conference and Expo, and Is It Right for Me?
HCD Conference + Expo is the premier annual gathering for professionals who plan, design, build, and operate healthcare environments. It brings together architects, interior designers, facility leaders, and healthcare executives for four focused days of education, product discovery, and peer connection.
If your work touches the healthcare built environment—whether that’s specifying finishes for a renovated inpatient unit, leading a ground-up new build, or managing a health system’s facilities portfolio—HCD is built for you. Every session, every product on the show floor, and every conversation in the hallways is grounded in the same discipline: designing spaces that support better care delivery, experience, and outcomes.
What's Included with an HCD 2026 Registration?
Registration gives you access to the full HCD experience: educational sessions, keynotes, the expo hall, and networking events. Specifically, your badge gets you into:
- ⭐️ 110-plus educational sessions covering planning, design, construction, operations, and clinical outcomes across the continuum of care and facility types
- ⭐️ The expo hall, where hundreds of manufacturers and solution providers display products that address real healthcare design challenges
- ⭐️ The Solutions Theater, a curated presentation space inside the expo hall
- ⭐️ Keynote sessions, where you’ll be informed and inspired by leaders in the field
- ⭐️ Networking events, including including HCD’s Welcome Reception on Sunday and our off-site Networking Party on Monday
- ⭐️ Continuing education credits (CEUs) for AIA, IDCEC, EDAC, and nursing units earned across eligible sessions
How Does Registration Work, and Is There a First-Timer Discount?
Get started by submitting your information here. HCD will vet applicants to ensure first-time attendace. After we’re done, you’ll receive a code for an $899 Full Conference pass.
What Continuing Education Credits (CEUs) Are Available at HCD 2026?
HCD 2026 offers continuing education credits throughout every session of the conference program.
Sessions are designed to satisfy CEU requirements for practicing architects, interior designers, and facility professionals, including credits applicable toward AIA, ASID, IIDA and AAHID credentials. Specific credit types and session-level eligibility are detailed in the conference program. Reviewing the session listing before you arrive lets you plan your schedule around the credits most relevant to your license and current projects. Learn more here.
How Does the Conference Program Work Alongside the Expo Hall?
HCD puts great care into limiting the amount of time that conference sessions overlap with expo hall hours, allowing you to make the most of time dedicated for each purpose. Check our website and the event app onsite to plan your schedule and see real-time updates.
What Is the Welcome Reception?
The Welcome Reception marks the official opening of the expo hall from 4:30 to 7 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 18. It’s the first opportunity to walk the floor, meet exhibitors, and connect with fellow attendees.
What Is the Solutions Theater, and Should I Plan to Attend?
The Solutions Theater is a dedicated presentation space inside the expo hall where manufacturers and solution providers deliver focused, topic-specific sessions on products and approaches relevant to healthcare design challenges.
What Is the Networking Party, and Where Is It Held?
The Monday night Networking Party is when HCD takes all attendees off-site for a local experience, offering a chance to connect with peers, clients, and colleagues outside the structured environment of sessions and the show floor. Stay tuned for details on where we’re heading this year!
What Networking Opportunities Are Available at HCD 2026?
Networking at HCD is built into every part of the program, not limited to a single scheduled event.
Opportunities include:
- ⭐️ The opening night reception, which opens the expo hall on Saturday evening
- ⭐️ The Monday night party at Mardi Gras World, the conference’s primary social event
- ⭐️ The expo hall, where face-to-face conversations with manufacturers, reps and fellow attendees happen throughout the week
- ⭐️ Sessions and keynotes, where the Q&A and hallway conversations afterward are often as valuable as the content itself
- ⭐️ Informal peer exchange throughout the conference, including over meals, in transition between sessions, and through the event app
HCD draws a concentrated group of the right people, architects, designers, facility leaders, owners and executives, in one place at one time. That density is genuinely hard to replicate outside this event.
How Should I Prepare in Advance?
Start with the conference program before you arrive—with more than 110 sessions, it can take time to review thoroughly and make choices on what sessions to attend. Sessions are organized by topical tracks and labeled with knowledge levels and CEUs available (including HSW designation), allowing you to choose the path that best suits your needs.
From there, plan your time on the expo floor, including noting the products/exhibitors you know you want to see and also allowing for some organic discovery. At 60,000+ square feet, there’s a lot to explore. You’ll also want to check out the Solutions Theater session lineup to see when you might want to head there, too.
And before you arrive, be sure to download the event app to manage your schedule, connect with other attendees, set up meetings, etc. If you have questions before the event, email [email protected]. The team will help you get the most out of your first HCD.
Take the first step toward claiming your $899 full conference rate.
Join us Oct. 17-20, 2026, in New Orleans for the ultimate healthcare design education, networking, and product-sourcing event!