It wasn’t an easy decision to cancel this year’s Healthcare Design Expo & Conference, especially during a time when we’re all in sore need of a place to reconnect and recharge.

But as we’ve all found new ways to replicate such moments during this pandemic, embracing schedules full of online meetings, classes, happy hours, baby showers, and weddings, we realized there was a virtual opportunity for us, as well. Now here we are, preparing to stage our first-ever HCD Virtual, a four-day event running Nov. 9-12 that will showcase a carefully curated lineup of educational content and industry interaction (to register, visit HCDvirtual.com).

As it says on this issue’s cover, we’re heading down “a new path”—and it’s been a fun but challenging endeavor. Internally, here at HCD, we’ve all learned to wear new hats and manage new tasks. We’ve come together as a team to consider what we want this event to be and, most importantly, how our attendees will experience it. We focused specifically on what we do best: content. Our first step was to take the existing program intended for the 2020 HCD Expo and cull it down to a manageable number of sessions that remain timely in this current working environment and include a range of topics, firms, projects, and so on—each session concluding with a live Q+A with the speakers. We’ll also stage the keynote sessions you’ve come to expect, including a state-of-the-industry panel discussion and the finale of our Breaking Through conceptual design competition. Additionally, we’ll offer special content from both association partners and sponsors.

We want to facilitate interaction between industry members, too, because we know there’s a lot to discuss right now. During the event, we’ll provide forums dedicated to specific topics (improving access to care, next-generation infection control, designing for surge response, etc.) so that you can share how you’re responding to top-of-mind issues and collect some ideas from colleagues, too. You’ll also find me and the other Healthcare Design editors popping in to keep the conversations rolling.

Details on all of this—and much more—are included in our HCD Virtual Preview. (In our digital issue, you’ll find the HCD Virtual Show Guide in this section, as well.) And, remember, registration will remain open until the live event, and all sessions will be available on demand through the end of the year.

There’s nothing normal about life right now. As we all work to counter what’s out of balance, I hope this event offers a chance to immerse yourself in something familiar and worthwhile. I know I can’t wait for it to begin.