The health business or the wealth business? David Minton from The Leisure Database Company reports on the recent conferences.(Special report--IHRSA conferences)

Being 'embedded' within the IHRSA Europe and Asia Conventions for the past two weeks has been a very busy time. From Berlin to Sydney, I have been networking during the day and much of the night.

In the fitness world from Europe to Asia operators and developers are in chorus and IHRSA is on a mission to ensure we're singing from the same hymn sheet. It's a difficult job but I can't think of any other organisation better equipped to whip us into shape, or any group more willing to take the job on. All over the world we have some great people working in the fitness industry and IHRSA brings us all together.

At both conferences, the keynote speakers were excellent and a number of 'mega trends' ran through all the main presentations. In Berlin, Dr. Lothar Spath, the industrial and political visionary, kicked off by explaining why corporate and manufacturing Germany is restructuring faster than anywhere else in Europe. The famous manufacturing powerhouse is in deep trouble. The recently-announced 12,000 job cuts at General Motors are a stark example of why Germany needs to step up the modernisation process. The reality is that it costs 28 [euro] an hour to manufacture in Germany compared to its neighbour Poland where it's 5 [euro]. Further afield in China, where one new manufacturing plant opens every 26 minutes, the cost drops to between 0.8 [euro] and 1.2 [euro] per hour.

Germany is now placed 13th in the World Economic Forum's review of global competitiveness, whilst the UN development index of the most attractive places to live puts Germany down in 19th place. Globalisation, an ageing population, high unemployment and the enormous cost of unification in the past 15 years have exacerbated the problems. The impact on the health of the nation has been detrimental--however this presents a great opportunity within the fitness industry to play its part in helping a society cope with such dramatic and rapid change.

We are already in the 'health' business, said Dr Jason Conviser, in Sydney, whose presentation showed how clubs are currently working with people affected by society's ills. Without especially knowing or recognising it we are helping existing club members and we certainly don't promote ourselves to the many we could help. As an industry, we are in the health business already, and we need to market ourselves that way. Conviser told us that 'there is no cardiovascular disease, metabolic dysfunction or psychological condition where exercise is not part of the prevention or treatment protocol that is medically recommended'.

Compelling stuff when the spending forecasts for the traditional health services in Europe and Australia reveal the need to find another way. Governments the world over can no longer afford the continuing escalating costs.

Julie Mann, the current president of the IHRSA board, gave a personal account of how her club, the Santa Barbara Athletic Club (SBAC) is in the 'health' business. Whilst being treated for breast cancer her doctors noticed her recovery seemed to be better than other patients they were treating. The difference seemed to be that she continued to exercise regularly throughout her treatment while others didn't. Mann went on to set up a regular exercise class at the SBAC for cancer patients in Santa Barbara with both approval and funding from the hospital. From an initial single programme for 12 people, twice a week, for 10 weeks, Mann is now running 20 programmes, paid for by the hospital.