Dear Members,
Best wishes to you all for the new year. I want to thank you all for the continuing support and adherence to our society. We are a small society and hence ,it becomes more difficult to make ends meet but thanks to you all we manage.
2024 brings us new opportunities. We are preparing our congress in Leuven, Belgium on 19-20th of September 2024. Full details for registration will be sent to you soon. The scientific program looks very promising, so I hope for a numerous attendance.
We also launch a new initiative in 2024: More and more colleagues are unable to attend congresses due to lack of time or the increased cost of travelling. To satisfy this need, Licage is organizing online webinars. We did a first tryout December 2023 and will have another one next month. We intend to have two webinars each year and hope by doing so to attract more membership. The first two tryout sessions are free of charge. The following sessions will stay free of charge for members but we will ask a limited fee if one needs CME credits. Non -members however will be charged both for the session and the CME credits. This to encourage membership. All sessions are recorded in order to be viewed afterwards.
Concerning membership, we decided to increase the annual fee to 100 euros, but keep the cost low for trainees and nurses( 30 euros).This enables us to meet increasing operating costs.
Licage remains a specialist society within ESAIC. This status gives us the opportunity to present our proceedings at the annual Euroanesthesia congress. And our partnership with ILTS remains as strong as ever!
I want to make a case for the issue of gender equity within our society. This is a continuing concern for all international societies. In my opinion it is more than about gender alone. Indeed, I want our society to be a forum for all interested in the care for the liver transplant patient: anesthesiologist, intensivist, hepatologist, nurse, patient, informal caregiver, old, young, lgbtqia, female, male… and still I fear to have forgotten someone. We strive to have a mix of all to be represented in our council and in our society.
Finally, I want to ask for your participation in our activities. We need your membership, but also your presence. Feel free to contact us if you think the society has to take on matters differently. You can make a difference with your input.
Koen Reyntjens