Professor Nicholas Gair reports from the Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland’s Annual International Surgical Congress held at the BT Convention Centre in Liverpool from 14-16 April 2010
The year 2010 marks the 90th Anniversary of the Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland (ASGBI) which was founded in 1920; the first annual meeting was held in London on 13 May 1920 under the Presidency of Sir John Bland-Sutton. The 2010 Congress continued the Association’s evolving international and pan-surgical focus, and over 30 colleges, specialty associations and international societies participated in the meeting. There were over 1,300 registrants on site over the three days, of which 1,002 were medical delegates.
The theme of the Liverpool Congress was ‘The Challenges of Surgery’ and this could not have been more apt in the current economic and political environment. In addition to symposia dealing with clinical and scientific issues, many of the current political issues influencing the surgical profession were debated and discussed. This included revisiting ‘EWTR’ and a focus on topics such as ‘The provision of effective emergency surgical services in the UK and Ireland’.
The scientific programme opened with an in-depth look at the current challenges facing surgery which included recertification and revalidation, delivering emergency general surgery, training the next generation, and reconfiguring the provider landscape.
This was followed by the Opening Address from Professor Sir Bruce Keogh (Medical Director, Department of Health) who explored the maintenance of high quality surgical services in a changing economic environment. A special 90th Anniversary Guest Lecture entitled ‘In sickness and in power: Illness in heads of government during the last 100 years’ delivered by The Rt Hon Lord Owen, who also officially opened the Congress during the Welcome Reception on the Wednesday evening.
The Presidents of the Royal Colleges of Edinburgh, Ireland and England participated in the hot topic session on how to deliver services in an era of economic stringency. The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh’s Sir Robert Shields Lecture was given by Mr Rowan Parks who spoke on ‘The quest for quality’. There were also the usual short paper, e-poster and poster presentations, and a programme of taught courses and workshops addressed a varied range of topics. In total, 1,070 abstracts were submitted to the meeting, of which 669 were presented in oral, e-poster and poster format. As well as being presented orally, e-posters were also shown on plasma screens around the exhibition hall and will be available to view on the conference website along with photographs and footage of selected sessions.
The Congress delivered an interesting and enjoyable mix of scientific and political sessions, a lively social programme, diverse industry exhibition and a number of innovative features including International College Lectures and a Gala Dinner with a Beatles Tribute Band at the stunning Sefton Park Palmhouse.
Next year’s Congress will address ‘21st Century Surgery’ and will take place from 11-13 May 2011; commit the dates to your diary now and the ASGBI look forward to welcoming you to the Bournemouth International Convention Centre next year!
Professor Nicholas P Gair,
Chief Executive of ASGBI
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