REPORT OF INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS
EUROPEAN FEDERATION COUNCIL MEETING
NOVEMBER 29 AND 30, 2019
PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
A meeting of the ICS European Federation Council was commendably convened by Professor Karel Novak, ICS European Federation Secretary, on November 29 and 30, 2019, in Prague, Czech Republic. This excellent meeting, a first of its kind, was organized because of the steadfast commitment and enthusiastic dedication of Federation Secretary Professor Karel Novak to energetically “re-energize” the ICS Sections within the European Federation. All Presidents of ICS Sections within the European Federation were invited. In addition to Professor Novak, attendees include Professor Biagio Ravo, Professor Mehmet Haberal, M.E. Feyyaz Artukoglu, Professor Ilias Cinara, Professor Antonio Alarco Hernandez, Dr. Karl Heinz Dietl, Dr. Izabela Chudzicka, Dr. W. Walenty, Dr. Jiri Fronek, Dr. Jindrich Sebor, Dr. Tomas Pantoflicek, Dr. Robert Novotny, Zdenek Levy, Eva Minkova, ICS World President Professor Georgios Tsoulfas, and ICS Executive Director Max Downham.
The discussions were positive, honest, direct, and open, thereby very productive. The focus was on the “present and future”, and certainly not on the “past”. All attendees fully participated with the consensus agreement, as Assistant European Federation Secretary, Professor Antonio Alarco Hernandez, so very well indicated, “to proceed into the future on a step-by-step basis to revitalize the ICS European Federation”.
Topics discussed included, but not limited to, communications – “communicate, communicate, communicate”, current membership status of ICS European Federation sections and ideas on “what to to about it”, the initiation of new sections within the European Federation, the ICS website, ICS membership including the “top and very best surgeons”, humanitarian surgery, the location and prospective dates of the 2020 European Federation Congress, and preparation for the 2020 ICS elections to be conducted at the ICS World Congress, November 2, 2020, in Bangkok, Thailand (the ICS Scientific Congress will occur November 3-5, 2020, in Bangkok).
The European Federation Council meeting was concluded with the development of a Declaration from the Presidents of the National Sections of the European Federation, which has been sent to all Presidents of ICS Sections within the ICS European Federation.
We commend ICS Federation Secretary Professor Karel Novak for his dedicated beliefs that the International College of Surgeons, today, is a supeb, quality organization with unqualified commitment of its Fellows to work, yes, really hard work, on a continuing basis, to “stay in step” with the world in which we now function and will function in the future. Professor Novak, many “kudos” to you! This effort by Professor Karel Novak serves as an excellent example for other ICS Federations and hopefully will be replicated in other International College of Surgeons Federations.
Respectfully submitted,
Max Downham
Executive Director
International College of Surgeon
