Date for the diary – Malmo, Sweden 31st August-3rd July 2013.
A really good way of catching up with the latest evidence in an area of interest is to attend a conference. The 42nd European Dialysis and Transplant Nurses Association/European Renal Care Association (EDTNA/ERCA) International Conference taking place in Malmö, Sweden, is coming closer and preparations are well underway. See http://www.edtnaerca.org/. It will include over 262 Presentations and Posters with a number of distinguished Guest Speakers who are experts in their field. This annual conference allows those with an interest in caring for people with renal disease to share the best renal evidence and their experiences contributing to a deeper understanding of the current reality of managing and treating renal failure. Some very interesting presentations are planned including a Quality improvement workshop: an interactive workshop to help you bring about improvements in clinical care in your hospital led by Dr. Nicola Thomas from the UK. Professor Phil Kalra also from the UK will be exploring ‘How to address the evidence gap in renal research’ and ‘Evidence based medicine for management of CKD/MBD and cardiovascular risk’ . Nurith Blumenthal from Israel will explore the “emotional climate” in a renal unit and the effects on staff of having to cope with personality disorders, violence and aggression, chronic illness and dying patients.
Several patient speakers will also be sharing their experiences. Darren Cawley from Ireland will share his views on Adherence and autonomy and Colin Thompson from the UK will lead a discussion titled: Taking a patient centred approach to the end of life. Alongside this there will be a Short Orals’ session where successful abstract writers are asked to present their work in 3 minutes using three PowerPoint slides with 2 minutes for questions. This fast paced session is very useful for allowing participants to get up to date with a number of initiatives being developed throughout Europe. The conference includes a best Poster competition and awards a prize for the poster demonstrating significant quality and topic interest . The prize is 250 Euros. There is also a manuscript award for the best manuscript of 500 Euros.
The EDTNA/ERCA along with a company Fresenius Medical Care have this year established annual awards to give recognition to innovative ideas and best practices, which contribute to the promotion and development in the field of environmental protection in dialysis. The awards honour specific projects, promising concepts, and the work of committed employees and institutions which respond to the challenges of environmental protection in haemodialysis. Projects must demonstrate green innovation and environmental benefits must be transferable, measurable and sustainable.
This conference like many other conferences internationally, recognises the importance of those who attend receiving recognition of the learning that takes place. The importance of the EDTNA/ERCA Conference grows year by year. To ensure a maximum quality education and a professional Scientific Programme EDTNA/ERCA intends to obtain International Continuing Nursing Education Credits (ICNEC) for the International Conference 2013. See http://www.icn.ch/pillarsprograms/icn-international-continuing-nursing-education-credits-icnec/. The ICNEC are granted by the International Council of Nurses once strict admission conditions are fulfilled. The ICNEC awards provide proof of a high quality conference. 1 credit is assigned for each 60 minutes spent within the session halls, this is flexible and allows delegates to change between sessions and continue to accumulate credited time. This is important for staff who require evidence of learning often in order to progress in their profession. So if you can, come to Malmo and you will be certain of catching up with the best and most up to date evidence in renal care.