SICOT e-Newsletter
Issue No. 23 - August 2010
Editorial by Maurice Hinsenkamp
President Elect
SICOT meetings: forums for international networking
I hope you will enjoy the Annual International Conference in Gothenburg. As you may have noticed, the SICOT scientific meetings grow year after year in scientific quality and in international representation. The unique characteristic of the SICOT scientific programme is that it offers not only an updated overview of general orthopaedic knowledge in various fields and in the different areas of the world, but also a focus on the burning issues at the cutting edge of different subspecialties. Also, our international involvement means that the SICOT meetings can provide the best opportunity to approach unusual situations which are of worldwide concern. We are, thankfully, not often confronted with mass casualty events, such as the recent earthquakes. Despite our good knowledge and excellent skills in treating orthopaedic trauma, natural disasters require specific expertise and experience that few of us are able to gain. Therefore, I encourage you to share your experience with the SICOT members who assisted in Haiti and also to help to hammer out strategic approaches with Médecins Sans Frontières and WHO to improve the treatment of orthopaedic trauma in such circumstances, during a special symposium on "Natural Disasters" (Friday, 3 September from 10:45 to 12:15 in H1, Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre).
Donât forget to make a note in your diary of next yearâs meeting in Prague, Czech Republic. The SICOT 2011 XXV Triennial World Congress will be held from 6 to 9 September. In addition to all the main topics covered during the free paper sessions, plenary and invited lectures, symposia, and instructional courses at the four-day meeting, we will host symposia by seven subspecialty societies, namely the International Hip Society, Scoliosis Research Society, International Federation of Paediatric Orthopaedic Societies, Clubfoot Congress, European Society for Surgery of the Shoulder and the Elbow, World Orthopaedic Concern, and International Society for Minimal Intervention in Spinal Surgery. Leading international experts will discuss the latest developments in lectures on their specialist fields.
Following the introduction of the Friendship Nations programme at the SICOT meetings, with Japan as the Friendship Nation in Gothenburg, and China and the Russian speaking countries in Prague, we can now focus on the orthopaedic practice existent in specific countries and foster mutual knowledge.
I encourage all of you to pay particular attention to these exceptional orthopaedic events and to participate in the future SICOT meetings, starting with Prague in 2011, followed by Dubai (United Arab Emirates) in 2012 and Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) in 2014.
I am also proud to announce that, thanks to the continued efforts of our Editor, Marko Pecina, his Editorial Board and the production team, our journal, International Orthopaedics, has reached an impact factor of 1.825 and the time delay from online publication to final publication is very short. I recommend that you use this international forum to share your future work.
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