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Professor Giorgio Walter Canonica, President of Interasma
Your World Congress of Asthma will kick off on March 12. Is there a specific theme for the upcoming congress?
As a congress most interested in bridging the gap from academia to practice, the overarching theme of the WCA2016 is “Asthma Research in Practice”.
Is your conference also of social and cultural resonance?
Our conference is a conscious effort to translate academic innovation to practical application. It is how we turn laboratory work and research to an improved everyday practice. Our everyday life is the noble goal of medicine, and this is reflected in our conference, which, every two years, looks to highlight the nobility of an exercise in collectively exchanging ideas. It is a great social and cultural practice in and of itself, as a diverse group of nationalities and specialties tries to make sense of diverse experiences.
For your WCA2016 you have chosen Madrid. Why?
Madrid is home to various very active associations of doctors researching asthma. These associations form our local organizing committee, but they do not fully account for our reasons for choosing Madrid as the setting of our conference. The Spanish capital is also one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, rich with culture, and equally great history as well as continuing potential. As we celebrate our organization’s 60th anniversary of uninterrupted education in the field of asthma, making it the most important international asthma and related diseases organization in the world, this characteristic of Madrid is a very welcome analogy for Global Asthma Association – INTERASMA.
For those delegates who cannot join you in Spain, can they participate remotely?
Although we make great efforts to afford opportunities for delegates who cannot join us in Madrid, the nature of our conference makes it difficult to offer remote participation through the web or other means. The World Congress of Asthma is primarily an active debate on the innovations and prospects of asthma medicine, and it can produce its best results through immediate participation. However, lots of content is ordinarily uploaded online following each Conference’s completion.
What are the main challenges for the Global Asthma Association – INTERASMA these days?
As with any other association, GAA – INTERASMA faces various challenges, both external and internal. As individual researchers, as well as an association, we are externally influenced by the economic crisis and the continuing difficulties associated with it, affecting our research and our initiatives to facilitate better communication and sharing of research results. Also, we are internally influenced by the growing expectations of medicine research itself. As the World Congress of Asthma shows, it is our goal to address all challenges and to offer solutions.
The Global Asthma Association – INTERASMA is an International Health Organization completely focused on all aspects of Asthma which bridges the gap between Academia and the world of clinical practice. Interasma is a forum for interdisciplinary discussions where Pneumologists, Allergologists, Pediatricians, and General Practitioners have the opportunity to discuss and exchange information between these specialties on Asthma research, practice and management. In this regard the Association supports a broad range of cooperative endeavours. Interasma is devoted to encouraging Asthma Education programs all around the world for physicians as well as other health professionals, educators and administrators. Interasma is engaged in the international crusade to improve the quality of life of asthmatics and to decrease the prevalence, morbidity and mortality of Asthma.
www.wca-2016.com