In my first column as president of our Association I spoke of our mutual goals to increase our visibility and membership, to strengthen the relationship between all the actors in our work - the ESC, EuroPCR, The PCR family –and our responsibility in continuing– in an ever increasing way –to spearhead projects in education and information.
We have chosen, the Board and myself, to dedicate ourselves to increasing both the public presence of the EAPCI throughout Europe and internationally, and at the same time, increase our membership not only by simply seeking new members, but by redefining membership in the EAPCI to be a dynamic and inclusive activity, no matter at what stage in your career you find yourself.
To attain these goals requires coordination as well as an enhanced and positive participation and interaction between the national chapters and working groups. Yes, we have ample tools to communicate with you, yet these must be wisely used and intelligently supported in order to mature and EuroIntervention is an excellent example of this. This is our journal, the official publication of the EAPCI, and through editorials, like the one you are reading now, I can urge your participation and membership... solicit your reactions, comments and suggestions. However, there is more to this journal than acting as a newsletter for our association. We need to support it in a more profound fashion, increasing its prominence, and in doing so, increasing our own visibility. In this respect, at the recent EAPCI board meeting held during the ESC, surrounded by my colleagues, the truly great names of European interventional cardiology, we discussed the great advantages for EuroIntervention if every cardiologist present would commit themselves to submitting a major paper each year to our journal. Just imagine the snowball effect this would have! Not only would we be attracting other major papers and increasing our impact factor, but we would be providing the EAPCI with a truly prestigious platform. In requesting that each senior member consider such a submission, the editorial board of EuroIntervention promised, in return, that these papers would be treated with the attention they deserve, a rapid review, and – if accepted – publication in the shortest time possible. The EAPCI Board wholeheartedly supports this initiative and we urged all our members to consider it.
Membership in the EAPCI is truly dynamic, and constantly evolving. Our integral work with meetings such as the recent ESC and EuroPCR is a prime example of this, where we play a central role in the development of the interventional programme. Our association is also involved in much more, from our endorsement policy for educational material, to our close cooperation and advocacy in creating a European wide criteria for recognition and training programmes within our speciality.
Committed, as I have said before, to our long-term goals, no longer looking at a year, but five or 10 years in the future, we realise that now is the time to help our younger members find their proper voice, encouraging them in the early and middle stages of their careers. One of the new programmes announced during the ESC was the creation of a “new interventionalists” forum, a place where young interventionalists can create a session during EuroPCR that will be designed and presented by themselves. We know that our fellows and emerging specialists of today are our leaders tomorrow. We know them well, we have trained them, and as they amass experience their fresh viewpoint is crucial for all of us to advance our speciality. Gregory Ducrocq and Davide Cappodanno will be leading this new initiative, and this, along with our fellowship programme, underline the commitment we have to the entire interventionalist community, not just to the senior members of our Association.
As an association we have accomplished much, but we cannot rest on our past success. We need to prove to you why becoming a member can increase your own influence over the course of our speciality. We believe that the benefits are very real for all of us, what we like to call, time and time again, a “win-win” situation. We look forward to being the centre of an invigorating and healthy dialogue where we all –together– shall reap the benefits for our practice as doctors, and – above all– to continue to offer to our patients the highest quality of care using the best evidenced based practice that our science and experience can provide.
We look forward to your joining us in these endeavours.
