Message from our ISTM President

Dear Fellow Members:

For many of us, vacation time is over and we are back to caring for those who have brought back from abroad some souvenirs that they did not bargain for - travel-related illnesses. Those “souvenirs” illustrate again the diversity of conditions we need to know about, from psychiatric breakdowns to exotic worms such as gnatostoma, cyclospora or myasis; from insect bites and coral wounds to ciguatera intoxication, side effects from medications, and falciparum malaria. We also see many travelers who have been treated less than adequately abroad, or did not take their medications a prescribed. These problems are becoming more frequent since the commercialization of artemisinine derivatives in sub-Saharan Africa. It illustrates that much effort is needed to raise medical knowledge of local doctors in some parts of the world. The ISTM should be more active in this effort.

This also teaches us that travel medicine is always on the move and that we need to constantly update our own knowledge, by keeping informed about epidemics and developments about vaccines. This is also what makes travel medicine exciting and attractive! The ISTM provides ample opportunities to cultivate this ever-growing interest. In less than eight months, May 7-11 2003, we’ll all meet in New York for our bi-annual conference, the 8th Conference of the International Society of Travel Medicine. The conference will be at the Marriott Hotel in the heart of Times Square. The program is excellent. Hans-Dieter Nothdurft and David Freedman have been working diligently on it. Don’t forget to send abstracts (before January 10) to share you own research results with other members.

The ISTM is pleased to announce it will offer the first international Certificate of Knowledge in Travel Medicine at the May 2003 meeting. It is the first international certificate devoted solely to travel health. The exam will take place on May 7th, at the conference hotel, on the day prior to the conference. (See the sample questions in this newsletter.) A Certificate of Knowledge will be issued by the ISTM to the candidates who successfully pass the exam. Phyllis Kozarsky, our president-elect is coordinating this great effort.

For those who would like to know more about Asia, the 4th Asia Pacific Travel Health Conference will take place in Shanghai on October 21-23, 2002. Participants will have a unique opportunity to see and hear in-depth presentations about the region’s common travel-related diseases and access to medical services. It will also be a wonderful occasion to meet with your colleagues from China and from elsewhere in Asia and make contacts for longer term collaborations. Many members of the ISTM Executive Board will actively participate in the conference, and meet to plan future society activities.

In the meantime, I hope that the end of the summer goes well for you.

Louis Loutan
President of the ISTM
Geneva