Asia-Pacific International Conference on Travel Medicine 2008, Melbourne, Australia - "Our Region in Focus"

It is with great pleasure that the Organising Committee invites you to participate in the Asia Pacific International Conference of Travel Medicine (APICTM 2008) to be held in Melbourne, Australia, February 24-27, 2008. This is a unique event. Never before has an international meeting on travel medicine been held in Australia. The meeting is being co-sponsored and endorsed by the International Society of Travel Medicine and will bring together leading experts from around the region and the globe.

February offers long, warm, sunny days in Australia, giving visitors to Melbourne plenty of opportunity to explore our cosmopolitan city. You will find that Melbourne is an exciting city. Modern architecture and design is juxtaposed with heritage buildings reflecting Australia's cultural history. But beneath the city's impressive façade lies the true heart and soul of the city: laneways which snake the city grid to reveal cafes and bars, fashion houses, boutiques, innovative cuisine, galleries, theatres, music and museums. Many prestigious international events are held here. This is the sporting capital of Australia, the home of Australian football.

There really is something for everybody in Melbourne. Within an hour's drive of the city, visitors can enjoy some of Australia's most spectacular coastlines, wildlife reserves, wineries, temperate rainforests, surf beaches and historic townships.  Come and share this fantastic experience together in Melbourne in 2008. For full details, registration, submission portal and program, see our website at www.apictm.com.

And our Conference will be a landmark in travel medicine. APICTM 2008 is based around a stimulating scientific program, focusing on a broad range of travel and tropical health issues facing the Asia Pacific region. The theme is "Our Region in Focus." Regional experts will examine the current emerging health issues facing this growing and dynamic region and put the travel health issues of specific locations under the spotlight. 

APICTM 2008 will provide a variety of concurrent sessions to give the newcomer to travel and tropical medicine an excellent overview of relevant topics, as well as provide experienced practitioners with a forum for exploring current issues. It will appeal to general practitioners and travel medicine specialists alike. Key presentations will be made by leading practitioners in travel and tropical medicine from the Asia-Pacific region, allowing participants a chance to learn the latest approaches to contemporary travel health issues.

APICTM 2008 represents a combined initiative of the International Society of Travel Medicine, the Asia-Pacific Travel Health Society, the Australasian College of Tropical Medicine, and the Victorian Infectious Disease Service. By bringing together these authoritative organisations, we will share the widest range of ideas, current research and thinking, and help define `best practice'.

Come and share this fantastic experience in Melbourne in 2008.

On behalf of the Organising Committee,

Dr Tony Gherardin
Dr Joseph Torresi
Co-Convenors

Representing:

The 3rd Regional Conference of the International Society of Travel Medicine
The 7th Asia Pacific Travel Health Conference
The 17th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Australasian College of Tropical Medicine

Organising Committee Chairs

Tony Gherardin (Aus)
Joseph Torresi (Aus)

Organising Committee

Trish Batchelor (Aus)
Santanu Chatterjee (India)
Mathew Klein (Aus)
Peter Leggat (Aus)
Marc Shaw (New Zealand)
John Simon (Hong Kong)
Jenny Visser (New Zealand)
Annelies Wilder-Smith (Singapore)
Ken Winkel (Aus)
Nicholas Zwar (Aus)

Scientific Committee Chair: Joseph Toressi (Aus)

Co-Chair: Annelies Wilder-Smith (Singapore)

Associate Chairs: Santanu Chatterjee (India), John Simon (Hong Kong)