Advancing together

Advancing together

Each year begins with the challenges we set for ourselves. Learning or perfecting new skills, sharing them with others, improving our practice, advancing research, all of these play a role in the continuing excellence of our speciality and constitute an essential part of the role of our Association. While we naturally see each New Year as a new beginning, we are well aware that its success is inscribed in a continuity for which our work of the previous months and years provides the foundation. The EAPCI represents that continuity, bringing together the vast talents, experience and outlook of our different members, and finding and defining ways to share this for the benefit of all.

As an association, we do this in many ways: through the work of our committees, through our Courses and our publications such as EuroIntervention, and in the time we dedicate to reaching out to our fellow specialists in educational programmes or working within the different national societies to further the efforts in each individual country. We see this mix of outreach and clinical knowledge in the work of our successful initiatives such as Stent for Life and Valve for Life and, equally, in our relations with other continents. As we go to press, many of us are attending AsiaPCR, a Course which highlights the experience of our Asian colleagues and where we see that we all gain by sharing our knowledge in a spirit of openness and respect. To further this work, AsiaIntervention, now firmly established, captures the Asian experience in the tradition of EuroIntervention.

As individuals and as an association, we are also now deeply involved in preparations for EuroPCR 2017: we bring to this planning all we have gained during the previous months. As we build each of our activities, we see how intertwined they all truly are.

We cannot become complacent. The year 2016 witnessed the continued growth of our profession but, as we mature, we must remain vigilant in ensuring that we are moving in the direction that offers the best care to our patients. It is only in working closely together that we will attain this goal. The different initiatives along with our educational programmes, and our outreach to other societies and cultures play a decisive role in this evolution.

We look forward to 2017, knowing that we have the foundation to continue to build a strong organisation, knowing that we can count on each and every one of you to join with us in the spirit of sharing and exchange that characterises the best of our profession and speciality. We wish you all a happy, healthy and productive New Year…together!