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By YOs for YOs: European Meeting of Young Ophthalmologists more than doubles past attendance
The next EMYO will be held in 2018.
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The 2nd European Meeting of Young Ophthalmologists took place in Oviedo, Spain, in June, and it was a truly remarkable event. From tailored educational sessions to networking with fellow European YOs to coming together and tackling the challenges ahead for YOs, the meeting was the place to be for any young trainee from Europe. Co-organizer Ignacio Rodríguez gives us the details.
Anthony Khawaja, PhD, FRCOphthOutgoing Chair of the SOE Young Ophthalmologists Committee
The 2nd European Meeting of Young Ophthalmologists (EMYO), which took place in Oviedo on June 24 and 25, was an absolute success, according to participants, European Society of Ophthalmology members and the Organizing Committee. More than 500 participants from 31 countries, including some outside of Europe, such as Tunisia and the United States, enjoyed a pleasant weekend in this lovely city in the north of Spain.
The scientific program included more than 40 invited speakers from almost 20 countries all around Europe. The aim of the program was to develop an “Update in Ophthalmology,” including not only the latest news about diagnostic devices, medical therapies and surgical techniques but also some basic and useful topics for beginners, concerning every subspecialty. The different formats of talks and specific efforts from the chairmen made the meeting easy to follow, always trying to keep the philosophy of the congress since its first edition in 2014: “By YOs for YOs.”
On Friday morning, 24 speakers from 15 European countries presented their talks in the Lectures Session, including cornea, cataract surgery, refractive surgery, glaucoma and vitreoretinal presentations. One of the most exciting moments in the meeting was the Opening Session with the presence of local and international authorities: Wenceslao Lopez, mayor of Oviedo; Jan Tjeerd de Faber, MD, president of the SOE; Jose Luis Encinas, MD, president of the Congress; Ana Quintas, MD, honorary president; and Luis Fernandez-Vega, MD, president of the Organizing Committee. Attendees were delighted with the astonishing performance by the local pipes band of the city of Oviedo.
In the afternoon, during the Workshops Session, four experienced speakers developed topics about uveitis, oculoplastics, strabismus and neuro-ophthalmology in detail. As expected, the Controversies Session was particularly interesting, with an active participation of speakers and several helpful discussions with the audience as well. The excellent time management by all the speakers was one of the key points of the fantastic development of the program.
On Friday evening, the EMYO Gala Dinner and music show at the famous Palacio de Congresos by Santiago Calatrava created a particularly amazing atmosphere among participants.
The EMYO 2016 had an active participation: Hundreds of abstracts were submitted through the meeting website, including poster presentations, videos and case report presentations, and the ones selected by the Scientific Committee were presented on Saturday morning. Six important awards were presented at the end of the congress for the two best presentations of each category. Of course, support by Théa Pharmaceuticals was kindly appreciated.
Finally, an interesting round table was held, dedicated to the challenges facing YOs in the next 10 years and training opportunities for YOs in Europe. It was a unique opportunity to share experiences and possible suggestions not only from YOs but from the members of different international committees, education boards and even the SOE. All of them shared their wide experience and advice in order to find united strategies for young eye doctors training all around Europe.
Bringing together 2nd EMYO participants allowed helpful international networking opportunities, which would be difficult to achieve in other local meetings. In addition, YOs enjoyed their leisure time visiting the touristic sites in Oviedo. Undoubtedly, EMYO 2016 was a great opportunity to meet colleagues from Europe, to keep updated about current scientific knowledge and to visit a beautiful city. We are looking forward to the next EMYO event in 2018.
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- Ignacio Rodríguez, MD, PhD, can be reached at email: irodriguezu@fernandez-vega.com.
Disclosure: No products or companies that would require financial disclosure are mentioned in this article.