EULAR offers free meeting registration, job sponsorship to Ukrainian rheumatologists
EULAR has announced several measures to support Ukrainian nationals in the midst of the invasion by Russia, including offering free registration for its 2022 annual meeting, according to a press release.
Meanwhile, EULAR has banned Russian and Belarusian delegates and companies from attending the live portion of the 2022 meeting, scheduled for June in Copenhagen.
“As hospitals are being attacked and access to medical aid is interrupted, EULAR wants to respond to this humanitarian crisis and particularly support the Ukrainian people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs), who need urgent treatment and assistance,” EULAR said in the press release.
Free virtual registration to rheumatologists who are Ukrainian nationals will increase ease of access to EULAR 2022 and the associated EULAR online courses, the organization said.
The group also announced a program sponsoring Ukrainian rheumatologists and rheumatologists in training across Europe for employment in one EULAR’s various partner hospital or institutes.
This program, which will be carried out through a partnership with the Emerging EULAR Network, will enable these individuals “to take up their profession, maintain and further develop their skills, and provide care to a range of patients, including particularly displaced Ukrainian RMD patients,” the release said.
EULAR plans to sponsor up to 20 of these positions, “allowing for a stable income for a Ukrainian physician who had to flee their country, and securing medical treatment for Ukrainian refugees with RMDs,” EULAR said.
Lastly, the group said it would coordinate with EULAR members to offer additional support for rheumatology patients who are refugees fleeing the war.
“EULAR has reached out to its member organizations in countries bordering with Ukraine to identify opportunities for support of people with RMDs in Ukraine and among the refugees,” read the release, in part. “EULAR has also asked our corporate members to ensure medicines supply and logistics in close collaboration with the governments and is liaising with industry partners on medicine supply logistic.”