Dear Readers:
Happy New Year to all and thanks to those who sent well wishing messages during this season! We are proud to have so many friends from so many
countries of the world.
I look forward to an exciting and productive year under the leadership of Dr. Kathy Foley, our newly elected Chair. I am also glad to announce
that Dr. Foley was recently chosen as one of three 2004 McCann Scholars, an honor awarded to medical professionals for their outstanding mentorship in the field of medicine and science. We are very
proud to have her as part of our team.
In her Chair's message, Dr Foley presented the new Directors who were elected to the IAHPC Board: Doctors Gian Domenico Borasio from Germany,
Ednin Hamzah from Malaysia, Elizabeth Gwyther from South Africa, Nathan Cherny from Israel and Margaret O'Connor from Australia.
Dr. Foley also announced the re-election of Eduardo Bruera (USA), M.R. Rajagopal, MD (India), Roger Woodruff (Australia), Jan Stjernswärd (Sweden) and Carla Ripamonti (Italy) as Directors for
three additional years. The Board continues to be the greatest strength of IAHPC. By bringing together these leaders from different countries of the world we are able to develop programs tailored
to the needs of patients while taking into account their religious, ethnical and cultural differences.
We continue to receive many mails thanking us for the donation of books and journals as part of the IAHPC
Clearing House Program. I am glad that you find these journals useful and that they are now part of your institutional libraries. If you are not listed in this program, please send us an email
and we will add your name to our database. You need to be working in a hospice, or an active palliative care program, and be in a developing country. Many thanks again to all the donors to this
program, especially to Eduardo Bruera and his colleagues at the Department of Palliative Care at the MD Anderson Cancer Center who gave hundreds of journals to this program.
I have several important announcements:
1. The IAHPC Awards program received many applications this year. We thank all those who participated and for the enthusiastic response to
our call. The applications are currently being evaluated by three different committees and the winners will be announced at the end of the month.
2. Elsevier, the publisher of The Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, has announced its new rates for 2005. IAHPC members receive a significant
discount on their subscription: price for members is now set at US $189.00, while the regular rate is US $260.00 per year. JPSM
is now the official journal of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and continues to be one of the leading journals in the field. To subscribe to the JPSM click
here.
You must specify that you are an IAHPC member. Please provide your membership number and make sure your membership
is active, as they will be checking with us for the status of applicants.
3. The end of the year also marks the expiration of the IAHPC membership for many of you. Individuals whose membership is about to expire should
have received reminders by email. If your membership expired and you have not renewed it yet, please remember to do so. Membership dues are very important to IAHPC and they help us to continue our
mission to help others. Additionally, you can take advantage of our special offer: By renewing before January 30th, you will be able to buy the IAHPC Publication Palliative Care in Developing Countries:
Principles and Practice for an additional $10.00. To renew your membership, please go to our website at www.hospicecare.com and click on
the IAHPC Membership button in the upper left hand corner.
4. We have divided the institutional membership category in two types: Institutions in developed countries will now pay US $150.00 per year
and will automatically sponsor a membership of another institution in a developing country. Institutions in developing countries wishing to apply for membership pay US $40.00 per year. Institutional
applications are available here.
If you have any questions about your membership status or how to apply, please send an email to Ms Ana Restrepo here.
Until next month,
Liliana De Lima, MHA
Executive Director
