The 10th EACLPP Conference was held in Bologna from September 27 to 29, 2007. The conference was very well attended by delegates from different countries. In addition to those who have attended our conference on previous occasions, we were joined by new colleagues from Central-Eastern Europe, Israel, North and South America, New Zealand, and Australia. These new colleagues reflect the growing developments of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry (CLP) worldwide and the inclusion in the expanded EU of 10 other European countries in 2004 whose involvement in the field of CLP and contribution to its growth, both in theoretical and clinical aspects, is welcome and strongly encouraged. There were 240 participants, a slight but very welcome increase compared to previous conferences, indicating the vitality of the association.
Although two meetings took place in 1990 and 1998, the EACLPP was officially founded in 2000 and has held annual meetings since, every other year jointly with ECPR congresses, or in conjunction with meetings of national CLP societies.
This has been the first time that Italy has hosted the EACLPP meeting continuing its successful “tour” around Europe, after visiting some of the most beautiful and lively European cities (Oslo, Lisbon, Zaragoza, Berlin, Istanbul, and Lausanne being the most recent ones). Given that there is an incessant need for adapting to changes, integrating contrasts, and promoting advances while still preserving traditions within CLP, the choice of Bologna as city site was highly symbolic. The university campus that hosted the congress is the oldest in Europe, and still maintains a lively, young, and continuously developing atmosphere.
During the conference, an EACLPP board meeting and the general assembly of the association were held. Two members of the Board stepped down, Silla Consoli from France and Per Fink from Denmark, and two new members joined the board: Antonio Bulbena from Spain and Marta Novak from Hungary. Some important issues were discussed, such as the financial status of the association, the organization of future meetings, and the planning of research activities and organizational strategies for the coming year.
Interactivity, through expert meetings, round tables, debates, workshops, and symposia, is the strongest point of EACLPP conferences, a proud tradition that the Bologna meeting has hopefully continued to nourish. Discussions after individual presentations were lively and the audiences always appeared interested and responsive, in an atmosphere of pleasant informality combined with scientific rigor. The quality of submitted abstracts prior to the meeting was higher than expected. The number of papers scoring above the threshold was so high that the scientific committee had to increase the number of symposia, in order to allow all high quality contributions to be orally presented.
The Bologna EACLPP conference was organized and supported by the association and its members only, with no direct sponsorship from pharmaceutical companies. The only external support we received came from Bologna University, who allowed us to use their facilities. While organizing the conference, at the beginning of 2007, Italian pharmaceutical companies decided to temporarily suspend the funding of medical conferences because of a dispute with the Italian Government. The EACLPP board and the Italian members of the society decided to go ahead with the conference and to hold it in Bologna. We were aware of the difficulties, but we believed that the EACLPP could face the challenge of holding a meeting totally independent from pharmaceutical companies, with the aim to develop CLP in Europe against any threats, as the painting “The threatened swan” by Jan Asselijn on the EACLPP web page symbolizes. Thanks to the commitment and generosity of members, the conference was a success, except for some small details: we were so worried that we would not be able to meet the financial burden that we did not even offer coffee to the participants! Anyway, the city of Bologna was appreciated by our guests for many reasons, including the quality of the coffee, and such a good setting added to the enjoyment of the conference. A special mention is due to our young colleagues who worked tirelessly to make the conference possible and introduced technological innovations, such as the highly requested abstract book CD-Rom card.
This year the EACLPP conference will take place in Zaragoza, Spain, from June 25 to 28. We hope that this will be a further occasion to strengthen the solidity and scientific relevance of our association, building on the experience in Bologna.
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