Revamped 13th EAU Central European Meeting well-received in Prague

Under the chairmanship of Prof. Bob Djavan, the EAU Regional Office and its advisory board have implemented a new and more expansive scientific programme for the EAU Regional Meetings. The 13th Central European Meeting in Prague, which was held on 4-6 October, was the first meeting to benefit from these changes. We spoke to the meeting’s chairman Prof. Babjuk, about some of the changes.

In addition to scientific talks and poster presentations, this year’s programme featured for the first time an ESU course on surgery on the female urethra, two days of hands-on training sessions and a Country Competition.

Several sections of the EAU were also involved: “I am happy that we built contacts with the EAU. Improved cooperation allowed us to offer the ESU course, and the ESUT/EULIS hands-on training,” Prof. Babjuk said at the meeting. “This is a good strategy that will bring more participants in the coming years. It’s more common to provide lectures than practical training, so each opportunity is very valuable.” All hands-on training sessions were fully booked by interested delegates who could practice ureterorenoscopy and laparoscopic skills.

The meeting attracted close to 250 participants, from 26 countries. Some attendees came from as far as Japan and the USA. The largest groups of participants came from the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Greece and Ukraine.

“I was very happy about the number of attendees,” said Babjuk. “We welcomed almost a hundred more delegates than last year. I am also pleased by the quality of the lectures, both from invited speakers and the poster presentations.”

“Most speakers are drawn from the region, in the past this was not always the case. Most of these countries share similar resources, urological problems, and have a similar history.”

“We try to demonstrate the quality of urology in the Central European countries, as well as that we’re a valuable part of European urology. With the meeting, we create opportunities for young urologists to hold their first talks in English, and to open the doors for them to the Annual EAU Congress.”

This article, together with other reports and interviews on the 13th Central European Meeting, will be published in the forthcoming edition of European Urology Today.