April 2021

Dear EHS Members & Friends, 

“Spring, Vaccine & Sun”… the paths of hope are in front of us

We have already spoken and spoken again so many times about this pandemic and all the harmful consequences for each of us, in our family and professional life… Let’s talk about its repercussions on the EHS, and of course about the EHS 2021 Congress in Lille, which is making the main subject of our questions, in particular for the format of the congress… hybrid or purely virtual?

What if… thanks to the coming Spring, to the vaccination whose rhythm is accelerating, and also to the sun which is in principle the enemy of this virus… “Spring, Vaccine & Sun”, in a way, with the light at the end of the tunnel, which is approaching for the summer, and could allow us to consider a fraternal return to Lille by the end of September?

What if… in the end, this choice of hybridization was a real chance for our European Hip Society to further expand our fraternal and scientific exchanges with even more “virtual” participants all over Europe and beyond?… How many colleagues interested in hip surgery, but too busy, or living too far from Lille, could not have made the trip to participate in a “face to face” congress in France?… Thanks to real participation behind their screens, in remote access, whether they are participants or speakers, they will be able to join us on 9th and 10th September, without having to travel in difficult conditions… saving time, reducing costs, increasing availability, eliminating the need to select their sessions via replays. We will offer you access to all conferences, round tables, debates, and oral communications, without forgetting optimized participation of our industry partners…

This pandemic will have been a huge misfortune for many, but it could mark a tremendous boost to our meetings and scientific exchanges within our surgical community… We have learned to communicate via our screens, certainly in a less friendly way, but simpler and more affordable while being less time-consuming, less expensive to travel, more efficient in terms of education… Of course, this will not replace that… nothing ever replaces direct “face to face” exchanges during scientific meetings allowing members of the same community to meet. This is the reason why we are going to do everything so that this EHS Congress is not purely virtual, but leaves a large place to the participants “on the spot”… The improvement of sanitary conditions must give us hope that face-to-face and virtual will both be widely represented this September in Lille… with the major partnership of the scientific organization “Hip Toulouse”, and an extended digital representation of our Canadian friends, to represent Canada as the Guest Nation, and honoured among us.

Our desire is to further optimize the attractiveness of this 14th EHS Congress in Lille. In collaboration with our organizing company MCI, our EHS committees have worked enormously to offer you a rich and varied programme, according to the classic formula combining “the basis, the present and the future” of our orthopaedic knowledge… We have received nearly of 500 abstract submissions and we would already like to thank you again for your interest in EHS… A special effort is also planned for the adhesion of all, for an even greater number of “digital members”, at a very advantageous virtual registration rate at 50% off the regular price on-site… Visit our EHS Lille 2021 site for more details.

“Spring, Vaccine & Sun”… The paths of hope are in front of us, and we look forward to seeing you all for better days in Lille this September!…

On behalf of the EHS committees, sincerely yours,

Jean-Alain Epinette, MD

EHS President

EHS Ambassador of the Month, Geert Meermans

Dear Colleagues,

It is an honour and a privilege to be an Ambassador for the European Hip Society. The society provides a unique platform to meet colleagues from across Europe, share ideas, learn from each other and improve future research for the benefit of our patients.

I graduated from medical school at the University of Antwerp, Belgium in 2001 and subsequently trained in orthopaedic surgery at the University Hospital of Antwerp whilst also following a postgraduate training in Sports Medicine at the University of Brussels. My fellowship training was at the University College London Hospital with Professor Fares Haddad and Mr Johan Witt and the University Hospital of Pellenberg, Belgium with Professors Johan Bellemans and Jean-Pierre Simon.

In 2010, I started working as a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at the Bravis Hospital, Bergen op Zoom and Roosendaal, The Netherlands. My current practice is focused on hip and knee surgery. Living in Antwerp, Belgium with my wife and our three kids and working in The Netherlands has put me in the uncommon position as a cross-border worker. Although the language and culture are similar and we even share a large part of our history, it is very interesting to look at the small differences and learn from each other across the border.

The same applies to the European Hip Society. From my first biannual meeting in Madrid over Athens, Milan, Stockholm, Munich and the Hague, I’ve enjoyed discovering Europe and getting to know colleagues and philosophies from different countries. It is also obvious that we are all dealing with the same challenges: an increasing administrative/regulatory burden, cut-backs in the health care system, increasingly demanding patients, and emerging new and expensive technologies. There is the added pressure to provide better and more efficient care without increasing costs and that’s why we need international collaborations like the European Hip Society.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, webinars and virtual meetings have been the mainstay of teaching and communication for the last 12 months. Although these tools can be great adjuncts, they do not replace the face-to-face discussions, interactions or relationship building at a live meeting nor does it provide the opportunity to experience the local culture of the host city. The cultural diversity across Europe is one of the added values the European Hip Society has to offer and why I love coming to these meetings. I look forward to be part of the next meeting in Lille and sincerely hope that by then the COVID-19 pandemic is sufficiently under control permitting us to meet face-to-face again. Until then I hang on to a quote from Shakespeare’s Macbeth which was printed in a pocket book on trauma medicine that I always kept near at hand throughout my residency: “Come what come may. Time and the hour runs through the roughest day”.

Best regards,

Geert Meermans