Annals of Burns and Fire Disasters - vol. VIII - n. 4 - December 1995 MBC NEWS Neuvième Congrès du MBC
MBC EIGHTH ANNUAL MEETING It is my pleasant duty to report on the activities and developments of our association for the year 1993, since our last meeting in Perpignan, France. I shall briefly mention the highlights, leaving it to our able Secretary-General to expand on our programmes in greater detail. If I were to summarize the achievements of the MBC during this period, I would say that it has been marked by our scientific expansion, by the growth of our international relations, and by our breakthroughs in training. 1. INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS The MBC is now being increasingly solicited not only in the Mediterranean area but also worldwide as the acknowledged professional organization with particular expertise in the combined problems of burns and fire disasters. 1. 1. United Nations: For the third year the MBC awarded scholarship in the name of the UN International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, as a joint IDNDRIMBC Scholarship in management of burns and fire disasters. We shall continue our support of UN and IDNDR initiatives. 1.2. World Health Organization: In co-operation with the International Federation of Surgical Colleges, with which MBC is in official liaison, a project is being formulated to prepare a manual of basic and essential methodology,for the prevention of burns and control of fires in developing countries. We are also pleased that WHO is being officially represented at our 8th Annual Assembly. 1.3. International Federetion of Surgical Colleges: As mentioned above, a joint project with IFSC and WHO is now being studied. Attempts will also be made to modify and simplify the MBC computerized burns educational material for use in developing countries. The President of the MBC was elected Vice-President of the IFSC for the coming four years. 1.4. Giuseppe Whitaker Foundation: The Whitaker Foundation has close ties with MBC, but is a completely different institution. Our Secretary-General is its Scientific Secretary, and the Foundation plays a considerable role in the education and science of burns management. 1.5. European Union: The EEC, now the European Union, has vast plans (COMETT) for the scientific/educational standards of its comporent countries. Within this scheme, a consortium of burn centres, headed by the MBC, has prepared a computerized, multimedia interactive hypertext on burns management. This received great and unanimous acclaim at the recent ISBI Congress in Paris, and will be demonstrated to all our members at the La Corufla meeting. This is a unique international, educational and scientific achievement of which MBC can justly be proud. 1.6. International membership: Recent political and governmental changes among the states bordering the Mediterranean have an effect on the national membership composition of our organization. Thus, Slovenia has officially indicated that it desires to be a member and has nominated its National Representative. We welcome Slovenia, whose members have in any case long been active in the MBC. We shall deal with other changes as they present and are discussed by all of us. 1.7. Promotion of National Societies: Among its scientific objectives, the MBC promotes the establishment of National Societies in countries of the Mediterranean basin, for the study and management of burns and fires. In this respect the MBC is proud to have been instrumental in the founding of the Spanish Burn Association - which is holding its First Congress at the time of our Annual Meeting, and to whom we extend our best wishes. The MBC also played a significant role in the establishment of the Burn Society of Libya, to which we also extend a warm welcome. 1.8. World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine: The MBC is an affiliated Society in WADEM and our organization's concems in fire disasters are considered a valuable input in the field of major emergency management. The MBC, along with many other prestigious organizations, is collaborating in the World Congress on Emergency Medicine, to be held in Jerusalem in May 1995. 2. SCIENTIFIC ACTIVITIES It will be evident that most of the international activities cited above concern primarily scientific and educational endeavours. Inter alia, the following deserve highlighting: 2. 1. Annals of the MBC: Our scientific publication is constantly improving in quality and is a worthwhile addition to the literature on burns management. Additionally, it is concerned with articles on fire disaster problems, issues that are not dealt with in other medical journals. The Annals are intentionally open to all members, thus providing a forum for publications of regional interest. 2.2. Burns Multimedia Interactive Educational Hypertext: Reference is made to this under 1.5 above. This unique educational instrument breaks new ground in computer-assisted training, and has already received wide acclaim. Outside institutions are already interested in this, and members will see it in addition. 2.3 Simplified burns manuals: The World Health organization has a programme of providing manuals of medical and surgical techniques at a simplified level for use within primary health care in remote areas. As stated under 1.3 above, MBC, jointly with IFSC and WHO, is planning to produce such a simplified manual for burn prevention and therapy in developing countries. 2.4 Collaboration with the Vishnewsky Institute: The headquarters of our organization is proudly housed in Professor Masellis's ultramodern Burn Centre. Through this and the MBC, agreement has been signed with the Vishnewsky Institute of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, for scientific collaboration. Two researchers were Resident Scientists at the Burn Centre for several weeks. 2.5 Participation in Congresses: MBC members are very often invited to scientific bum conferences not only in member countries but also farther afield. Also, burn specialists from non-Mediterranean countries are increasingly requesting to become Associate Members, a sign of their recognition of MBC's worth. 2.6 Third International Conference on Burns and Fire Disasters: Following the success of the 1990 and 1992 Conferences on this broadened theme, the American Burn Association expressed the wish to cosponsor the forthcoming Conference, and we appreciate this recognition. ITACCS (the International Trauma Anesthesia and Critical Care Society) and WADEM (the World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine) are also collaborating. Plans are in progress to hold this as a Mediterranean cruise-conference. 3. CONSTITUTIONAL MODIFICATIONS The Mediterranean Burns Club has been constituted with the aim of promoting the highest scientific and professional standards in the man-agernent of thermal injury. Increasingly it has become evident that the prevention of fires and the treatment of burns are intirnately interlinked, and it is to the credit of the MBC that this organization has been the pioneer in dealing with the conjoint problems of burns as a clinical, surgical issue, and fires as a societal, disaster management issue. We have been praised and acknowledged for this vision, and our approaches have opened new vistas in prevention, response and rehabilitation. In this light I shall make a proposal to the General Assembly that the name of our Organization be modified, to better express this progression. It is moved that the Mediterranean Burns Club be named Mediterranean Club for Burns and Fire Disasters. 4. FINANCIAL SITUATION The MBC is in the fortunate situation of having a healthy financial balance. We are particularly grateful for this to the Italian and Regional Authorities for assuring our finances by legal statute. We are indebted to our indefatigable Secretary-General, Michele Masellis, for having suc-ceeded in obtaining such governmental backing, and indeed for all his work in ensuring such a lively and productive organization as your MBC. Prof. William Gunn, MD, MS, FRCS Secretary-general's report for 1993 The 1994 General Assembly is being
held in La Cortifla on the occasion of the Eighth Meeting of the MBC and the Joint First
Meeting with the Spanish Burns Association.
1. SECTOR OF PREVENTION AND PUBLIC EDUCATION All the material produced by MBC in the
sector of prevention continues to arouse keen interest among organizations, voluntary
groups, schools andjournals that are interested in this problem. 2. SECTOR OF DISASTERS AND EMERGENCIES The second volume on The Management of Mass Bums Casualties and Fire Disasters is in the press (again Kluwer Academic Publishers of Dordrecht). This will contain the papers presented at the Second International Conference on Burns and Fire Disasters - Perspectives 2000. 3. SECTOR OF CULTURAL EXCHANGES BETWEEN MEMBER COUNTRIES The MBC scholarships were again awarded in 1994. This year the total number was ten. The scholarship winners were: Physicians Dr H. Boukind (Morocco) Paramedicals Mr L. Buttigic G. (Malta) For the realization of the training
purposes of the project an interactive multimedia application on CD-ROM was developed
which can be used by anyone with access to a personal computer.
MBC intends to publish the contents of the project in a treatise to which the CD-ROM will be attached. This initiative is being discussed with various publishers who have viewed the contents of the programme and shown their keen interest. 4. SECTOR OF COOPERATION The participation of the MBC in various
Meetings either as a Collaborating Institution or by official invitation was at a good
level. First Pan-Arab Conference of Plastic
Reconstructive Surgery, Tripoli (Libya), 1-4 May 1994, on which occasion the Pan-Arab
Association of Burns and Plastic Surgery (PAAS) was constituted. The MBC greets with
pleasure this new Association and accepts with pleasure the request to include it among
the Associate Societies. Future MBC Activities As we all know, organization is in
progress for the Third International Conference on Bums and Fire Disasters, which will be
held in the form of a Joint Meeting with the American Burn Association, WADEM and ITACCS
from 3rd to 6th June 1995 during a Mediterranean cruise on board the turboship Ausonia. Publication of Annals of the Mediterranean Burns Club Publication of the journal has continued regularly with a circulation of some three thousand copies. Starting from Volume VII, the-lay-out and paging have been modified, making it more compact and more in line with the printing style of other scientific journals. We believe that the quality of the scientific content is growing, and this is confirmed by the considerable number of articles that are sent to the Editors' office - even from authors outside the Mediterranean area - and by the numerous notifications of change of address, which lead us to suppose that interest remains high. 5. SECTOR OF ORGANIZATION AND COORDINATION OF MBC ACTIVITIES In the framework of the purposes laid down
in the Club Statute, the Directive Council has always pursued the idea of extending the
field of' action of the Secretariat's activities. A. Creation of a Data Bank: epidemiological (organization of the "Mediterranean Burns Register"), bibliographical and iconographic The first point derives from the urgent
need for collaboration between the Mediterranean countries in order to gain wider
knowledge of burns pathology by means of the exchange of clinical experiences and
information.
The creation of a communications network between the various Mediterranean countries will have a dual purpose.
Hence the utility of the "Mediterranean Burns Registe?': this will comprise a series of data of epidemiological, clinical and therapeutic interest, originating from all the Burns Centres in the Mediterranean area, to which all partners will have access for the inclusion of new clinical cases and for consultation purposes. All clinical cases will be furnished with images.
B. Creation of a multimedia classroom at
the seat of the MBC to be used in refresher and training courses for medical and
paramedical personnel. A future prospect is the link-up of the
multimedia station in a communications system permitting the simultaneous use of the
multimedia teaching software applications by the peripheral posts connected to it. It will
thus be possible to hold training courses simultaneously in different countries, using the
multimedia post in the MBC scat. Prof. Michele Masellis, M.D. TREASURERS REPORT ON 1994 BUDGET REVENUE consisted of the Sicilian Region contribution of 300 million lire. EXPENDITURE was limited within the limits of allocation as established in the budget with a distribution of expenses as follows: 15% for Prevention and Health Education 50% for Cultural Co-operation and Promotion 12% for Functioning of the Secretariat 23% for Functioning of Infotelematic Services INSTITUTIONAL EXPENDITURE used up 65% of Revenue, with an increase compared to 1993 of 10%; this concerned: production and distribution of illustrative material for the different Mediterranean Countries; award of ten scholarships which in 1994 were distributed as follows: European countries: 5; African countries: 5. production and publication of the Journal, which absorbs 33% of the expenses in the sector; contribution for the organization of the annual Meeting. EXPENDITURE for functioning of the Secretariat diminished by 23%, involving only 12% of revenue; this saving enabled us to stipulate a pluriennial contract for infotelematic collaboration. G. Sferrazza Papa, M.D. STATEMENT OF REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE AT 31 DECEMBER 1994
Section I
Section II
Sector of Cultural Promotion
Section III
PROGRAMME OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE MEDITERRANEAN BURNS CLUB FOR THE YEAR 1995 I Prevention and Emergency Sector Preparation and production of folders and albums for educational and prevention purposes. Ten guidelines to be followed in the immediate assistance given by teams of trained rescue workers. Posters and leaflets. II Sector for Cultural Cooperation and Promotion The MBC announces ten scholarships each worth four million lire to be awarded equally to physicians and nurses who for a period of one month will be enabled to attend Burns Centres and Departments of Plastic Surgery in the various Mediterranean countries.
III Management of the Centre for the Coordination of Club Activities a. Secretarial activities and
administrative and tax consultancy The estimated expenditure for the above activities is divided as follows:
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