Irish College of GPs celebrates its 40th anniversary with major international conference in Dublin and prestigious keynote speakers.
Conference held in conjunction with WONCA Europe 2024, the largest gathering of GPs in Europe with over 2,300 doctors attending.
- Honorary Memberships for Dr Colm Henry, Chief Clinical Officer, HSE amongst others.
- New history book of general practice and of the College launched.
The Irish College of GPs* is the professional body for general practice in Ireland. The College is the representative organisation for education, training and standards in general practice, with over 4,400 members comprising over 85% of practicing GPs in the Republic of Ireland.
The Irish College of GPs is the postgraduate training body (PGTB) responsible for delivery and governance of general practice training, with over 1191 trainees, meeting the urgent requirement for more GPs in Ireland and to meet the needs of a growing and ageing population.
This year (2024), the College celebrates the 40th anniversary of its foundation. It was founded to enhance the training and education, as well as the professionalism, of general practitioners. During those four decades, the College has grown in strength and numbers, delivering training programmes, educational courses, clinical guidance and research.
This year’s one-day National Conference is being held on Friday September 27th, in conjunction with the 3-day WONCA Europe 2024 conference in the Convention Centre in Dublin. The conference is a celebration of the College’s anniversary, and its strong role as a leader and an advocate for general practice and for patients.
The theme of the College’s Conference is “Curiosity, Creativity & Clinical Care.”
Its Keynote speakers include Dr Ana Luisa Neves, on the theme of “Telemedicine and Clinical value of eHealth,” Dr Thomas Zapata, WHO Regional Office for Europe, on “Workforce and Work Conditions to Retain and Recruit GPs/Doctors”, and Prof Dorien Zwart, Utrecht on “System Factors and Human Factors for Safety and GP Wellbeing”.
The Medical Director of the Irish College of GPs, Dr Diarmuid Quinlan, said “This is a very special National Conference for the College this year. It’s so special to be able to celebrate our 40th anniversary with over 2,300 GPs from across Europe and Ireland, and such a terrific line-up of speakers. This really is a celebration of general practice in Ireland and Europe and looking positively to the future”
The co-chair of the Scientific Committee of WONCA Europe, Dr Andree Rochfort, said: "This is the first time the College is hosting the 3-day WONCA Europe conference in Ireland, and we have a unique opportunity to get insights into the primary care workforce situations all over the WHO Europe region, for example."
The Theme of the WONCA Europe conference is “Cultivating the Future”, with a future emphasis on prevention and person-centred care, including use of patient wearables and involving patients in their management plans for behaviour change and lifestyle medicine coaching.
The Chair of the WONCA Europe 2024 host organising committee, and Chief Operating Officer of the Irish College of GPs, Professor Claire Collins, said: “Healthcare is continually evolving, and general practice must respond to the static and changing needs of patients. The Irish College of GPs and other WONCA Europe member organisations respond to the needs of their members, who as doctors operate in a range of roles. This educational conference is one mechanism for us to support our members, who strive for the highest quality of safe care possible for all patients.”
Details of the Irish College of GPs National Conference, and the WONCA Europe conference can be found at www.woncaeurope2024.org
MEDIA ATTENDEES MUST REGISTER IN ADVANCE – please contact Aileen O’Meara in advance, see below.
*The Irish College of GPs was formerly known as the Irish College of General Practitioners & ICGP.
ISSUED BY:
- Aileen O’Meara, Communications Consultant, Irish College of GPs.
- Tel. 01 2542984 / 087 2239830
- Email: media@icgp.ie