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It is with great pleasure that we invite you to attend the Third Mediterranean Emergency Medicine Congress which will take place at the Acropolis Convention Centre in Nice, France, from 1-5 September 2005. This conference is being organised by the European Society for Emergency Medicine (EuSEM) and the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (AAEM). Many of you will recall the remarkable success of the First Mediterranean Emergency Medicine Congress held in Stresa, Italy, in September 2001 when more than 750 delegates and speakers from 52 countries contributed to an immensely exciting and educational experience. There was great demand that it should be repeated and two years later, in September 2003, AAEM and EuSEM combined with SEMES, la Sociedad Espanola de Medicina de Urgencias y Emergencias, to create the Second Mediterranean Emergency Medicine Congress in Sitges, Spain. The number of delegates on that occasion was more than 1300 and among them were emergency specialists from 66 nations with the official participation of representatives of national specialty societies from more than 40 countries. Over 800 research abstracts were presented. The Congress featured 10 concurrent tracks and 6 pre-congress workshops. It is perhaps not surprising that there has again been overwhelming demand for a further such meeting in September 2005. Those of you familiar with the history of medicine will understand why we have targeted the Mediterranean basin because this is the site of the Island of Cos, home of the master physician Hippocrates who is widely regarded as the father of Western European medicine. The guild of physicians on the Island of Cos created one of the earliest teaching units with an excellent library and formal apprentices and some of the first medical schools were to be found in Salerno, Sicily, and in Montpellier in the south of France. It is perhaps not surprising that we have therefore chosen a nearby venue, Nice, for the Third Mediterranean Emergency Medicine Congress in September of this year. Nice is a truly European venue because it was named after a Greek goddess, Nikea (“She who brings victory”), was for many centuries part of Italy, has the Promenade des Anglais as its main thoroughfare and is now one of the major cities of France. The Acropolis Convention Centre is centrally situated, offers excellent facilities and has a main auditorium which is the largest in France. Nice also has a vibrant cultural heritage and has been the home of Rodin, of Matisse and of Chagall. It is without doubt the brightest jewel among the crown of cities which line the Cote d’Azur and is within easy access of such attractive resorts as Cannes and Monaco, Antibes and Monte Carlo. The collaboration between AAEM and EuSEM, will help to promote the specialty of emergency medicine and will offer a wonderful opportunity for academic and scientific exchange. We are inviting outstanding speakers of world renown who will give lectures, discuss clinical cases, conduct didactic sessions and moderate abstract and poster presentations. We invite you to contribute to the success of the conference by submitting research findings and by ensuring that you attend and participate in the wide range of scientific sessions and social events. The Hippocratic Oath requires that physicians should “…share…teach…impart knowledge …” and these are some of the principles which we shall seek to follow in creating again a truly remarkable conference greatly valued by all who attend. We very much hope that you will be there.
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