ICS embraces virtual conference format

Irish Cardiac Society, 71^st Annual Scientific Meeting, 1-3 October 2020

The Irish Cardiac Society (ICS) 71st Annual Scientific Meeting was opened by outgoing ICS President Prof Jim Crowley, who thanked those who attended in its virtual format and expressed his hope that next year’s meeting could return to its normal face-to-face setting.

“I would like to thank the speakers for contributing,” said Prof Crowley. “We have a very high standard in terms of the quality of presentations and I hope you will find that enjoyable, and hopefully next year we will be back to the live [face-to-face] format, although we don’t know where we will be until we sort out the pandemic. But certainly, this current format lends itself to certain presentations and I think it is likely that this format will continue to provide us with interesting meetings and methods for educating ourselves in the field of cardiology and other areas of medicine.”

Prof Crowley also acknowledged the importance of sponsors’ input to the meeting, noting that their symposia “have added to the academic input of this meeting”.

The Thursday and Friday had sessions in association with the Irish Nurses Cardiovascular Association and the Irish Cardiac Clinical Physiologists and heard presentations on a variety of topics ranging from virtual drug titrations and remote self-care, to echo reporting and Covid-19. Consultant Cardiologist, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, Prof Jim O’Neill also delivered a presentation to the Friday session entitled ‘Cardiac Transplant’, as well as a range of oral abstracts, moderated posters and
general posters.