Dear Friends
It seems just a short while ago that many of us were together in Florence at the World Congress, renewing friendships, learning, sharing and joining together with the aim of improving the health of girls and young women. It was a fantastic meeting, and it was wonderful catching up with everyone who was there.
Already 6 months have passed with Christmas and the New year looking in the next week.
I can tell you, that the executive have been working hard over the last 6 months. We have been having monthly teleconferences – talking, planning and working together to grow FIGIJ into an even stronger family of clinicians with the shared aim of the health of girls and young women.
We have reflected and celebrated the success of the Florence meeting- but planning for the next meeting in Melbourne in 2019 is already underway. I hope you are all saving your pennies, cents, rupees, pesos, ringgits, or yuan, so that you can not only catch up with friends and colleagues to learn and update your skills here on the other side of the world, but also spend some time here exploring this lpace I call home. (It is not so far away really……).
We have been trying to reach out to colleagues in those parts of the world who have not been linked to FIGIJ, although many are in fact working in this area. They, like us, would probably benefit from being able to feel part of a supportive family of like minded clinicians and would welcome the chance to share knowledge and experience. Please, if you know of doctors in other places who would like to join us- please invite them, or let me know. I would be delighted to talk with them.
FIGIJ is also moving towards taking some exciting initiatives to actually try and extend use of the HPV vaccine into parts of the world where access has been challenging. I think this opens the door to all sorts of interesting projects where we help each other to make health improvements for young women. If you have any ideas- again, please let me or others in the FIGIJ executive know.
So please enjoy this holiday season. May it be full of wonderful times with friends and family. Please stay safe and I look forward to another 12 months of growth in this wonderful specialty.
Best wishes,
Sonia Grover
President FIGIJ