2021 Annual Scientific Meeting Report
By Dr Rajni Joseph and Dr Louise Monk
Conference Co-convenors
The 2021 ANZSGM Annual Scientific Meeting ‘20/20 Hindsight: Vision for the Future’ was held at the Sofitel Melbourne on Collins on the 19-21st May 2021. After the postponement of the 2020 ASM due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s ASM was highly anticipated. For the first time, the conference was run as a hybrid event with 192 in-person and 490 virtual delegates. A combination of in-person, virtual and pre-recorded presentations were used to deliver a stellar scientific program and we extend a huge thank you to all the speakers who made the conference a success.
The conference was opened by a captivating welcome address from Professor Sharon Lewin, Director of the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, on COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics and their impact on older populations. Given the timely nature of this talk, Professor Lewin has kindly agreed to make her presentation available to all ANZSGM members, it can be found here.
The keynote addresses were a program highlight and demonstrated that distance and travel restrictions should not be a stumbling block in the sharing of ideas and expertise. Professor Shaun O’Keeffe, presenting from Galway Ireland, treated delegates to two engaging talks on managing risk in Geriatric Medicine and the dangers of over-diagnosis. From hotel quarantine in Singapore, Professor Andrea Maier presented fascinating talks on Evidence-Based Geriatric Medicine and Geroscience.
The program featured updates in dementia and delirium as well as reflections on the implementation of Voluntary Assisted Dying legislation in Victoria, the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, and the management of COVID-19 outbreaks in residential aged care during 2020. The critical impact of climate change on health outcomes was discussed along with the important question regarding the role of technology in healthcare. A wonderful journey through the history of Geriatric Medicine by Dr William Browne closed the conference. Conference sessions were beautifully captured by Dr Amelia Crabtree’s visual illustrations, and these can be viewed on the conference website or by using the hashtag #ANZSGM2021. The conference presentations along with extra on-demand sessions are still available via the conference app and web portal for 90 days to registered delegates. We encourage you to view the sessions that you may have missed.
Congratulations are due to all who submitted abstracts. The calibre of research that was conducted during the pandemic has been inspiring. A special congratulations to the prize winners; Dr Janani Thillainadesan with the Career Investigator Prize, Dr Sundhar Rajan Balu with the RM Gibson prize and Dr Phiyen Tran with the best poster prize. See the poster here.
Once again, as convenors, we extend our deepest gratitude to those that worked hard behind the scenes to make the conference a success – The local organising committee, our professional conference organiser ICE Australia/ARINEX, the staff at Sofitel Melbourne on Collins, session moderators, scientific paper reviewers and judges and conference sponsors. We look forward to supporting the 2022 ASM in Perth and wish the convenors every success.
Image: A visual illustration of Professor Sharon Lewin’s presentation as part of the ASM program by Dr Amelia Crabtree, Geriatrician and Visual Storyteller.
