Dear IAMA members and friends,
Happy New Year to you all and I hope you have enjoyed a relaxing festive season with friends and family.
It has been a challenging time for all involved in aviation with health concerns and job insecurity, and I know many of you have been at the forefront supporting staff where possible. I do hope that you have also had time to rest and recuperate, looking after yourself and your loved ones.
Despite the ongoing pandemic with omicron causing widespread concern there is reason to be hopeful going forward. Borders are gradually re-opening, air travel is starting to rise in some regions albeit slowly and I read an interesting and encouraging article suggesting that although omicron will not be the last variant, it may be the last variant of concern. Time will tell.
The pandemic has affected almost every aspect of life and of course most meetings have been virtual. Thank goodness for technology, and the very successful Aviation Health mtg was again held on-line in October 2021 supported by both IATA and IAMA. It allowed us to connect, and for IAMA to hold our business mtg via zoom. Dr Ian Hosegood handed over the presidency after serving for over 2 years. He did a sterling job leading our association through such turbulent and challenging times and my thanks go to him for his very significant contribution to IAMA throughout that period.
We are excited now to be planning our next mtg to be held in Reno on 21st May and would encourage you to attend if possible. Currently we expect it to be face to face and Simon May as Programme Chair is organising the day with the theme ‘Adapt to Survive’.
For more information do look at our website, championed by Dr Martin Hudson, and ably overseen by Alex from Fresh Ideas, https://iama-assn.org. We are keen to extend our reach using various social media platforms and would like to hear from any members who may have an interest in helping with this.
Finally, I’d like to thank all the committee members who support our Association enthusiastically and freely in their own time. Each member brings with them their own area of expertise and their contribution is much appreciated. Special thanks go to Petra our wonderful Secretary who is currently in the process of handing over to Ian Mollan, Secretary Designate. Petra plans to ‘retire’ from this role in May after 9 years and we shall certainly miss her.
Best wishes for 2022 and I very much hope to see you in person in Reno.
Regards,
Elizabeth Wilkinson
President, International Medical Association
