Everything is bigger in America. This includes the Annual Meeting of the AGS which took place in the rather surreal surroundings of the Swan and Dolphin Hotel in Orlando at the beginning of May.

A number of UK colleagues gave presentations including fellow Professors Peter Langhorne, Rose Anne Kenny and David Stott. I gave a talk on geriatrics in the UK at the International Special Interest Group. Luckily, David Black had provided me with a lot of factual information and he was on hand to correct my errors.

I would advise all UK Specialist Registrars to try to visit the AGS conference at least once during their training. They have the familiar mix of research presentations, clinical updates, special interest groups as well papers on public policy. The phrase “travel broadens the mind” is apt. One learns new things, one understands that there may be more than one valid way of organising care whilst at the same time, I often feel a re-affirmation of my opinion and methods. The strong pound (at present) makes the costs not too great. Abstracts are published in JAGS.

Finbarr Martin and I had a meeting with the President and administrative staff of the AGS (in the 20th floor penthouse suite of the hotel) at which we discussed a number of potential joint projects. It was agreed to take forward an update of the Anglo-American Falls Guidelines and Finbarr Martin and Rose Anne Kenny were invited to lead on this. I was able to report on the progress of the UK pain guidelines, which follow on from a major US initiative.

Canadian Geriatrics Society
“From Hull and Halifax and Hell, good Lord deliver me”. The ballad writer may well have been referring to Halifax, NS – it was bucketing down when I arrived and the mist was so bad that I could not see even across the road for the first two days of the meeting. My good friend, Colin Powell kindly met me at the airport and somehow managed to navigate through the rain to the hotel where their annual conference took place. Colin has built up an internationally respected team of clinicians and researchers at Dalhousie University. Members of the BGS will recall the excellent talk given by Ken Rockwood at our Autumn meeting a few years ago. Unfortunately, recruitment to the specialty there is undergoing a bit of crisis at the moment and I was told that there would be no new trainees entering the specialty in Toronto this year. The Canadians have a system whereby family physicians can be certified in geriatric medicine, whilst in the US, entry into our specialty is via either family or internal medicine. Lessons there for us, perhaps.

British Geriatrics Society
We shall be holding a special session for overseas delegates at the Harrogate meeting. The aim is to find out in what ways we can improve their involvement in our affairs. One possible way would be to create an International Special Interest Group as in the US. I have asked the administrative staff to investigate the possibility of reducing conference registration fees for overseas delegates from the developing world. I will report on this meeting in a subsequent newsletter.

Peter Crome
President Elect