“The current regulatory vacuum regarding Continuing Medical Education (CME) and Farmindustria's decision to block sponsorships of medical-scientific events (congresses, workshops, training courses) make unsustainable the situation for all operators in the congress chain”. This was stated by Federcongressi (Federation of congress and incentive sector associations) which addressed the Minister of Health and Farm-industry to "save the key segment of a sector that it has a turnover of 23 billion euros a year and employs 288,000 people”.
"A sector at risk, given that the experimental phase of Continuing Medical Education (CME) started in 2002 ends on 31 December and given the decision by Farmindustria to suspend the sponsorship of these training activities", complains the Federation, which represents more than a thousand companies in the sector through its five member associations and which, "expressing all the concern of the operators for the situation that has arisen, will send the Ministry of Health and Farmindustria the request for the establishment of a common working table aimed at the definitive resolution of these issues". “The situation is serious – he explains Paul Zone, coordinator of the Ecm Committee and medical-scientific congresses of Federcongressi – since to date there is no regulation of the Ecm system for 2007. Added to this is the blow dealt by Farmindustria's decision” to block sponsorships of medical-scientific meetings for the white coats. “We wouldn't want the same situation as four years ago to repeat itself with regard to ECM – fears Zona – The agreement was only reached on 20 December 2001 and in the first 3 months of 2002 the operators recorded a drop in turnover, because for to guarantee the Ecm accreditation it was possible to program the medical-scientific events only after 1st April. A belated statement of position by the competent institutions would once again put the sector in serious difficulty. Added to this is a position taken by drug manufacturers which, although legitimate and acceptable, brings hundreds of small and medium-sized enterprises in the congress sector to their knees".
“Since 2005, the Ministry of Health has expressed its intention to delegate the management of the accreditation of providers and medical-scientific events to the Regions which, in the absence of national guidelines, have created uneven systems (while Piedmont, Sardinia, Abruzzo , Calabria does not appear to have taken any action)”, continues Federcongressi, underlining that “there is a strong need for a clear and timely defined regulatory context, which allows the sector a medium-long term industrial planning”. The president of Federcongressi, Adolfo Parodi, finally, he recalled that “in the event, the congress organization companies are partners of the scientific promoter, very often also taking charge of the economic-financial risks. We ask the Ministry of Health and Farmindustria for the involvement of Federcongressi in defining the rules relating to medical-scientific events (and to the Ecm system) through the establishment of a consultation table which we believe is the only possible way for the situation to be successful" . "This would also allow companies in the congress sector to face the future with certain and shared rules, in the belief - concludes Parodi - that the sector represents a fundamental segment of the country's economy". From Doctornews 03-11-06
