4th International Medical Congress Held in Yerevan

YEREVAN, Armenia—Under the auspices of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Armenia and the first lady of the Republic of Armenia, Rita Sarkisian, the 4th International Medical Congress of Armenia (IMCA) took place from July 2 to 4 in Yerevan. Internationally recognized experts and healthcare professionals from all over the world came to share their knowledge and high-level experience through lectures on various topics concerning medicine today.

A scene from the congress
A scene from the congress

On the first day of the Congress, Dr. Hayk Demoyan, the director of the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute, dedicated his lecture to the Armenian and foreign missionaries and health workers who selflessly devoted their hearts and expertise during the Armenian Genocide.

Other plenary speakers of the Congress were Dr. Mary Papazian (president of Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, Conn.), Dr. Bagrat Alekyan (academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, head of the Department of Cardiovascular X-Ray Diagnostic and Treatment Methods in the Bakoulev Center for Cardiovascular Surgery, Russia), Dr. Viken Babikian (co-director of the Stroke Service at the Boston Medical Center, Boston, Mass.), Dr. Vicken Sepilyan (medical director of CHA Fertility Center and practices in Los Angeles and Glendale), Dr. Michael Aghadjanyan (vice president, head of the Department of Molecular Immunology, and professor at the Institute for Molecular Medicine in Huntington Beach, Calif.), Dr. Airazat Kazaryan (Oslo University Hospital; was awarded His Majesty Norwegian King’s Gold Medal in Medicine, Norway), Dr. Samvel Badalyan (chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center in Syracuse, N.Y.), Dr. Patrick Kupelian (vice-chair of Clinical Operations and Clinical Research at UCLA), Dr. Grigori Yenikolopov (adjunct professor at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and an adjunct professor at Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology), and Dr. Bjørn Edwin (Rikshospitalet, Oslo University Hospital, Norway).

The plenary lectures were followed by Sections within scientific directions and satellite symposia. The satellite symposia organized during the Congress addressed the most vital issues facing health care today by covering both improvements and challenges in neurology, cardiology, nursing, dentistry, surgery, public health, palliative care, health education, ethics, complementary and alternative medicine, as well as other issues of interest and concerns within the allied healthcare fields.

Keynote speakers and panel discussants focused on a broad range of relevant topics, including the challenges facing health care in Armenia and Karabagh, latest breakthroughs in cancer and reproductive care, technological advance that are revolutionizing health care and the global paradox of over consumption and under nutrition.

Participants at the Congress came not only from Armenia and Nagorno-Karabagh, but also from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Canada, France, India, Iran, Norway, Lebanon, Russia, Turkey, England, the United States, Uruguay, and Qatar. The number of registered participants of the 4th IMCA was 531.

In addition to the 16 satellite symposia organized, there was a medical students and young doctors Armenian-Russian conference, as well as a child and adolescent psychiatrists’ roundtable. In total, 2,098 people took part in the satellite symposia and other events.

The total number of participants in the Congress and other events during the 4th IMCA was 2,629.

Dr. Seda Boghossian (chair, Armenian Medical Association of Great Britain) congratulated the organizing team for organizing and achieving such a successful Congress.

“Please accept my congratulations for an outstanding conference and your commitment and dedication to improving health outcomes in Armenia,” said Dr. Mary A. Papazian. “My team from Southern Connecticut State University came home inspired by the work being done and eager to consider next steps. Our commitment is now even deeper than when we came!”

The third day of the Congress was fully dedicated to the strategy of Armenia-diaspora projects and future collaboration. The unity of healthcare professionals from Armenia and the Armenian Diaspora is omnipotent, since it can have an exceptional influence on the further development of Armenia’s healthcare system by contributing to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and recovery of many diseases.

Within the framework of the 4th International Medical Congress of Armenia, the international doctors and participants visited the Tsitsernakaberd Genocide Memorial and opened an alley dedicated to medical workers, where they planted a fir to commemorate the Armenian and international healthcare workers who supported the Armenian refugees during the Armenian Genocide.

The official languages of the Congress were Armenian and English. To learn more, visit www.4imca.am.

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Guest Contributor

Guest Contributor

Guest contributions to the Armenian Weekly are informative articles or press releases written and submitted by members of the community.

1 Comment

  1. Someone should ask these medical professionals why Armenia completely denies, rather than rationally regulates opiate pain medications for those with severe chronic pain and terminal illnesses. Especially asking about the large number of suicides associated with those in severe pain dying from cancer, or those turning to dangerous alcohol or street drugs with chronic pain from accidents and illnesses. Rational regulation is better than outright absence. Many Armenians are suffering from being denied some of the lowest cost substances, some of which could even be produced in raw or manufactured form right here in Armenia!

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