New Year wishes from ISAC

Dear Colleagues

As 2022 draws to a close, ISAC would like to thank its Executive Committee members, Member Societies, Working Groups and global colleagues for the challenging work they undertake every day in the ever-changing infectious diseases landscape.

We would also like to take this opportunity to reflect on ISAC’s activities over the past 12 months.

32nd ICC

• In collaboration with the Australian Society for Antimicrobials, ISAC held the 32nd International Congress of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (ICC) in Perth, Australia – its first in-person congress since 2019. View some photos of the congress here.
• The abstracts have been published in the Journal of Global Antimicrobial Resistance (JGAR). 
• Planning is already underway for the next ICC which will take place in Istanbul in 2024 – more details will follow.

ISAC Academy

• The ISAC Academy website was launched; an educational resource featuring both ISAC and stakeholder content including e-modules, webinars, podcasts and more.
• ISAC launched its first free e-module on “Respiratory Tract Infections: Vaccination as a tool for reducing AMR" via the ISAC Academy, which has received a rating of 9.6/10 so far. Look out for ISAC’s second E-module on “Fever on returning from the tropics” early in 2023.
• In collaboration with its Working Groups and Member Societies, ISAC continued to deliver a programme of free educational webinars on a broad range of topics including Monkeypox, AMR in LMICs, COVID-19: re-vaccination and variant vaccines, Multi-drug resistance Gram-negative bacilli, skin and joint infections plus webinars from the Early Career Working Group.
• If you or your society has any suggestions for future / collaborative activities, please email your proposals to the Executive Office (secretariat@isac.world).

ISAC Executive Committee

• We welcome Souha Kanj (President-Elect) and Heiman Wertheim (ISAC Treasurer) to the ISAC Board of Directors.
• We also welcome four new ISAC Executive Committee members: Fatma Amer (Egypt), Dale Fisher (Singapore), David Jenkins (UK) and Patricia Muñoz (Spain).
• Thanks are extended to the outgoing members of the ISAC Executive Committee for their commitment to ISAC over the years: Ray Saginur (ISAC Treasurer), Po-Ren Hsueh (Immediate Past President), Matthew Dryden, Hiroshige Mikamo and Jean-Marc Rolain (Editor-in-Chief, IJAA).
• The new ISAC Executive Committee looks forward to working with ISAC’s Member Societies and Working Groups to achieve ISAC’s aims of increasing awareness and knowledge of antimicrobial chemotherapy and fighting the growing global issue of antimicrobial resistance.

Sadly, we end the year with the news of the passing of Professor Vladimír Krcmery, an eminent and highly respected colleague. Vladimir was a leading international expert on tropical and infectious diseases who was a valued member of the ISAC Executive Committee from 2015 – 2019 and leader of the ISAC Working Group on Infections in Catastrophic Areas until his death. Our condolences are with his family, friends and colleagues.

We thank you for your continued support and we wish you a healthy and successful year ahead.

Professor Geoff Coombs
President
International Society of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy