Journal_1_2014_final_WEB

Editorial
Innovation and collaboration:
two of the leading forces that drive EWMA
Fourteen years ago, EWMA held a conference in
Stockholm, at which the partnership structure
of the EWMA Cooperating Organisations was
announced.
One of the creative minds behind this innovation
was Christina Lindholm, who for many years has been
a driving force in the EWMA Council and the EWMA
Education Committee. In 2014, we celebrate Christina
and her many contributions to EWMA at the EWMA-
GNEAUPP 2014 conference by inviting her into the
group of esteemed EWMA Honorary Speakers.
The EWMA Cooperating Organisations partnership has
grown tremendously since its inception in 2000, and today,
it includes 49 wound care associations, representing
35 European countries. Representatives from many
of these associations will meet during the 2014 EWMA
conference to elect members for the EWMA Council, discuss
aspects of wound care across Europe, and learn from
each other’s experiences during the EWMA Cooperating
Organisations Board Meeting and the Cooperating Organisations
Workshop.
In 2008, the EWMA Council formalised the first collaborations
with associations outside of Europe through
the establishment of International Partner Agreements
with the Association for the Advancement of Wound
Care (AAWC) of the U.S.A., initially, and subsequently
with the Australian Wound Management Association
(AWMA).
JOINING FORCES THROUGH JOINT
INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES
The number of International Partners has increased
to 11, and the initial collaborations with AAWC and
AWMA have led to publication of the “Managing
Wounds as a Team” document, which is presented on
page 99. We are proud to announce that, together, these
three major international associations have designed and
published a joint guidance document on wound care.
Furthermore, as a result of these rewarding collaborations,
a recent invitation has been extended by the
AAWC Board for EWMA to appoint a member for
the AAWC Board for 2014-2015, a position that will
be held by the EWMA Immediate Past President Jan
Apelqvist.
INNOVATION, KNOW-HOW,
AND TECHNOLOGY IN WOUND CARE
Innovation, Know-how, and Technology in Wound Care is
theme for the EWMA-GNEAUPP 2014 Madrid conference
theme. Taking place 14-16 May, the conference
will explore these topics as well as other ongo-ing
EWMA activities and projects.
The EWMA Home Care Wound Care guidance
document will also be launched at the conference. This
document has been developed in collaboration with
HomeCare Europe (www.homecareeurope.org), a new
European partner of EWMA. For more details about
this document, see page 96.
The eHealth symposium, which was a newcomer at the
EWMA 2013 conference, will run again this year. It
is being organised in collaboration with the European
Health Telematics Association (EHTEL, www.ehtel.
org). EHTEL plays a pivotal role as the focal point of
eHealth in Europe, and we look forward to EHTEL’s
contribution in developing the EWMA eHealth symposium
this year and for the EWMA 2015 London
conference, at which an extension of the collaboration
is already being planned.
We look forward to seeing many of you in Madrid and
wish you an enjoyable Spring 2014.
Yours sincerely,
Sue Bale, Editor of the EWMA Journal
Salla Seppänen, EWMA President
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EWMA Journal 2014 vol 14 no 1