From the Editor: December 2021

Welcome to the last edition of WONCA News 2021.

This issue marks the beginning of a new phase for WONCA with the appointment of Dr Anna Stavdal as President of our organisation. 

In her first column as WONCA President, Dr Anna Stavdal shares some reflections on the WONCA World Conference and WONCA Council meeting (both held virtually), her appointment as President, as well as the plans and goals for our organisation in this new phase.

WONCA News December also welcomes new members to the WONCA Executive Committee: WONCA President-Elect, Associate Professor Karen Flegg (Australia), President of WONCA Africa, Dr Dan Abubakar (Nigeria), President of WONCA Asia Pacific, Associate Professor Mohammad Husni Jamal (Malaysia), President of WONCA East Mediterranean, Professor Taghreed Farahat (Egypt), President of WONCA North America, Dr Jeff Markuns (USA), President of WONCA South Asia, Dr Tariq Aziz, our new Young Doctors Representative, Dr Sankha Randenikumara, and our Executive Members at Large: Dr María Pilar Astier-Peña, Prof Shabir Moosa and Prof Val Wass.

Our best wishes and every success for all!

In this edition, we thank all those who were part of our virtual WONCA World Conference. Sessions will be available on-demand shortly, so please use your credentials to access the full content. This issue also contains information on our upcoming WONCA Conferences worldwide: the WONCA Europe Conference in London 2022, the WONCA World Rural Health Conference 2022 in Limerick, Ireland, and the WONCA World Conference 2023 in Sydney, Australia. Click on the banners for more information. 

Discover in this edition the latest news of our Working Parties and Special Interest Groups such as the WONCA WP on eHealth Webinar Series, the WONCA – Besrour Early Primary Care Researcher Prizes, the participation of the WONCA SIG in Family Violence on the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence 2021 campaign, and the latest entry of "Ageing Lines" from our WONCA Special Interest Group on Ageing and Health.

WONCA News December is also dedicated to Universal Health Coverage Day. WONCA joined this global movement to promote the delivery of quality health services to everyone, everywhere. UHC Day was also an opportune moment to bring the “30by2030”-campaign back into the spotlight. Read more about this campaign here.  

Last but not least, meet our Featured Doctor for this month, Dr Noor Harzana from Malaysia, WONCA World Rising Star Award winner 2021. 

To close this edition, do not miss out on the most recent announcements and updates from the WONCA Family.

I hope you enjoy this issue, and please remember that you can drop me a line (or an article!) at [email protected].

Happy reading, and stay safe!