Dear Members,
I am particularly proud and honored to have been elected President of the European Society for Pediatric Hematology and Immunology for the period 2007-2009, and I would like to express my gratitude to each member of the Society for this privilege. At this time I wish to thank our current President, Sophie Aronis, for all the energetic work she put forth during her presidential term. I also wish to thank Laszlo Marodi, past-President, for his support and optimism even in the critical periods of our societies life, and Marietta Xanthou for her outstanding contributions to our society. I also wish to acknowledge Miklos Garami, Rodney Rivers, and Janos Sumegi who have worked tirelessly for the ESPHI, and I give special thanks to Sylvia von Mackensen who has provided the board members with many constructive and dynamic ideas. Several of these outstanding members will continue on the ESPHI board, but I am certain that even those who are leaving the board today will continue to provide their loyalty and support to our society.

Each biannual ESPHI Congress has demonstrated growth in attendance and has enjoyed a high quality scientific program. The Athens Congress, a beautiful meeting in every aspect, has brought together European pediatric haematologists and immunologists in an exemplary way, thanks to Sophie Aronis and her team. All are to be sincerely complimented for this great success.

In her presidential letter, Sophie Aronis wrote:  “… as the new president, I have the difficult task to maintain and improve the present status of ESPHI. To achieve this I have to put forward approachable targets… . Of course, after two years, targets could not change, and as the new President of our Society, I will have the very difficult task to maintain and improve the great work realized by the last board. Thus, I would like to focus during the next two years on a few points finally aiming at expanding our Society.”

• EDUCATION
It is absolutely essential to structure high level educational activities. An Educational Committee must be nominated to promote, develop, and support the educational activities. The first step can be to organize, with the full support of the board, short meetings in different European countries with the help of one or more ESPHI members in each country. This project would allow our society to increase the number of members as well as scientific contacts.

• MEMBERSHIP
The strength of a society can be measure by the quality and the quantity of its members. Thus, one major way to further strengthen the ESPHI is to increase the membership. A goal has been set to increase our membership by one-third per year over the next two years. Accomplishing such a goal can occur if even one-third of our members recruit one new member ach year for the next two years. The majority of the ESPHI members also belong to their own National Society; thus the target must be ESPHI as the best meeting place of all National Societies. Clearly, this is a very ambitious project, and only possible with the dedication of all members. In addition to organizing one of Europe’s premier scientific meetings, ESPHI membership should convey other particular advantages. For instances, members might be eligible for funds to support academic and research projects. We should work toward a funding strategy and initiate efforts to obtain long-term funding (e.g., from the European Commission).

• OPENING OF CONTACTS AND BUILDING COOPERATION WITH OTHER RELATED SOCIETIES
It is essential to exchange the most up-to-date information with related societies. Holding cooperative symposia and workshops is an option to meet this objective. We have experienced this type of cooperation under the guidance of Laszlo Marodi and Sophie Aronis who have initiated contacts with related scientific societies. In the next future we should encourage joint ventures to reinforce all educational activities and solicit interest toward our society.

• WORKING GROUPS
Working groups should be the primary mechanism for developing ESPHI qualifications and guidelines. We must reinforce the working groups already operating and promote the initiation of new ones. A working group may be initiated by an individual or group of individuals with the approval of the board. 

• PARTNERSHIP WITH PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES
Partnerships between academic institutions and pharmaceutical industries can foster progress of the society. Such collaboration must be done with respect for each other and should include basic science via grants and awards sponsored by the industry, and related ethical matter (e.g. to clinical investigation, authorship and disclosure of interest).

• WEBSITE
The ESPHI website should be a central and valuable contact point for European pediatric hematologists and immunologists and scientists involved in this field. Improved contacts between experienced centers and other centers will be of extreme importance in order to make more homogeneous the proficiency within pediatric hematology and to further develop the structure of the working groups.


To realize these aims, collaboration between pediatric hematologists and immunologists in Europe is necessary. I am confident that the new board and the Educational Committee of ESPHI, a liaison board of previous board members and active membership, will be able to reach these goals.
I would like to encourage you to keep an open direct line of communication with our Secretary, Sylvia von Mackensen, regarding membership issues, future developments, and ideas concerning our Society.


Dear members, I hope I will be able to concretize these prospects not only with the help of the board but also with your active participation. Your qualified and stimulating participation in our Congress, your involvement in the different aspects of the life of the Society are crucial for strengthening ESPHI, disseminating and advancing pediatric hematology and immunology and giving young scientists the opportunity of deepening and widening their cultural and scientific preparation.

I encourage all ESPHI members to join the board in turning our challenges into opportunities for new successes.

With my best wishes

Antonio Del Vecchio
President of ESPHI