The 20th edition of the European Society for Organ Transplantation’s (ESOT) congress was celebrated in-person and online last month at the MiCo Convention Centre in Milan.
The biennial ESOT Congress is the largest gathering of the transplant community in Europe bringing clinicians, surgeons, physicians, nurses, scientists, researchers and patients to review the latest developments in transplantation. The 20th edition was organized by AIM Group International.
The 4-day event registered 1.200 in-person participants plus 1.400 online attendees, with a broad international representation from 74 countries, including European but also overseas participants, for example, from China and the USA.
Safety was a major concern obviously. Some of the measures put in place included the Green Pass checking of every attendee, separated entry and exit flows, body temperature measurement at entrances, hand sanitising stations throughout the venue, floor signage to encourage 1m social distancing, automated IT procedures for registration, advanced medical support for those in need and all rooms set up to meet social distancing requirements.
In addition, the cleaning service of the entire congress centre areas was upgraded, internal air recirculation was eliminated, and all catering services were redesigned in compliance with the hygiene and health safety measures necessary to avoid risks of biological contamination.
All in-person attendees who required a COVID-19 test prior to returning to their country were also offered a swab test on-site for free at their own convenience. This service was provided by a Covid-19 test Mobile Station parked at the congress venue.