Venue: Hotel Mons (Address: Pot za Brdom 55, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia)
Phone: +386 1 420-27-11, Fax: +386 1 420-27-08 e-mail: info@hotel.mons.si http://www.hotel.mons.si

Chairman of Organizing Committee: Prof.Dr. Ivan Rektor; e-mail address: irektor@med.muni.cz

Symposium Organiser: TA-Service, Mgr. Ivana Tarabová

Hlinky 48, 603 00 Brno, Czech Republic

Tel./Fax: +420 543 211 134

Further information under: www.ta-service.cz/danube and tarabova@traveller.cz

3.2 The 39^th International Danube Neurology Symposium in conjunction with the

1^st International Congress on ADHD: from childhood to adult disease

Venue: Congress Center of Würzburg, Germany Time: June 3-7, 2007

For further information, please contact the Organizer: Prof. Dr. Peter Riederer

e-mail address: peter.riederer@mail.uni-wuerzburg.de

Phone: +49-931-201-77200, Fax: +49-931-201-77220

3.3 Applicants for the International Danube Neurology Symposium in 2008, 2009 and 2010

Present applicants for the future International Danube Neurology Symposia are: 1) Bucuresti, Romania 2) Linz, Austria and 3) Zagreb, Croatia.

The decision about final applicants will be at the Curatorium Meeting of the IDS in Ljubljana, Slovenia (5-8^th October, 2005).

3.4 Danube Neurology Teaching Course on Epilepsy, Migraine and Neurosonology

Venue: To be held in Kazimierz, Poland Time: May 2006.

Main topics: Epilepsy, Migraine and Neurosonology

Chairman of Organizing Committee: Prof. Z. Stelmasiak e-mail: neurolog@asklepios.am.lublin.pl

4. Present and Future Activities of the International Danube Neurology Association

• The Danube Neurology Association fosters and coordinates fellowship programs for young neurologists from Danube Countries

• Coordination of future Danube Neurology Symposia

• The Danube Neurology Neurology Newsletter is posted to more than 600 surface addresses, and the electronic version is available free of charge on Internet as well;

• We also consider as our task to help with the activity of the EFNS in the Danube-countries.

5. WFN – Future Tasks and Obligations (compiled by: Franz Gerstenbrand, Vienna, Austria)

Neurology in West Europe using most modern technology and high advanced biochemistry and molecular genetics has an immense development.

In human brain structural and functional disturbances can be discovered. Great advances were possible in the treatment of stroke, dementia, epilepsy and degenerative diseases of the nervous system. The second leg in Neurology, the field of Neuro-Rehabilitation is beginning to be spread out, specialized centers are continously built up, thus reducing disability and chronic acute damage to the brain and spinal cord. The problem however is, that all these progresses in diagnostic and treatment are very expensive. Parallel with the great progress, Neurology lost influence and responsibility for pain, traumatic brain and spinal cord injury, vascular disorders including stroke and therapy in neurologic conditions invertible spine disturbances.

A crucial point is that only a minor part of human society is participating on the progress in Neurology and the extraordinary results are only reaching a small part of the world. There is no neurology

in most of the black Africa and Central Asia Regions; the field of Neurology is not well-organized and only partly equipped neurological centers are existing in South East Asia, some regions of East Europe, in the Middle East countries and in Latin America. To be only a consultant in Neurology provides great limits in the best care for patients. Unfortunately most neurological patients are treated poorly by physicians without specialized knowledge of the nervous system. There are no plans available for the organization of sufficient health system or long-lasting treatment programs for Neurology. In addition, a diminution of neurological service can be found in East Europe, North and South Africa and Latin America.

World-wide no demand exists that every patient with a disease of the nervous system should have the basic human right to be diagnosed and receive thorough treatment in a specialized neurological department and to run a neuro-rehabilitation in specialized neurological centers. However sometimes patients are satisfied to get treatment and care in a more or less organized hospital. This situation bothered financially weak patients in western countries too. To refuse the treatment of aged people or chronic neurological condition in some European countries has to be called an unethical decision.

The World Federation of Neurology needs to centralize and adapt his program to black Africa, South East Asia and in other parts of the world, with the aim to assist the building up of national institutions and societies for Neurology. Support is necessary in information for neurology for the local health care system and to enthusiast young medical doctors to become a specialist in neurology. Teaching courses should be organized as well as neurological days during national medical congresses and meetings. Bedside teaching could be organized by visiting professors. To send medical books and periodicals for the training of neurologists is only a first step, but it is not a substitute for better diagnostic programs and successful treatment. A cooperation with the WHO and NGO’s is helpful. An important step would be to find the local needs and to resolve them.

The World Federation of Neurology as the responsible institution has to start new actions for this obligations as a real step to a modern care in Neurology. A group of experienced neurologists should support and coordinate this program. A cooperation with the WHO would be helpful, but with the knowledge, that this governmental organization has lack of money and in some of the developing countries WHO has not the right resonance because of ignoring local problems.

The incoming president must face these urgent obligations and he or she must use as much energy as to attend regional meetings and to prepare for a world congress.

6. Harmonization of PhD-Programs in Medicine and Health Sciences

The curriculum proposal for university interdisciplinary PhD-program in neuroscience has been worked under the coordination of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Zagreb with the cooperation of a great number of European Committees on the harmonization of PhD-Programs in Medicine and Health Sciences. The additional proposal by the Department of Neurology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical and Pharmaceutical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Szeged is the following:

The PhD-thesis should be based on original in extenso publications in internationally recognized scientific medical journals. It is important, that the minimal requirement for the PhD-thesis application in neuroscience should be the equivalent of at least three in extenso papers published in internationally recognized journals.

According to the present practice in the PhD-Programs in Medicine and Health Sciences in Szeged, the median impact

in neurology:	1.4, therefore 2.5x1.4=3.5
in psychiatry:	1.3, therefore 2.5x1.3=3.25
in neurobiology:	1.8, therefore 2.5x1.8=4.5

cumulative impact factor is necessary for the application of a PhD-thesis.

7. Finances of the International Danube Neurology Association

According to previous decision of the Danube Curatorium Meeting, the financial sources of the International Danube Neurology Association from all kinds of symposia, conferences, meetings or courses under the roof and auspices of our organization, are as follows: The financial surplus of all meetings should be divided 70:30 between the Local Organizers and the permanent International Danube Neurology Symposium Head Office in Szeged, Hungary or the amount of min. EUR 2,500 is to be transferred to the Head Office according to our invoice.

8. Web-site of the International Danube Neurology Association

The home-page of the International Danube Neurology Association consists of:

• the contents of all Newsletter (Nr.1-10)
• Managing and Executive Board Members of Danube Neurology Association
• Past and future Symposia, Conferences, Meetings
• Other further important information.

Danube Association web-site:

http://www.szote.u-szeged.hu/neur/danube