On November 7-9 2019, the annual EBMA conference took place at the University’s Didactic Center in Łódź, Poland, in collaboration with the Association of Medical Schools in Europe. The conference was attended by nearly 200 rectors, deans and medical educators from 34 countries around the world, including as far away as Brazil, Iran, Thailand and Kazakhstan. The conference was prepared with particular emphasis on minimizing the conference’s negative impact on the natural environment.
During the conference there were 38 sessions dedicated to diverse subjects on assessment, i.e. the creation of modern curricula, programmatic assessment and interprofessional education. Professor Stephanie Marshall presented a key note speech in leadership in education, and Professor Martin Fischer talked about the assessment of clinical reasoning. The conference ended with a lecture by Dr Janusz Janczukowicz “Where did we come from? Who we are? Where are we going?,” summarizing the current situation of medical education in the world and presenting the directions of its further development associated with global challenges, which is best summarized in the concept of ‘One Health’ – ‘human, animal and ecosystem health’. The lecture was prepared and presented in accordance with current trends in using visual art to teach self-reflection. During both days attendees presented their current work and developments in assessment in medical education, which was very inspiring and gave many people new insights.
A special role in the conference was played by a group of Polish and English-speaking students of the university and students invited from other centers who formed the Student Task Force (STF). Thanks to their hard work and commitment the organization of all conference events was really excellent.
The conference was prepared with particular emphasis on minimizing the conference’s negative impact on the natural environment. The University Promotion Office provided ecological reusable cups for drinks, all prints were limited to the necessary minimum and replaced by electronic documents, and conference participants were more than satisfied with 100% vegan catering, which at the same time ensured all the dietary needs of the participants. The meeting was honored by the performance of the Choir of the Medical University of Łódź, and the meeting ended with the planting of the Medical Education Tree at the CKD.