Minutes of the General Assembly

1. 1. AH presented a tribute to Jose Ramet, and a 30 second silence was heldto acknowledge his untimely death.
   2. The new logo for the EAP was shown. Any EAP members wishing to use the logo sould ensure this is the version used. High resolution copies are available as needed
   3. A summary of the IPA meeting in Panama was given. The EAP was voted as a full member of IPA. Furthermore AH was elected as a national representative on the Standing Committee.
   4. EPA/EAP relationships. AH reviewed the difficulties that had been encountered in moving towards amalgamation of the two societies. EPA has been very obstructive, and in particular has organized a Europaediatrics meeting some 2-3 weeks ahead of the EAPS meeting in 2020. There was considerable discussion, including about the value of IPA. The meeting affirmed its strong desire to work towards unification, and national delegates were encouraged to support this and to speak up about concerns they may have in the way that the process has been handled.
   5. The Statutes of the EAP are being rewritten. This is mostly so that the different roles (and rules) of the EAP and the Paediatric Section of the UEMS can be clarified, and also so that the organisation can be made more inclusive to countries not currently within the UEMS. Clarification of the UEMS work is important ahead of the planned unification of European societies.
   6. AH reported that a number of letters of support had been written to countries where paediatricians and patients were encountering political and similar problems. In particular letters to Cyprus (about the provision of primary care paediatrics) and to Ukraine (concerning the measles vaccination) were mentioned.
   7. The Porto Masterclass, to be held in September, was discussed. Nearly 600 abstracts have been received (a record number) and sponsorship was also high. AH thanked the Portuguese society for their support, and Paragon for the organisation. He encouraged all delegates to advertise and support the meeting. The Winter Meeting in Brussels will be heldon December 6^th/7^th, and next year’s Spring Meeting will be in Malta. The 2020 EAPS meeting will be in Barcelona.
   8. Elections for the Chair of the European Board of Paediatrics fall due this December. The chair of the Tertiary Council would be due in the Spring Meeting 2020. After discussion it was agreed that the term of office for the Chair of the Tertiary Council would be extended by 6 months to December 2020, and that the first term of office for the Secretary-General would be shortened to December 2022, so that future elections would all take place at the (better attended) Winter Meeting. 

2. Report of the Executive Director: AH presented a brief report from Stefano del Torso, who was unable to attend the meeting.
   1. Formal recognition of the national delegates (as needed by UEMS, involving a letter of support from the National Medical Association of that country) had been achieved in almost all cases – final support from the UK was awaited, and support from Iceland and Luxembourg was still outstanding.
   2. Work undertaken with LOW (lobby group in Bussels) was reviewed. Joint working has also taken place with the European Public Health Association (EPHA), Eurochild and other groups to promote issues of paediatric interest.
   3. Projects with MOCHA, Medinfo, and vaccination groups (especially the EU Joint Action on Vaccination project, and the coalition for vaccination) have been ongoing with good results. Data from the MOCHA project hwas reported elsewhere during the meeting.

During the discussion the forthcoming anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child was mentioned. This November marks the 30^th anniversary of that convention and it was agreed that it would be important to celebrate this – national delegates were urged to consider ways in which this could be achieved.

3. Finances: Arunas Valiulis (AV) presented the accounts for both the EAP and the Paediatric Section of UEMS. All the accounts and details of both income and expenditure are available on the website. Both funds are in broadly stable condition with a little over €200,000 in the UEMS account, and €360,000 in the EAP account. It was agreed that a clear policy on which expenses and income would be attributed to which account would be important, and this will be incorporated into the new statutes. The accounts had been reviewed by the national delegates of Ireland, Poland and Germany, and all three delegates gave their approval to the accounts as presented. 

4. Permanent councils, Young EAP. As the sessions had been held in plenary, no additional report to the GA was made. Minutes from each meeting are available on the website.

5. Multidisciplinary joint committees: Liesbeth Siderius (LS) spoke about the MJC in Rare Diseases. She is standing down as representative on that committee. AH thanked her for her hard work in this area for many years, and announced that Risto Lapatto (Finland) would take over as the delegate of the Paediatric Section. LS will continue on the group as an observer, representing the EAP. 

6. Elections for the Secretary-General: Elections for the vacant post of Secretary-General were held. Ann De Guchtnaere was the only candidate and gave a brief presentation. Elections were conducted by an electoral board including Martin White, Hans Juergen Dornbasch and Karin Geitmann. There were 21 countries present. Ann De Guchtnaere was elected by 20 votes to zero with one abstension. 

7. Request for EAP membership: There was a presentation from the Ukrainian Acute Paediatric Specialist Society who are requesting membership. The presentation was well received and EAP will formally respond shortly.

8. There was no other business.