Conference report 2019 Kuching English

5th Annual Conference of Early Mobilization & Rehabilitation in the ICU
23 & 24 August 2019
Kuching Sarawak
Malaysia

CONFERENCE REPORT

The 5th Annual Conference of Early Mobilization & Rehabilitation in the ICU was held in Kuching, Malaysia on 23 and 24 August 2019. Kuching is located on the Borneo Island with biodiversity where Orangutan and Rafflesia flower are seen. More than 350 persons attended this conference at Borneo Convention Center.

The Local Organising Committee; Dr Peter Tan and Dr Leong Be Kim both from the Sarawak General Hospital in Kuching took the lead to organize this Conference.

Prof. Dale Needham, Chairman of the Early Mobilization Network Group, delivered his Keynote Lecture on “Society of Critical Care Medicine Guidelines for ICU Rehabilitation/ Mobility. Our overseas experts from the various multi-disciplinary profession were present to deliver their lecture covering various topics of Early Mobilization.

In conjunction with the Conference, two Pre-Conference Workshops were organized.  They were both held at the Borneo Convention Centre.  The workshop sessions are as follows:

  • Home Ventilator Management
  • Advanced Airway and Chest Secretions Management


The lectures from the Pre-Conference Workshops as well as the session from the Main Conference were indeed interesting and stimulating. Attendees found the lectures informative and useful for their practice. A trade exhibition area was also set up during the Conference.  Related devices were on display showcasing the importance of Early Mobilization and Rehabilitation.

 

This Conference programme included a segment of Free Paper Presentation. A total of 23 abstracts were received; 4 papers were selected for Best Oral Free Paper Presentation and 8 papers were selected for Best Poster Paper Presentation.  The Best Oral Paper was presented to Dr Iqbal Saboor Rahma, Department of Physiotherapy, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore and the Best Poster Paper was presented to Dr Anuprita Thakur, Department of Physiotherapy, DY Patil University, Maharashtra, India

 

Early Mobilization is still developing in Malaysia. There was great enthusiasm amongst the allied healthcare and physicians present during the Conference especially in the area of Early Mobilization. Many questions were raised on “How should one improve and collaborate with the multi professionalism with one another” and the other concern was to “How should one obtain more information about Early Mobilization due to lack of Understanding” Question and Answer sessions were very interactive between the delegates and the faculty members present. Positive reply from the delegates that they will spread the word of Early Mobilization to their colleagues and friends in Sarawak and the rest of the states in Malaysia.

 

A board meeting was held to plan and strategize the upcoming series of conferences after Kuching.

In conclusion, it was clearly understood that the way to understand and learn more about Early Mobilization was to attend more workshops and lectures held at Conferences. Discussions will lead to better common understanding learning techniques and also the diversification of culture which will vary from one country to another. Such exchange will definitely increase and exchange of knowledge amongst one another.