Vasco da Gama

The Vasco da Gama Movement is the Network for Young and Future Family Doctors of the European Regional Branch of the World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA Europe).

Young and future Family Doctors are defined as those in training for Family Medicine and in the first five years after qualification as a family physician. 

For further information about the Vasco da Gama Movement, including up to date news and opportunities please visit their website.

Vasco da Gama Movement Pre-conference - 27th WONCA Europe Conference 2022

Wonca Europe will hold their annual conference from the Tuesday, 28 June to Friday, 1 July in London

The Vasco de gama pre conference will take place on the Monday, 27 and Tuesday, 28 of June 2022. The pre conference exchange link is now open and will close for applicants in on Sunday, 17 April.

Vasco da Gama Movement: Going Forward Together 

Join us for a VdGM Online Event on Wednesday April 13th, 1900 CET on wonder.me 

The event will focus on us as a community; sharing our ideas and experiences, and reflecting on who we are as a movement. As part of this we will hear from Harris Lygidakis, current WONCA CEO and previous VdGM President on his experience and views of VdGM - who we are, and potentially our role in family medicine.The whole event will take up to two hours, and after some words from Harris, the time is free for people to network with anyone present, listening, sharing.

Junior Researcher Award 2022

We're pleased to announce that the call for Junior Researcher Award is open. Apply with your research project, present your project during the WONCA Europe workshop in London and win outstanding prizes. 

This year not only winners and runners-up will be granted but also five young researchers whose projects are outstanding but who don't make it to the final. Don't hesitate, contact your National Delegate and become our next Junior Researcher Award Winner!

Check our website for all the information.

Med Mastery 

We would like to introduce Medmastery - an outstanding medical learning platform that became our donor and supported VdGM Fund and Junior Researcher Award with generous donations. Medmastery's courses include how to read ECGs, a chest X-ray, blood test, how to perform abdominal and neurological examinations and much more. With Medmastery you can deepen your knowledge about various medical conditions and diseases that every GP meets on a daily basis. 
Medmastery is providing Vascodagamians with a unique promotional offer that will allow you to subscribe to their online course at reduced pricing. 

To claim your discount use this 30% code: 30%_VDG_2022 (valid with all subscriptions) you can use the code by 31 August 2022.

Bursaries for 22nd Nordic Congress of General Practice - Stavanger, Norway 

The 22nd Nordic Congress of General Practice will take place in Stavanger, Norway from 21-23 June 2022. It is preceded by a preconference for GP trainees at Monday, 20 of June.

The conference will have a special focus on future possibilities and challenges in general practice. The Nordic Congress is an important meeting place for clinicians, researchers and administrators, young and experienced, with a shared interest in primary care.

The Nordic Congress represents a unique opportunity for discussions and exchange of ideas and research, and for promoting general practice perspectives. Over 350 abstracts have been submitted. 

The University of Stavanger is making a bursary available for NCGP 2022 in Stavanger. Up to five young doctors are given the following package:

• Registration fee (includes attendance in the scientific program, coffee/tea and lunch on the meeting days, as well as Welcome reception 21.06)
• Registration fee for pre-congress
• Fjord cruise 22.06
• Congress party 23.06
• Hotel
• Travel costs up to NOK 5000

The deadline for applications is Tuesday, 5 April. Winners will be announced on Wednesday 20 April

Application documents

The application has to be sent as a single PDF file to :oyvind.stople.sivertsen@tidsskriftet.no (only .PDF applications will be accepted). 

The application needs to contain the following information:

• a confirmation/declaration of the applicant being GP trainee
• a description of any social reason/inequities (ie being a single parent, having disabilities, being the only person in a household who receives income)
• a plan for how to share gained experience·    
• How do you plan to invest the results of this experience in your country (Professional benefits, Networking benefits, Personal benefits , International benefits, Cultural/social benefits, Other)     
• How will you benefit from attending the event?(Publication (article, editorial, etc), Implement learned messages on daily practice, share thoughts with colleagues, establish new projects, further development of established projects etc.)
• short summary of a personal profile, including volunteer activity and impressions on family medicine (engagement in the field)

Elections Open: President Elect and WONCA Europe Liaison

The VdGM Executive Board have two upcoming vacancies: President Elect and WONCA Europe Liaison. Elections will be held at the Council Meeting in June (final date to be confirmed). View the elections organisational policy (PDF, 182KB) (this outlines the process, eligibility critera and required documents). Applications should be sent to secretary@vdgm.eu by 21 May 2022.

For those interested in the position of President Elect, please read the role description(PDF, 636KB) or join for a chat over Zoom with current President Nick Mamo on 10th April 18.30 CET or 18th April at 20.00 CET (click for Zoom links).

For those interested in the position of WONCA Europe Liaison, Please read the role description or contact secretary@vdgm.eu to arrange a discussion with our current Liaison Sonia Tsukagoshi.