About us
THE UNION OF MIDDLE-EASTERN AND MEDITERRANEAN PEDIATRIC SOCIETIES
This Union has been established (de facto) in 1960 when the Egyptian Pediatric Society took the initiative and organized the 1st Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean Pediatric Congress in Cairo (Egypt). The co-sponsor of the Union, the Turkish National Pediatric Society followed and organized the 2nd Pediatric Congress of the Union in 1961 in Ankara (Turkey).
In 1963, the Lebanese Pediatric Society organized the 3rd Pediatric Congress of the Union in Beirut (Lebanon), and in 1964 the Hellenic Pediatric Society followed and organized the 4th Pediatric Congress in Athens (Greece).
In 1966 the 5th Pediatric Congress of the Union was organized by the Jordan Pediatric Society in Jerusalem (Jordan); and it is during this 5th Congress that the Union of Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean Pediatric Societies was officially (de juro) established, by the Pediatric Societies of: Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, Iran and Syria; and the first official statutes of the Union were voted in Jerusalem.
After its establishment officially in 1966, the Union grew in size and admitted more Pediatric Societies, namely those of Iraq, Kuwait, Cyprus, Spain, Tunisia, Algeria, France, Sudan, Morocco, Italy, UAE, Libya and Bahrain. Some years later, the following National Pediatric Societies joined the Union: Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Slovenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Albania; and recently Mauritania; and as it stands now, the Union includes (27) twenty seven Pediatric Societies representing twenty seven different countries in Asia, Africa and Europe.
The functions of the Union, as stipulated in Article (5) of the Statutes of the Union are:
1. To organize every year a Middle-Eastern Mediterranean Pediatric Congress to which the Union attaches the highest importance – except every third year when the International Congress is held.
2. To organize, in addition to the above Congress, less extended Conferences and contacts among the several member Pediatric Societies, such contacts to be in the form of Conventions, Seminars, Pediatric Days and Meetings of all kinds, tending to further post-graduate studies in the field of Pediatric, carrying out of pediatric research particularly in respect of Mediterranean nosology, medico-social care in the sector of child welfare and in general to promote cooperation among pediatricians in the countries participating in the Union.
3. To cooperate as much as possible particularly with IPA, and also with WHO and UNICEF for the purpose of boosting child welfare in the region and in the World as a whole.
It is hoped that Pediatric Societies in the Union who have not had a chance to organize a Congress, will do so.
Prof. Theodore THOMAIDIS
General Secretary (1987-2008)
UMEMPS UPDATES
In the forties all countries were under the auspices of the IPA without any specific regional label until 1948 when a group of neighboring countries in the Middle East started to join in an association without any official status.
Several friendly gatherings took place in, Greece, Ankara, and Athens and in Beirut in 1963 in the presence of Professors Fanconi of Switzerland and Le Long from France, representing the IPA.
The status of UMEMPS (UNION OF MIDDLE EAST AND MEDITERRANEAN PEDIATRIC SOCIETIES) was officially accepted by the IPA in 1966 .
The professor Sophocles HADJIDAKIS from Greece, who assiduously worked for it, was elected as secretary general with a reduced committee composed of Ihsan Dogramachi (Turkey) Hassan Pharaon (Jordan) Ernest Majdalani and others.
Official congresses took place later.
The 1st legally held congress of UMEMPS was held in Jerusalem in September 1966 with great success. The countries who took part were:
Greece, Turkey. Jordan,, Lebanon . Egypt. Syria. Italy, France Spain, Morocco. Tunisia, Lybya, Algeria, Irak, Iran.
In the following years other societies joined: Emirates, Slovenia, Cyprus, Yemen, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Kuwait, Bosnia Herzegovina, Albania, Croatia and lately Mauritania.
After the death of professor Hadjidakis in 1980 Professor Theodore Thomaidis (Greece) was elected until he resigned in Tunis 2008 and was replaced by Professor Enver Hassanoglou (Turkey), Dr.Hassan Pharaon served as treasurer from 1980 till 1996, then he turned the panel to Dr Paul Haddad (Lebanon), then Prof Robert Sacy took over in 2005.
The standing committee is composed of:
President (The president of the congress), Vice president (President of the preceding congress), Secretary General
Treasurer and five members, who may renew their mandate only once,. The secretary general and the treasurer may renew several times.
It was agreed to hold a yearly meeting except the year of the IPA congress which takes place every three years. This amounts to two consecutive UMEMPS meetings and one IPA.
Then the congresses were held in the following countries, some more than once: Athens, Ankara, Marseille, Palermo, Nice, Izmir, Rabat, Algiers, Beirut, Cairo, Barcelona , Damascus, Abu Dhabi, Alicante, Tunis, Porto Rose, Amman, Teheran, Baghdad Khartoum, and Kuwait.
The 31st meeting was in Tunis, the 32nd will take place in Croatia in 2009.
Professor Paul HADDAD.
Past-Treasurer UMEMPS
Dr Hassan Pharaon, one of oldest UMEMPS member from Jordan, former treasurer of UMEMPS has sent us a detailed list of past congresses of UMEMPS since the foundation of our Union. We thank him for this valuable contribution and hope other members of UMEMPS will do the same to make this site more attractive.
Thank you Dr Pharaon on behalf of UMEMPS.
FRIENDLY CONGRESSES:
Cairo 1960
Ankara 1961
IPA 1962
Beirut 1963
Athens 1964.
OFFICIAL CONGRESSES:
IPA 1965
Jerusalem 1966
No Congress due to 6 days war 1967
IPA 1968
Athens 1969
Téhéran 1970
IPA 1971
Barcelona 1972
Ankara 1973
IPA 1974
Bagdad 1975
Khartoum 1976
IPA 1977
Marseille 1978
No congress 1979
IPA 1980
Tunis 1981
Kuweit 1982
No congress 1983
No congress 1984
IPA 1985
Morocco 1986
Palermo 1987
Damascus 1988
IPA 1989
Athens 1990
Algier 1991
IPA 1992
No congress 1993
Abu- Dhabi 1994
IPA 1995
Nicosia 1996
Nice 1997
IPA 1998
Beirut 1999