Abstract
There are eight of us and we are all working in the field of gastroenterology. It would be almost natural to call us G8, but this acronym was already taken by the Group of Eight, which is the forum for the governments of leading industrialised countries. Whether we will have a similar powerful impact on the European milieu of gastroenterologists – that we do not know yet. However, we hope that our actions focusing on young clinical fellows and junior basic scientists, supported by UEG, will help develop and shape their careers, gain expertise in the domain and create a vast network of collaborations and simply friendships.
It all started in 2013, when the National Societies Committee appointed me as a Young Member of this well-esteemed body within the UEG structure. Step by step, other candidates for this position joined me to form the assembly later called the “Young Talent Group” and hence the work began. An enormous support was provided from the members of UEG and the UEG Secretariat, for whom actions addressed at junior clinicians and basic scientists is one of the priority tasks for the future.
Up to this date, UEG has been actively focusing and promoting actions oriented towards young gastroenterologists at various stages of their career. Young Investigators Meetings, Prague Summer Schools, Basic Science Courses, to name just a few, attract young talents from all corners of the world and give them excellent opportunities not only to gain a better understanding of the field, but also teach practical skills, related to both, clinical and scientific work. There is also an important social aspect for these events and it is not an overstatement to say that several successful collaborations began in one of the pubs located in Vienna or Prague.
Now, the Young Talent Group aims further. Our first goal is to make UEG Week an attractive meeting place for young gastroenterologists. We focus already on this year’s congress in Vienna, where a Young GI Network Lounge will be operating. This will be a space where (finally) young attendees can meet and mingle, charge their devices and check on their mails, have a drink or lunch in an area dedicated just for them. We do not want to distract young people from the main scientific programme, which is – as each and every year – getting more and more attractive, but to create a junior gastroenterologist-friendly environment.
Another initiative of the Young Talent Group for UEG Week in Vienna is a mentoring program, which was again established based on the needs of the young clinicians and scientists. We will offer them a chance to spend one day of the congress with a mentor. Small groups of five to ten mentees will be formed based on their experience and area of expertise. These groups will be guided through the scientific program of the day by senior gastroenterologists. This exciting activity will also include a visit to a poster session and mingling with other experts in the field. There are no limits to the plans crafted by your mentors!
Finally, a reception allowing for informal networking among the young attendees, called “Let’s meet” will be held in “Wolke 19”, a venue close to the congress center, with a great view over Vienna and the Danube river. Young congress delegates, as well as mentors and UEG committee members are invited to participate and mingle; light drinks and snacks will be served and lounge music will be played for the good atmosphere. A right start and excellent occasion for networking just before the scientific program of the congress begins. We hope you will enjoy it!
If you wish to participate in our attractions for young gastroenterologists at the UEG Week Vienna 2014, please follow the UEG newsletters and special announcements. We look forward to your feedback on our initiatives, so that we can make them even better in the following years. And if you think you have good ideas focusing on junior clinicians and basic scientists in the field of gastroenterology and you would like to develop them, do join us at Young Talent Group. A new call for applications is coming up soon.
Get to know the members of the Young Talent Group visit:
http://www.ueg.eu/about-ueg/structure/boards-committees/young-talent-group/
Find out more about Young GI Network activities during UEG Week Vienna 2014: