Update from the NRS board - Treasurer

Dear members of the NRS,

In 2021 all core activities of the NRS will be organized, which will be a mixture of digital, face-to-face and hybrid meetings. We will start in March with a new activity, the NRS pubquiz. In April we will organize the new scientific seminars (webinar). This will be followed by the Dutch Lung Congress  in June, that builds on the success of  the former ‘Longdagen”, the national lung course in September/October, experimental models symposium in October and the YIS in November, and NPL activities. Please visit our website for an update on our busy agenda. This is very good news, because this enables lung researchers, healthcare professionals and other stakeholders in the inspiring lung field to meet again, exchange knowledge and network on a more regular base during the covid-19 pandemic, which forced us to restrict social contacts and activities. In 2020 the “longdagen” symposium had to be cancelled at the very last minute and also other core activities, including the national lung course and the experimental models symposium were called off. We were still hoping by postponing the activities that face-to face meetings would be possible in the end of 2020 in vain. However, the COVID pandemic resulted in strong collaborations of the NRS with sister societies and 2020 was a successful year for the NPL program P4O2.  We learned a lot on organizing digital meetings in a professional way when making arrangements for the young investigator symposium (YIS).  Thanks to the major efforts of the young investigators and professional help the digital YIS conference was a success. This knowledge will be used during the first half of 2021 for the organization of hybrid and digital meetings. With improved vaccination coverage of the population we anticipate that activities will be shifted to face-to-face meetings in the second half of 2021. 

It is a pleasure and very inspiring to be board member and treasurer of the NRS for the last 6 years. For the treasurer 2020 was a challenging year, because reduced NRS activities in 2020, due to the covid-19 pandemic, also limited exposure for our sponsors and resulted in less value for money for our members and, therefore, a potential reduction in income, despite significant expenses. I am grateful to our members and sponsors, which we proudly present on our web page, for their confidence in our vivid society, by continuing the constructive collaboration and financial support. Because of this the NRS continues to be a financially sound society and enables the NRS to execute its mission by stimulating basic, translational and clinical scientific research which is urgently needed to treat patients suffering from a lung disease.

With kind regards,

Gerry Wagenaar – Treasurer NRS