European Geriatric Medicine Society (EUGMS)

In 1999 a group of geriatricians met to promote the concept of a society whose aim would be to to develop geriatric medicine in all of the European Union countries and encourage the provision of geriatric medical services to all older EU citizens. It would promote education, continuing professional development and high quality evidence-based geriatric medicine.

As a result Prof. S. Duursma of the Netherlands facilitated a meeting in Paris, which resulted in the establishment of a working group of representatives of nine European States. The working group developed the concept further and the European Union Geriatric Medicine Society was founded in June 2000. EUGMS was formally launched at its first major congress in Paris in August 2001 and by September 2001 it was registered in Brussels, its byelaws published and internal rules drafted. The first President was Prof Brian Williams (Scotland).

The Full Board includes physician representatives from all of the EU states, and the European Economic Area (Norway, Switzerland and Iceland).The EUGMS has expanded with the enlargement of the EU to include new countries and geriatricians in these states are contributing to the society and promoting the delivery of high quality evidence based geriatric medicine to their ageing populations.Each nation has one vote and one representative. If a nation has more than one society for geriatric medicine the geriatricians of that county agree on a single representative to the Full Board. The Full Board has representatives from the UEMS Geriatric Medicine Section and the IAGG(ER) Clinical Section. Those countries that are applicants for EU membership are also invited to send an observer to EUGMS Full Board meetings. The Executive Board comprises the president, president elect, past president, two general secretaries, two treasurers and the academic director. The EUGMS has an academic board and an External Scientific Advisory Committee. The boards meet twice annually.

Organisation

Every physician who is a member of a national society is a member of the EUGMS (joining member). Other joining members include physicians who are specialists in geriatric medicine but not necessarily members of national societies or, indeed, working in a EU country.

The EUGMS has close links with a variety of networks in Europe including the UEMS Geriatric Medicine, IAGG and the European Academy for Medicine and Ageing (EAMA). They hold an observer status on the Full Board in order to promote mutual collaboration, understand complementarity of roles, and avoid unproductive competition and limiting waste of scarce resources. EUGMS fosters good relationships with other political and professional organisations dealing with health-related problems in older people within and outside Europe. The EUGMS and AGS maintain a close and fruitful relationship.