Page 39 - ANZCP Gazette-August-Booklet

COVID-19 FORUM –
VIRTUAL MEETING MAY 2020
Mark Ambrose CCP, FANZCP
In May of this year, the ANZCP held a live online forum to discuss the COVID-19 experiences of perfusion units within the Australian and New Zealand region. This allowed approximately 45–50 individuals scattered throughout Australia and New Zealand the opportunity to ‘virtually’ meet and discuss various policies and strategies that departments have employed in managing COVID-19 patients.
The COVID-19 virus challenges many of the normal policies and procedures used for the standard cardiac patient. These challenges relate primarily to the prevention of virus transmission to the cardiac team and ancillary staff, handling of equipment and disposables and transportation of the patient within the hospital.
At the time of this online forum very few COVID-19 positive patients had been placed on ECMO in Australia or New Zealand, however a number of suspected COVID-19 patients requiring cardiac surgery and ECMO had been treated emergently. These experiences were discussed, particularly with respect to newly implemented and constantly evolving policies and procedures. The opportunity to discuss the experiences from a number of centers allowed attendees to learn which aspects of the care of the COVID-19 cardiac patient were the most challenging and hopefully anticipate and avoid the pitfalls.
With conferences and large departmental meetings currently unavailable to healthcare teams, alternative means of meeting must be utilized. The ANZCP COVID-19 meeting was conducted using Zoom as the platform. Attendees were able to join the meeting and participate without having to leave their home or workplace. Attendance levels have the potential to be greater for virtual meetings, as often several members of a single perfusion department may attend as they are prevented from attending due to having to stay behind to keep the unit running.
With the COVID-19 virus making its effect felt on interstate and international travel, the need for online meetings and conferences may well become the new normal in the immediate future. It is definitely a technology medium that colleges such as the ANZCP will be required to harness moving forward.
I found the COVID-19 online forum extremely valuable, hearing of the processes and procedures that different institutions have formulated to meet the challenges posed by COVID-19. I would support such forums in the future. If we are able to effectively harness appropriate online platforms, virtual meetings and conferences such as this year’s ANZCP ASM have the potential to be very successful events.
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