Dear EPUAP members and partners,

The EPUAP is monitoring the development of the corona virus/COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on the healthcare systems and professionals in Europe and around the world and stands by all healthcare workers during this crisis.

We want to do our best and continue with all EPUAP activities as planned, however, the current situation does not allow us to hold any physical events. Therefore, we are bringing some news related to the EPUAP Annual Meeting 2021 originally planned for Prague, Czech Republic.

On behalf of the EPUAP Executive Board, we would like to inform you that it was decided to:

• Reschedule our onsite EPUAP Annual Meeting in Prague from 2021 to 14 – 16 September 2022
• Hold an EPUAP Virtual Meeting 18 – 19 October 2021 with an updated scientific programme reflecting the current situation
• Reschedule EPUAP Annual Meeting in Leeds from 2022 to 2023

Registrations for the EPUAP Annual Meeting 2021 will be automatically transferred to the 2022 edition.

We hope for your understanding as it is very difficult to make any long-term plans and considering the safety and health of our EPUAP delegates, speakers and exhibitors, we have made a decision that will allow us to plan for a future onsite conference in Prague in 2022.

We consider our responsibility to offer a platform for knowledge sharing and education on pressure ulcers in the context of COVID-19 pandemic and have decided to organize a 2-day virtual event. The EPUAP Virtual Meeting 2021 will include many of the key sessions planned in the existing scientific programme for 2021 and will focus on the lessons learned during COVID-19 pandemic in the field of prevention and treatment. The virtual event will offer a valuable source of education, networking and experience sharing among delegates, speakers, and industry.

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We also understand that in the current context, where in many cases there is a lack of resources especially in ICU units, preventing pressure ulcers might be a challenge. For this reason, we have created the COVID-19 and Pressure Ulcers Prevention Forum where clinicians can share their experiences and good practices, ask questions to EPUAP trustees and help each other in this difficult time. You can access the platform here: https://zurl.co/UQPF

Please keep in mind that our EPUAP trustees are also working in hospitals and other care facilities and we will do our best to answer your questions in the shortest possible time.

Thank you very much for your understanding and we are looking forward to seeing all our EPUAP family in the future!

Kind regards

Prof. dr. Dimitri Beeckman
Ghent University (Belgium) and Örebro University (Sweden)
President, European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel