Dear Colleagues,

ALTEC-LATES (Associação Lusitana de Trauma e Emergência Cirúrgica or Lusitanian Association for Trauma and Emergency Surgery), with its headquarters in Coimbra, in the center region of Portugal – the heart of the ancient Lusitania –, from which it is the capital, is one of the independent groups in the field of trauma surgery education in Portugal, all represented in the Committee for Emergency Surgery Education of Ordem dos Médicos (CESE-OM), and an institucional member of the European Society for Trauma And Emergency Surgery (ESTES).

Although still young, founded in 2005, and small in terms of members (20 full members from different hospitals in the cities of Coimbra, Viseu, Aveiro, Faro, Funchal and Braga – 15 general and emergency surgeons, one emergency physician and four anesthesiologists –, by rule ATLS instructors), ALTEC has come to play an important role in the field of education in trauma and emergency surgery, not only in Portugal but also in other countries, particularly Brazil.

Since 1999, ALTEC-LATES members where responsible for TEAM courses for students, ATLS courses for doctors, MRMI courses for doctors and other stakeholders in disaster response, ETC for hospital trauma team members, DSTC, MUSEC and EASC courses for surgeons, DATC for anesthesiologists and DPNTC courses for operating room nurses, always with a strong international faculty.

Issues which relate to the lack of assurance of continuity of the surgical simulation laboratory of the Coimbra University Hospital, put at risk this year’s meeting, in its usual format. We have therefore to express our deep gratitude to our colleagues from Funchal, which, through the Health Service of the Autonomous Region of Madeira (SESARAM), volunteered to receive us, joining our meeting to its Iberian Week of Emergency.

So our 9th International Meeting of Trauma and Emergency Surgery (EITCE) will take place this year in Funchal, along with the 7th Iberian Week of Emergency, 18 November to 3 December and, as usual, in close collaboration with the Portuguese Society of Surgery and the CESE-OM.

The program, as in previous editions, will include most of the above courses and a workshop.

It will never be emphasized enough that the success of this meeting will largely depend on the cooperation that everyone can give to its disclosure. To everyone, right now, our thanks.

Carlos Mesquita

General & Emergency Surgeon at Coimbra University Hospital