Authors: David A Garcia
Publish Date: 2009/11/17
Volume: 29, Issue: 2, Pages: 147-147
Abstract
The 10th National Conference on Anticoagulant Therapy sponsored by the Anticoagulation Forum was held in San Diego CA on May 7–9 2009 The Anticoagulation Forum’s conference provided a unique opportunity to network and learn with professional colleagues with expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of thrombotic disorders The 3day conference included an outstanding roster of international expert speakers whose presentations are published in these proceedings As in the past members had an opportunity to present abstracts of original research and case reports Over 50 abstracts were presented and are reprinted in this supplementThe Anticoagulation Forum was founded in 1991 by Dr Jack Ansell in response to the need for a professional group to focus on the discipline of anticoagulation management and related therapies The AC Forum is a multidisciplinary nonprofit organization that works to improve the quality of care for patients taking antithrombotic medications The goals of the AC Forum are to provide education and networking opportunities for health care professionals to promote the clinical application of evidencebased practices to facilitate research aimed at improving health outcomes and to inform healthcare policy regulatory agencies and industry about best practicesThe AC Forum has been an advocate for improved anticoagulation care through the establishment of anticoagulation clinics the hosting of webbased education sessions and the development of clinical guidelines In addition the AC Forum has served the interest of patients taking anticoagulants by promoting increased availability of selfmonitoring and by advocating for appropriate reimbursement from thirdparty payers Many members of the AC Forum are actively engaged in clinical trials testing new and exciting antithrombotic drugs for the treatment of venous and arterial thromboembolism These new drugs may have a major impact on the traditional responsibilities of anticoagulation clinics as highlighted by presentations at this year’s conferenceThe AC Forum has also been an active supporter and partner in the development of a national certification program for providers who manage oral anticoagulation At this year’s meeting approximately 60 individuals sat for the examination delivered by the National Certification Board for Anticoagulation ProvidersThe Anticoagulation Forum wished to express its gratitude to the pharmaceutical and device manufacturers’ industry for their generous support of the meeting ARYx Therapeutics AstraZeneca Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals BristolMyers Squibb and Pfizer CSL Behring GlaxoSmithKline Inverness Medical Innovations ITC OrthoMcNeil Janssen Scientifc Affairs Philips Remote Cardiac Services Roche Diagnostics SanofiAventis and Tapestry Medical
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