It is my great pleasure to welcome you to the ACP (American College of Physicians) Japan Chapter Annual Meeting 2015, which will be held at the Kyoto University Clock Tower Centennial Hall in Kyoto, Japan on May 30th and 31st.
The theme of the Meeting this year is “A paradigm shift in internal medicine: From diagnosis/treatment to Prevention”. Although Japan is one of the most leading countries in terms of medical care (diagnostic technology and treatment), preventive medicine seems far behind that in other developed countries. We are facing a skyrocketing increase in the very aged population and our future economic status looks obscure, which makes preventive strategy is getting more and more important, whereas the Japanese Society of Internal Medicine (JSIM) is specialty-oriented and we are not sure who should be in charge of making strategies and policies of preventive medicine. In the plenary session of the Meeting, we hope we can discuss deeply on this very important issue with the attendees and with the invited speakers who are representatives from ACP (US), JSIM and the Japan Primary Care Association.
Our meeting is made by volunteers from ACP Japan Chapters and does not seek support from industries, so it is the meeting of the clinicians, by the clinicians, and for the clinicians. We offer a lot of educating and rewarding sessions/lectures, a poster session with full of lively discussions.
We are very looking forward to seeing all of you in Kyoto in its best season.
Yugo Shibagaki, MD, FACP
Chair, ACP Japan Chapter Annual Meeting 2015