By Jerome Sullivan, PhD, RRT, FAARC

The ICRC celebrated its 25th anniversary during the Annual Business Meeting on Oct. 17, 2016, in San Antonio, TX. The meeting took place in conjunction with the largest respiratory care meeting in the world, the American Association for Respiratory Care’s (AARC) 62nd International Respiratory Convention & Exhibition.

ICRC members visit the Exhibit Hall in San Antonio during a break from the business meeting.

The ICRC meeting was attended by more than 130 governors, organizational representatives, international fellows, and delegations representing 26 countries. The Council met in a day-long session to consider action items, present annual reports, entertain special reports, and recognize international respiratory care clinical and educational award winners.

Early in the agenda was the recognition of Alberto Juan Lopez Bascope, MD, as the recipient of the Hector Leon Garza, MD, International Achievement Award. The Toshihiko Koga, MD, International Medal was awarded to Lisa Trujillo, DHSc, RRT. As part of the program our international fellows for 2016 presented reports to the Council on the status of respiratory care in their home countries. The fellows and their respective countries were: Marina Labor, MD, PhD, from Croatia; Julita V. Toledo, RMT, RTRP, MPA, from The Philippines; and Jingen Xai, MS, RT, from China.

ICRC governors show their support for the Colombia RT Association booth in the Exhibit Hall.

Special reports were presented on “Global Allergy Asthma Patient Platform: Best Practices to End Death & Suffering Due to Allergy and Asthma” and “Proposed New International Standards for Small-Bore RT & Oxygen Device and Accessory Connectors: Risk Identification and Potential Misconnections.”The presidents and executive directors of the Latin American Respiratory Therapy Certification Board, which represents 12 countries, the AARC, which represents more than 50,000 members, and the National Board for Respiratory Care all presented updates on their organizations.

Annual reports and developments in respiratory care education, credentialing, and clinical practice were presented by governors from the following countries: Mexico, Turkey, Japan, Colombia, U.S., Canada, Saudi Arabia, Italy, China, South Korea, The Philippines, Egypt, UAE, Taiwan, India, Argentina, and Costa Rica.

The meeting was adjourned, with plans to reconvene in conjunction with the AARC International Convention & Exhibition scheduled for Oct. 4-7, 2017, in Indianapolis, IN.