Known since antiquity, tuberculosis, also referred to as ‘consumption’, due to the weight loss it resulted in, represents one of the most baneful air-transmitted infectious diseases, which is still dealt with worldwide. According to WHO, a total of 1.6 million people died from TB in 2021, which makes TB the 13th leading cause of death and the second leading infectious killer after COVID-19. Romania alone accounts for 23.2% of all 33148 cases reported by 29 of 30 EU/EEA countries. It is estimated that 25% of the world’s population has a latent form of TB and 10% of the latent infections progress to active diseases and, if left untreated, it kills half of those affected. Therefore, it is vitally important to diagnose TB as soon as possible, in order to improve the prognosis of those infected, minimize the further transmission and decrease the prevalence of the disease.

• What is a screening test? How does the testing for TB work?
• What are the reasons which contributed to the need for a screening programme for TB?
• What does the evolution of Romania’s TB screening campaign look like? What are the efforts that have been made in order to improve the TB status of the country?
• What are the obstacles the campaign comes across with and how are they being tackled?

Join this Roundtable in order to discover both the revolutionary and the evolutionary aspects of the TB screening campaign. Senior Lect. Beatrice Mahler, MD, PhD works at Carol Davila University of Medicine Bucharest, Pneumology Discipline, Cardio-Thoracic Department and she is a senior pneumologist at “Marius Nasta” Institute of Pneumology. She’s currently the manager of “Marius Nasta” Institute of Pneumology and she actively maintains the connection with the international medical community by participating in meetings conducted by WHO and by holding direct relations with ECDC. Since 2020, she is one of the communicators of the Ministry of Health on COVID-19 issues. During this roundtable, she will conduct an open discussion on the controversy of a screening approach of TB in terms of costs, efficiency and efficacy. Keeping in mind that the passive diagnosis has proven itself to be efficient in the last 20 years, the role of an active diagnosis is being questioned. Nevertheless, international health policies, which are strongly encouraged by the WHO, are in accordance with an active approach.

Alongside Senior Lect. Beatrice Mahler, MD, PhD we have Senior Lect. Stefan Dumitrache-Rujinski, MD, PhD who will further discuss the challenges of this already implemented screening programme, while also pushing the discussion towards possible future directions. He works as a senior pneumologist at “Marius Nasta” Institute of Pneumology in Bucharest. He is a member of several medical societies, an assistant professor at the ‘’Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest and actively participates in specialized courses in order to keep his knowledge up-to-date.

Sleep represents an active neurophysiological process in which both the mental and the physical activity are reduced, the consciousness is altered and the interaction with the surrounding environment is minimal. During sleep, most of the body’s systems are found in anabolic state, which enormously contributes to the restoration of the immune, nervous, skeletal and muscular systems. Sleep follows a certain pattern which is composed of repeating periods and has two major modes: REM and non-REM sleep. Dreams are thought to occur during the REM (rapid eye movement) period and they represent a manifestation of the subconscious mind, while also indicating a deep stage of sleep.

Having in mind these parameters which establish the efficiency of our sleep in terms of restoring our body’s functions, we need to pay attention to both the quantity and the quality of our sleep when it comes to practicing a disciplined sleep schedule.

• Do dreams conceal symbols that indicate an individual’s internal state?
• Is it possible that the manifestation of dreams is reliant on the quality and the stage of our sleep? 
• How are the motor and the sensory functions of our body involved during sleep?

Join this Roundtable to get your answers in an open discussion conducted by Dr. Cristina Anghel, MD, PhD who works in Children’s and Teenagers’ Psychiatry at the “Prof. Dr. Al. Obregia” Hospital of Psychiatry. Having over 20 year experience in the field, Cristina Anghel strongly promotes mental health amongst the pediatric population, reinforcing the fact that the adult’s mental health has its starting point anchored in childhood. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to identify emotional and behavioral difficulties at their debut in the early stages of life, in order to benefit from adequate management. Being specialized in Somnology, Cristina Anghel, MD, PhD emphasizes the importance of sleep, which is the main activity of a still developing brain.

Alongside Cristina Anghel, MD, PhD we have Dr. Mihaela Oros, MD, PhD who is the president of Romanian Association for Pediatric Sleep Disorder, an active member of the World Sleep Society and the creator of the YouTube channel @DrMihaelaOros, which has the mission of informing and educating about sleep and breathing disorders. Being a pediatrician, pulmonologist and sleep specialist, Mihaela Oros conducted the first study in Romania on sleep related breathing disorders (SRBD) amongst children and teenagers.

Even though we expect them to have a statistically scarce prevalence among the world’s population, rare diseases affect approximately 1 in 20 people, and only a minority of patients receive a genetic diagnosis Fewer than half of the 10 000 recorded rare diseases have a known genetic cause. When looking at this data, we see the need to assess what has been already done in order to increase the quality of such patients’ lives and what the next step could be in order to improve the burden that has been laid on these people’s shoulders. 

• How can a rare disease be defined?
• Which genetic diseases can the neonatal screening reveal and how can the screening be conducted adequately?
• What is network medicine? How can it help the realization of new pathological models?
• What are the steps a patient can take in order to enroll in a clinical trial in the case in which no therapeutic options are available for his or her disease?

Join this Roundtable to answer your curiosities in an open discussion conducted by Prof. Emilia Severin, PhD who is the head of the Genetics Discipline at “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest. She has made important contributions across various organizations such as the Romanian Alliance for Rare Diseases (RONARD), the European Union Committee of Experts in Rare Diseases (EUCERD) and the Medical Genetics Commission of the Romanian Ministry of Health. She holds the position of vice-president within the Romanian National Council for Rare Diseases.

Prof. Emilia Severin, PhD will conduct an open discussion on how much coverage the neonatal screening has when it comes to the rare disorders’ spectrum. She will also assess these diseases’ impact on patients without a diagnosis and explore potential solutions, including treatments and participation in clinical trials.

Have you ever wondered how the body of a newborn baby changes to adapt to its newly found environment? If the answer to that question is yes, we are certain you will love our Roundtable around this subject! Alongside three experienced doctors you will learn how, step by step, and month by month, the newborn baby adjusts to the outside world and how that is important in treating and monitoring pediatric patients. 👩‍🍼

Assistant Lecturer Alexandru Herdea, MD, PhD, a specialized physician within the Department of Paediatric Orthopaedics of “Grigore Alexandrescu” Children’s Emergency Clinical Hospital, will introduce you to the changes that appear right after birth and particularities about the newborn’s musculoskeletal system, as well as its development.

Senior Lecturer Eugenia Roza, MD, PhD is a Pediatric Neurologist at “Dr. Victor Gomoiu” Clinical Children’s Hospital. She will guide the discussion towards the movements, reflexes and overall psychomotor development of the baby, with a focus on patient evaluation. 

Last but not least, Victorita Tudosie, MD,  a Pediatric Psychiatrist at “Dr. Victor Gomoiu” Clinical Children’s Hospital and founder of DepreCARE Clinic, will discuss the baby’s cognitive’s development, socializing and interesting facts like “How many words should a three year old child be able to say?”. Therefore, you will also hear about the importance of having both a neurologist and psychiatrist follow the pediatric patient’s progress.

Gabriel Cicu, MD, PhD, is a Psychiatrist with extensive experience and studies about addiction and its impact on all aspects of life. He will introduce you to the world of Psychedelics and give you a better understanding on the subject of addiction. 

You will be able to find out a lot of interesting facts with important use in clinical practice, such as:

-What are Psychedelics? How often are they used and what are some differences between their use in Romania vs. the Western World?

-Can Psychedelics induce addiction? Why not? Can you overdose?

-What makes Psychedelics different from other drugs and what is their use in Psychotherapy?

By the end of this Roundtable, you will have all the essential information any doctor would need to know about Psychedelics use, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of it. Through open discussion and debating, Gabriel Cicu, MD, PhD will help you visualize the pros and cons of Psychedelics and their impact on a patient’s life.

As you know, the world we live in today seems like it moves fast and things always renew and are reinvented. But how does this impact the food we eat, the choices we make about our nutrition? How can we keep up with these movements and trends and how do we fight misinformation around food?

Alina Epure, PhD is specialized in the biochemistry of nutrition and is a Health Coach Practitioner, ESPEN and The Nutrition Society member. She introduced the concept of Nutribalance in Romania, which focuses on balanced eating and how having a lifestyle that centers around the harmony between soul, mind and body has an extraordinary impact on longevity and overall health. Her experience of more than 15 years will bring to the table essential information about finding the perfect equilibrium in your daily life, from movement and food, to sleep and emotional health. 

Vlad Rădulescu, MD is an Endocrinology Resident and nutritonist, whose passion was fueled by the lack of extensive education about the importance of a healthy nutrition and misinformation shared in the online area. He aims to help you break down the walls of false information through evidence-based methods and debates and gain a better understanding of how much of an impact lifestyle actually has on overall health. 

Therefore, this Roundtable will bring forward various perspectives on healthy balance, approaching patients from a different standpoint and fighting against the current of fast, unevidenced information that can have a harmful impact on its readers.

Being part of the ER environment can be very demanding, with critical patients flowing through the hospital doors and the triage of the patient being more often than not inaccurate and inefficient.

What does it mean to be part of the ER team? How physically and emotionally draining can the work get?

How does the medical triage in the ER occur and how can it be optimized?

What does life outside the hospital look like?

When referring to off duty emergencies, how frequent are the interventions of the ER doctors to these kinds of events?

Join this Roundtable event and get the answers to all your curiosities! Assist. Prof Silvia Nica, MD, PhD  will guide an open discussion about both the challenges and the personal satisfaction which come with being part of the ER environment. Having graduated from the Faculty of General Medicine of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Carol Davila”, she then pursued a residency program in Emergency Medicine and, later on, she completed a second speciality in Anesthesiology Intensive Therapy. She is currently the Head of Emergency Department at the University Emergency Hospital of Bucharest (UEHB). Keeping in mind the physical and emotional impact of her career, she decides to keep a healthy balance between work and inner peace by pursuing her great passion of playing the violin and, therefore, performing within the Romanian Doctors Orchestra ‘Ermil Nichifor’.

Health is without a doubt a basic human need and the access to health services should be equal to all human beings, regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, wealth. Unfortunately, more often than not, we see such determinants making their way to add to the already existing inequity and favouritism, to the extent of poisoning our entire system of moral values. Moreover, we see injustice not only amongst the beneficiaries of the health system, but also amongst the providers of medical services and we wonder whether the meritocracy behind the process of selecting the medical personnel is being fully preserved.

 From the patients’ perspective, what does inequity in the medical sphere look like? What could make the determinants of such unequal treatment?

From the doctors’ perspective, what does injustice within the workplace look like? Is the principle of meritocracy being undermined?

Where do the struggles with achieving promotion at the workplace begin?

In an effort to overcome the inequity amongst the field of health and not only, we see spokespersons of multiple organizations which strongly advocate for equal rights of minority groups. One of such promoters is Assoc. Prof. Gelu Duminica of the Faculty of Sociology and Social Work of the University of Bucharest. Being a Romanian sociologist and activist of Roma ethnicity, for the past 23 years his work means the “Impreuna” Agency Foundation for Community and Development, which extends its openness towards all kinds of people, including ‘Roma, Romanians, Hungarians, people from LGBTQIA+ community, boys, girls, students, parents, people from the rural areas, people from both small towns and urban agglomerations, Christians, atheists…voices from everywhere, who desire to make the world a friendlier place, easier to go about one’s day’.

A delicate part of the doctors’ job is delivering bad news to both the patients and their families. Keeping in mind that bad news mean any kind of news that would negatively alter how the patients view themselves and their future, the nuances of such news extend to not only the life-ending illnesses, but also to the diagnosis of a new chronic affliction or the worsening of an already existing one or the failure of a certain approach of treatment, whether through medication or nonpharmacologic interventions. Breaking bad news is a multifaceted task and its successful management resides in following certain steps in order to achieve the empathy that is needed within the communication between the healthcare providers and the suffering patients.

What can be considered bad news? What’s the key to becoming an attentive healthcare worker?

What are the right circumstances for delivering bad news to the patient?

What is the SPIKES protocol? What are the steps of the protocol and how do they ensure the correctness of breaking bad news?

Join this Roundtable in order to find out more about the SPIKES protocol in an open discussion guided by Assoc. Prof. Emilian Mihailov of the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Bucharest. He is the Director of the Research Centre in Applied Ethics (CCEA) and he is developing projects with the Uehiro Center for Practical Ethics of the University of Oxford and the Institute of Biomedical Ethics of the University of Basel. He contributed to the foundation of a new field of research – experimental bioethics – which uses experimental methods from psychology and cognitive sciences to confront bioethical problems. Moreover, Emilian Mihailov has a great interest in the dark side of morality and held the TEDx conference called ‘Brain of villains –  Brain of saints’. Being well known for his success in the field of philosophy and communication, Assoc. Prof Emilian Mihailov will bring essential perspective on the ethical and human aspects of medical communication, to the utmost extent of delivering challenging news.

Acne represents a long-term skin condition which is highly known to affect the majority of teenagers and which seems to be having a wide and hard-to-understand pathogenicity. Being tightly dependent on the androgenic hormone levels in our body, acne is boosted by an increased secretion of oily sebum which, together with the remaining dead cells at the surface of the skin, succeed in clogging the hair follicles. Consequently, individuals with high-androgen states, such as those experiencing puberty or those affected by specific medical conditions, such as polycystic ovary syndrome, are unfortunately very likely to suffer from acne. Another common factor is the excessive growth of the bacterium Cutibacterium acnes which is present on the skin. The contribution of diet to acne, although unclear, is believed to find its argument in the sugar levels of blood, which, when being increased, can cause inflammations throughout the body. Genetics plays an important role in the high susceptibility to acne, incentivising researchers to explore the possibility of new therapies. Acknowledging all these factors that add to the persistence of acne, it is necessary to involve a wider range of specialists, such as dermatologists, gynecologists, endocrinologists and geneticists, to increase the chances of having this condition under control. Keeping in mind the psychological impact which acne may have upon the patients, it comes helpful to also integrate psychotherapists within the collective effort to manage acne.

• How can our sebum levels be held under control? If acne is highly heritable, is it indeed relevant to pay attention to the cleanliness of the skin and to our diet in an effort to prevent pimples?

• Can Genetics develop a future therapeutic alternative to the already in use medication for acne?

• Is it important to assess the relation between acne and its impact on the individuals’ mental health? How often does acne result in lack of confidence?

Join this Roundtable to get an insightful look into the challenges of acne in an open discussion conducted by Assist. Lect Lucian Scurtu, MD, PhDc who is a dermatologist at Colentina Clinical Hospital and has a keen interest in immunology of skin and cancerous, infectious and inflammatory dermatological conditions. Alongside Assist. Lect Lucian Scurtu we have Francesca Scurtu, MD, PhDc who is a gynecologist at Filantropia Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinical Hospital and her main focus within her area of expertise is related to endometriosis and the laparoscopic surgical treatment of gynecological tumors.

Anemia is one of the most prevalent diagnosis in Haematology and is often characterized by a reduction in the number of red blood cells (RBCs), a lack of hemoglobin or hemoglobin abnormalities, each of them resulting in blood’s incapacity to carry oxygen. The various causes of anemia can be broken down into 3 categories:impaired production of RBCS, increased destruction of RBCs and blood loss. Impaired production of RBCs can be caused by deficiencies such as those of iron, of vitamin B12, of folate and it may indicate a gastric or a genetic disease. Moreover, a reduction of RBCs’ production may be the result of bone marrow tumors, of thalassemia, which also involves a hereditary origin or of kidney failure, causing a drop in erythropoietin levels. Increased destruction of RBCs happens either when the RBCs’ structure is abnormal, in disorders such as spherocytosis, elliptocytosis and hemoglobinopathies ( e.g. sickle cell anemia) or when an extracorpuscular cause occurs, in antibody-mediated disorders such as autoimmune hemolytic anemia or in RBCs’ mechanical traumas such as microangiopathic hemolytic anemias ( e.g. thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, DIC). Keeping in mind this vast interpretation of anemia, Haematology is with no doubt a field in which a multidisciplinary approach is needed in order to not only correct the anemia or fluctuations in any other blood cell levels and discharge the patient when stabile, but also to identify the cause and reverse it in order to prevent recurrences.

• How does the acute or the slow phase of blood loss influence the symptoms of one’s patient? How significant is the anemia before a patient becomes noticeably pale?
• How is anemia treated? What are the factors which influence whether the patients need dietary supplementation, erythropoiesis – stimulating agents or blood transfusions as treatment for anemia?
• When is the bone marrow transplant indicated?

Join this Roundtable in order to take a closer look into the challenges of Haematology in an open discussion conducted by Assoc. Prof. Andrei Coliță, MD, PhD who is a specialist in Haematology and Immunology at Monza Hospital and an associate professor of the Haematology Department at “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Bucharest. Being Vice President of the Romanian Society of Haematology and a founder of the Romanian Society of Bone Marrow Transplant, Dr. Coliță will give us an insightful perspective regarding both the subjects of bone marrow and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. 

Alongside Dr. Andrei Coliță we have Prof. Ana Maria Vlădăreanu, MD, PhD who is in charge of the Haematology Department at the University Emergency Hospital of Bucharest and a professor at “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Bucharest. She will further guide us through the diagnoses in Haematology and their interdisciplinary approach.

Though known from as early as ancient times, the development of modern techniques in plastic surgery has its origin during the First World War, when 𝑺𝒊𝒓 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝑮𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒏 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒄 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒓𝒚, undertook reconstructive interventions on soldiers with disfiguring facial injuries. Ever since, plastic surgery has grown into the specialty that it is today and that can be divided into two main categories: reconstructive surgery and cosmetic surgery. While reconstructive surgery serves to the purpose of restoring one’s appearance and function after an injury, illness or congenital problem, the cosmetic surgery is rather elective and includes procedures intended to enhance the appearance, whether by adjusting the proportions of the face or body, augmenting certain features or improving symmetry. 

More often than not, patients requesting cosmetic surgery suffer from various psychiatric disorders, including bipolar disorders, personality disorders (borderline, narcissistic, obsessive-compulsive), social phobias (anxiety disorders), and reaction to severe stress (PTSD). The mental disorder which is most associated with increased addressability to plastic surgeons is 𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒅𝒚𝒔𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒑𝒉𝒊𝒄 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓 (𝑩𝑫𝑫), which is an obsessive-compulsive disease causing a person to obsess over real or imagined undesirable features in his or her appearance. Consequently, these patients would want to undergo multiple cosmetic surgeries in order to correct what they perceive as flaws, while also remaining permanently unsatisfied with the results and, therefore, causing them to develop a plastic surgery addiction. Keeping in mind both the risks which plastic surgery comes with, such as blood clots, collapsed muscles, nerve damage, infections, and the fact that the intervention itself may represent an aggravating factor to people suffering from BDD, it is important that the plastic surgeons have a careful approach on who they give their approval to undergo surgery to.

• How does a plastic surgeon deal with patients with unrealistic expectations regarding cosmetic interventions? But with patients with plastic surgery addiction?
• What’s the purpose of reconstructive surgery and what are the methods to preserve a natural look?
• What’s the role of non-surgical anti-aging treatments?

Join this Roundtable to get an insightful look into the challenges arising from plastic surgery in an open discussion conducted by Assist. Lect. Mădălina Ciupan, MD, PhD who is a specialist in Aesthetic and Plastic Surgery and Reconstructive Microsurgery and an assistant lecturer at “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy. Being a member of both the Romanian Society of Plastic Surgery and Reconstructive Microsurgery and EPRAS (European Plastic Reconstructive Aesthetic Surgery), Dr. Ciupan will get us acquainted with the practice of plastic surgery, while debunking various myths of this medical field.

Alongside Dr. Mădălina Ciupan, we have Oana Mihalcea, MD who is a specialist in Dermatology, entailing Dermatosurgery, Dermato-Oncology, Dermatoscopy, Pediatric Dermatology. Dr. Mihalcea will guide us through the subject of personalized systemic or topical dermatological treatment.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a term that describes disorders involving chronic inflammation of tissues in the digestive tract. Some types of IBD include ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, both having common symptoms. The exact causes of inflammatory bowel disease remain unknown , and, if in the past, stress and diet were considered the main two possible causes, it is now known that they only aggravate it.

An immune system malfunction, like an atypical immune response, may cause the immune system to attack the cells in the digestive tract and therefore be the source of inflammation. Heredity could also play a role in IBD.

The treatment for inflammatory bowel disease depends on the symptoms and it includes medications to help ease or keep the symptoms under control, such as steroids, or surgery to remove part of the bowel, if the symptoms are severe.

From a psychological view, studies have demonstrated that patients with IBD have a higher risk of developing symptoms of anxiety and depression than healthy individuals. Accumulating evidence has also confirmed that chronic psychological stress is considered to trigger IBD deterioration and relapse. However, the underlying mechanism of the link between psychological stress and IBD remains poorly understood. 

–  What are some myths about IBS and what may be the possible connections between the gut and the brain?

– What is the diagnosing process and how can you differentiate between various clinical forms of the pathology?

– What are some of the latest discoveries and experimental therapies?

Join this Roundtable to gain a new multidisciplinary view of Inflammatory Bowel Disease in an open discussion conducted by Ioan-Costin Matei, MD, MSc a clinical psychiatrist at multiple clinics in Bucharest and a researcher at the “Victor Babeş” National Institute for Pathology, whose research focuses on the link between particular genes involved in regulating the gut microbiome and depressive and anxiety disorders. Alongside Senior Lect. Cristian Tieranu, MD, PhD, gastroenterologist at Elias Emergency University Hospital and Senior Lecturer “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, you will get brand new psychoneuroimmunological insights into bidirectional gut–brain communications, following stories from real patients suffering from Inflammatory Bowel Disease.

During this roundtable, Prof. Luiza Spiru, MD, PhD will guide you through a deeper understanding of our well-being in the modern world by exploring the intricate landscape of mental health, the challenges of technostress, the fascinating concept of blue zones and the nuanced facets of the aging process.

Prof. Nick Guldemond, MD, PhD is an expert member of the World Health Organization and focuses on incorporating technological innovation into medicine as Chief innovation Officer at Panaxea Health Intelligence Company and on his research career at Leiden University Medical Centre, as Senior Researcher

Being an army doctor can be both rewarding and challenging. An army doctor is exposed to a lot of danger, keeping in mind that his or her medical attributes extend out of the overstated ‘comfort’ of a tented medical facility, so that people at great risk or already injured, whether they are civilians or combatants, can get rescued as soon as possible. Consequently, the victims are aimed at getting stabilized within a medical center for assessment, by receiving emergency care and painkillers, following to get evacuated to a more advanced medical unit, with extended supplies and equipment in order to enable more complex medical procedures, such as surgery. There is a wide range of health problems that are met on the front and they vary from run-of-the-mill common colds, coughs or sprains to the more extreme conditions including trauma injuries or gunshot wounds. Furthermore, the temperature can be quite demanding and it is hard for the body to adapt to the wide variations in temperature, keeping in mind that in South Asian countries such as Afghanistan both frostbite and heat stroke can be witnessed in the same 24-hour period.

• How do army doctors adapt to extreme weather conditions?
• What are the results of taking care of the injured soldiers or civilians? What does their recovery look like?
• How does the on-front medical personnel cope with the distance from their significant others and family?
• How rewarding is it for an army doctor to perform such a risky job?

Join this Roundtable to get an insightful look into the lives of such honorable healthcare workers! This open discussion will be conducted by Lt. col. Vladimir Ștefan Zahiu, MD who is an ICU specialist and a Diplomate of European Society of Anaesthesiology (DESA). Having completed a master degree in Public Health and Sanitary Management, Dr, Zahiu  will shed light upon the challenges which come with on-front tasks, such as the medical evacuation by helicopter (MEDEVAC), which he honorably performed for a time frame of 5 months in a mission in the Republic of Mali, Africa.

Alongside Lt. col. Vladimir Ștefan Zahiu we will have Lt. col. Florin Cătălin Macău, MD who, as a general surgeon specialized in laparoscopic procedure, will further discuss the more advanced care for the war victims. 

Lastly, we have the pleasure of introducing Master Sgt Marius Enescu, RN who was part of the medical team sent off to Alabama, USA with the purpose of combating COVID-19. Having a broad experience in terms of external missions, participating in those of Afghanistan and Kosovo, Master Sgt Marius Enescu will get you acquainted with the risks involving a military career. 

In certain scenarios, a patient’s optimal path to recovery may lead them beyond national borders. Yet, is this always the most suitable option? What advantages and disadvantages come with this choice? 

These situations pose critical questions about medical ethics, patient autonomy, the distribution of resources, and disparities in worldwide healthcare. The ethical facets not only touch upon the immediate welfare of the patient but also extend to societal considerations and the obligations of healthcare providers.

Alina Comanescu, founder of the Community Health Association, is a High-caliber Communications Executive with over 13 years of multinational experience in public and private sectors. For more than 5 years she actively took part in the initiatives and activities promoted by the European Cancer Patients Coalition’s bladder and rare cancers working groups, providing the Eastern European and Romanian input. Past European Cancer Patients Coalition board member. Member of EORTC`s Group of Patient Experts and Independent Data Monitoring Committee. Global Leadership Panel Member of Fight Cancer Global. Current Digestive Cancers Europe board member.   Novartis Breast Cancer Global Oncology Patient Insights Panel member. Researcher within PREFER IMI funded project

We invite you to join this Roundtable to explore the ethical nuances of international patient transfers and discuss real-life stories, highlighting both the potential benefits and risks associated with these transfers.

Oral contraceptive pills (OCPs) represent a birth control method used by many women with the purpose of preventing unwanted pregnancy. The OCPs contain synthetic hormones that hijack women’s cyclical hormonal process, resulting in the decrease of naturally secreted progesterone and, consequently, they inhibit ovulation. Women using this birth control method can be exposed to certain risks, such as autoimmune diseases, altered blood pressure, blood clots and strokes. Nevertheless, myths make no exception when it comes to this lil’ pill. It is highly important to make a clear distinction between facts and myths, in order to obtain efficiency regarding therapeutic compliance. 

• Are contraceptives any efficient in preventing the transmission of STDs?
• Do contraceptives influence your levels of cortisol and make you vulnerable to anxiety and depression?
• Do contraceptives increase the likelihood of women who use them to develop cancer?

Join this Roundtable in order to find out which are the facts and which are myths in an open discussion conducted by Senior Lect. Octavian Munteanu MD, PhD who works in the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department at the Emergency Hospital of Bucharest. He also holds the position of 𝐴𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡. 𝐿𝑒𝑐𝑡. in the Anatomy Department at “Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest, being highly engaged in medical education. Keeping in mind that every medical procedure carries unpleasant side effects, Lect. Octavian Munteanu proposes an insight in one of the distresses in gynecological surgery, in an attempt to shed light upon finding the best approach in difficult situations, in order to ensure the optimization of healing effect and to minimize the risks. 

Alongside Senior Lect. Octavian Munteanu MD, PhD we have Senior Lect. Alexandru Baros, MD, PhD who works in the Gynaecology Department at the Emergency Hospital of Bucharest and will further develop the discussion on contraceptives during this intriguing Roundtable.