SWAAC ELSO

On behalf of the organizing committee of SWAAC ELSO 2024 Conference (South West Asia and Africa Chapter of the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization), I am honoured to invite you to the upcoming 10th annual SWAAC ELSO conference which will be held in Kuwait City between the 15-17th February 2024. Extracorporeal Life Support (ECLS) therapy has come a long way since the first successful case in the early seventies of the last century. As an ECLS community, we have come a long way too through a momentous expansion of services, not only outside the cardiac operating theatre and Intensive care unit but also to the cath lab, emergency department and the general operating theatre. The steep global expansion of ECLS therapy is also astonishing with most countries and regions around the globe rapidly establishing ECLS services. One imperative role ELSO plays is providing an educational platform through its multiple chapters which the upcoming conference belongs to. We hope that through the next meeting we will be able to cross boundaries between different countries around the globe and the different specialities in medicine in order to bridge any gaps in knowledge and clarify any uncertainties for better communication and collaboration with the aim of improving patients’ outcomes and quality of life. The conference will include sessions with various multi-disciplinary backgrounds including ECLS for anaesthetists, cardiologist, cardiac and transplant surgeons, and paediatricians. It will also outline ECLS management from the perspective of other disciplines like radiologists, vascular surgeons and the multidisciplinary team members including physiotherapists, clinical dietitians, infectious disease and palliative care specialists. Cross disciplinary work provides a platform for excellence in care through integrating multiple branches of knowledge under one umbrella. Furthermore, an update on ECLS education and quality assurance as well as recent innovations will also be highlighted. The conference will be preceded by pre- conference workshops from the 12th-14th of February which will cover multiple aspects including adult and pediatric ECLS therapy with hands on training on cannulation, trouble shooting and simulation. We look forward to meeting you in Kuwait in the lovely month of February which will be also our National Day month where Kuwait will be lit with lights and activities for the national celebrations.