Dear all,
It is with a somewhat heavy heart, but considerably lighter shoulders, that I write this final monthly update.
The Forum and past year
Thank you to all of those who were able to attend the recent EFPT Forum in Bristol and make it such a fun, inspiring and productive occasion. I know there were also many of you who were not able to make it this year in person, but who were there with us in spirit.
As wonderful an annual event as it is, EFPT is about more than just the Forum. It relies on the hard work of so many people throughout the year. I want to thank everyone who has contributed in countless different ways to our
success over the past year. We can be justifiably proud of everything we have achieved together. I want to say a special thank you to the amazing Board, a.k.a. the Magnificent Seven, for everything they have done and for their personal support for me.
Welcome to the new Board
I am very pleased to hand over to our new President, Pavel Trancík, who I know will do an amazing job.
We also have a fantastic new Board following the elections at the General Assembly.
The new Board is as follows: 
President: Pavel Trancik (Czech Republic)
President Elect: George Stercu (Romania)
Past President: Howard Ryland (UK)
Secretary General: Chantelle Wiseman (UK)
Treasurer: Anne Nobels (Belgium)
IT Secretary: Charles So (France)
CAP Secretary: Asilay Seker (Turkey)
This team will be ably supported by the other elected roles:
2nd CAP Representative: Anna Sofie Hansen (Denmark)
Controlling Committee: Marton Asztalos (Denmark) and Léa Laurenz (Germany)
Bylaws Committee: Andreas Hoff (Denmark) and Zetti Azvee (Ireland)
Congratulations to everyone elected and thanks to all candidates who stood.
General Assembly
The General Assembly took place on 25th July 2018 and was the usual flag filled celebration of democracy (and bureaucracy) in action.
The formal minutes will be available in due course, but I wanted to share some highlights for those who were unable to join us:
- We were very pleased to welcome Moldova to the EFPT family, as our 37th member country and 39th member association. Congratulations!
- New, more flexible and streamlined voting procedures were agreed, that mean open votes with a clear majority can be approved, without the need to count every individual vote.
- The location of the Forum is now more flexible, with the approval of a change in the Bylaws that removes the need for the President to hold the Forum in ‘his or her own country’, while retaining the President’s and Board’s responsibility to ensure that the Forum takes place.
- Three new statements were approved, on vision and mission, social media and service user involvement.
- The Action Plan, based on the acronym EFPT and the Budget, including revised country membership fees for next year, were both approved.
- Action plans were announced for all six ongoing working groups, plus reports from the Structural Alteration and New Economy and the Ecological Temporary Working Groups.
- The next Forum was formally announced for Prague in July 2019. Dates to be confirmed shortly. Roll on #EFPTPrague19!
Goodbye, or should that be Au Revoir?
It has been a real privilege to play a part in the ongoing evolution of this incredible shared enterprise as EFPT president and I look forward to continuing our work with the new Board over the next year. I know that EFPT is in safe hands and will carry on ‘Shaping the Future of Psychiatry’ for many years to come.
Howard
