The first Union World Conference in person since the COVID-19 pandemic was held in Paris from November 15-18 and was a great success. People could meet each again in person, exchange ideas, get inspired, informed, network and connect. KNCV was very present at this year’s Union. With many oral abstracts, symposia, e-posters, satellite sessions, a well branded booth at a central location and of course the celebration of 120 years’ of KNCV experience as inspiration for the future.
The KNCV booth during the Union World Conference.
A recap per day
Watch a recap per day through our KNCV Instagram: Wednesday 15 November, Thursday 16 November, and Friday 18 November. Also make sure you see the Union video of the highlights of the conference below.
KNCV’s programme during the conference
KNCV’s Technical Director Agnes Gebhard at the Special Session on the WHO’s new evidence-based guidelines on TB.
For a full overview of all KNCV’s contributions to the Union Conference, please click here. Many sessions can still be watched online through the Union World Conference website. Just to mention a few of the KNCV presentations:
Workshop on stool-based testing for TB
Petra de Haas, senior laboratory consultant at KNCV and creator of the SOS-Stool method for pain-free TB diagnosis in young children, hosted and chaired a very popular workshop called ‘Introduction and scale up of stool-based testing– sharing country results and practical lesson learned’.
Digital adherence technology and the Unitaid-led ASCENT project
The interest for the KNCV-led ASCENT project was high during the Union World Conference. Kristian van Kalmthout, digital health consultant at KNCV and project leader of the ASCENT project, chaired the satellite session on ‘Digital adherence technologies in TB care: key results and lessons from the ASCENT trial’ on 15 November. KNCV’s Adrian Leung and Degu Dare also presented during this session.
On 17 November we also contributed to the symposium on ‘Challenging the use of digital technologies for TB diagnosis: global vision and experiences from Ethiopia, Nigeria, Vietnam and the Latin American and Caribbean region’. Degu Dare was chair and Sani Useni from KNCV Nigeria presented a study.
In addition, on 17 November Kristian van Kalmthout chaired a symposium on ‘The impact of digital adherence technologies on TB care: Results from ASCENT and other studies’, for which Degu Dare presented a study on the effectiveness of digital adherence technologies in improving TB treatment.
Multi-testing on TB and other diseases
During the symposium ‘Multi-testing for TB and other diseases with WHO-recommended rapid molecular diagnostics and clinical monitoring: perspectives from high TB burden settings’, KNCV’s Jerod Scholten was chair and there were presentations by Endale Mengesha, Carel Joseph and Fehinti Prisca Ajiboye amongst others.
WHO sessions during the Union
KNCV participated in several WHO hosted events during the Union including:
- ‘Transforming the TB response by driving affordable, accessible solutions to reach the most vulnerable’, in which Unitaid announced upcoming areas of work prioritized for funding.
- ‘Global Meeting of the Working Group on Public-Private Mix for TB Prevention and Care (PPM Working Group)’, in which the discussions were focussed on public-private sector engagement efforts.
- The 9th WHO End TB Strategy Summit, about the key actions needed to implement the political declaration of the 2023 United Nations High level meeting on TB.
- ‘Annual meeting of the Child and Adolescent TB Working Group and launch of the 2023 Roadmap towards ending TB in children and adolescents’. This roadmap outlines the key actions that must be taken to address the persistent gaps in the prevention, management and care of TB in these age groups.
- And the close-out meeting of the TB strategic initiatives: ‘Meeting of beneficiaries of the Global Fund Strategic Initiative on Finding the missing millions’, the annual meeting of the Global Fund Strategic Initiative on Finding the Missing people with TB.
Many credits go to the WHO for their abundance of expertise and experience.
Celebrating 120 years’ experience as inspiration for the future
2023 marks the 120th birthday of KNCV. On 17 November KNCV therefore organized the satellite session ‘Transforming evidence into practice – celebrating 120 years’ experience as inspiration for the future’. The content of the session was based on KNCV’s experience gained in diverse and changing settings through the many years of KNCV’s existence.
Mustapha Gidado, Executive Director of KNCV during the 120 years KNCV Satellite Session.
The satellite session was fully packed with people not only filling all the chairs but also the stairs. Five speakers outlined the past, present and future of KNCV. It was followed by a panel discussion in which the executive directors of KNCV affiliate and branch offices from Asia and Africa, discussed the way forward to end TB. We also of course celebrated KNCV’s 120 years’ of experience in a more informal way. Watch a recap of this memorable evening through our KNCV Instagram.
The KNCV 120 years’ celebration party.
We would like to again thank all our partners! Much has been accomplished and this would not have been possible without you!
