The 2009 conference and SFP annual meeting in Los Angeles was a resounding success with nearly 700 attendees overall. The meeting began with the pre-conference SFP Career Development Seminar, which was developed by the Junior Fellows Committee and attended by more than 75 SFP members. Designed to provide our fellows with opportunities to learn from established researchers employing multi-disciplinary approaches, the seminar met the goals established by the committee, and both the faculty and the program received very positive reviews.
SFP was also the lead partner in the scientific abstracts selection and presentations. This year, there were 15 oral presentations with discussants, and 99 posters in the exhibit hall. Conference attendees gave the presentations high marks on the evaluation, and most agreed that the scientific portion of the meeting grows stronger each year. Gillian Dean, MD, a SFP fellow, received the Outstanding Researcher award for best oral abstract presentation for her SFP-funded project: “The safety and efficacy of digoxin as a feticidal agent prior to 2nd trimester abortion.”
SFP presented our two annual awards, the SFP Lifetime Achievement Award and the Allan Rosenfield Award for Lifetime Contributions to International Family Planning to Jacqui Darroch, PhD and SFP fellow, Joe Speidel, MD, MPH respectively. In addition, SFP board member, Beverly Winikoff, MD was selected as the Guttmacher Lecturer this year.
We held our annual SFP business meeting, where our 2007 grantees presented briefly on their research projects, a tradition we plan to continue. We also recognized Phil Darney, MD for his essential leadership and service on the board of directors as President and then Immediate Past President.
The SFP annual reception and dinner was attended this year by more than 130 fellows and guests. During the brief dinner program, Mitch Creinin, MD was recognized for his term as board President, and we welcomed Mark Nichols, MD as our incoming President. Attendees agreed that the highlight of the program was the special recognition award presented by the SFP board of directors to Dorothy Nortman, MA for her body of work at the Population Council. Both Dorothy and her son, Don Nortman, MD spoke to the guests.
Numerous SFP fellows presented data, led seminars, participated on panels and gave talks at Reproductive Health 2009, contributing to an increase in SFP's visibility within the general conference. Indeed one of the most memorable talks was by SFP fellow and grantee, Lisa Harris, MD, MPH. Many thanks to all who participated.
Finally, looking forward to Atlanta in 2010, should you have ideas for educational offerings, career development activities, or anything related to SFP's annual meeting, don't hesitate to contact me at SHigginbotham@societyfp.org.
