President's Message

February, 25 2009

We are now well and truly in the New Year. I hope all the members will have a safe and productive year.

This year promises to be an exciting year. The Geneva hosts are well organised and the meeting promises to be stimulating and holding up the best traditions of TIAFT in a lovely part of the world. Abstract submissions close March 31 so please submit on time and register early. See our web page for details.

Flavia Thiessen and Alice Chasin are organising the next Latin American regional meeting to be held in Porto Alegre, Brazil in June 17-20. The web site for details is at http://www.pucrs.br/eventos/toxicologiaforense/english/index.php?p=capa. Early bird registration closes April 30.

The board meets on March 3 in Bangkok as a part of a week-long training program for the Thai toxicologists. A series of lectures will be presented by all of the board members to about 70 toxicologists from around the Country as well as running two workshops on "drug screening" and "measurement of benzodiazepines in biological samples" at the Central Institute of Forensic Science (CIFS). I am grateful for the support of Agilent Technologies and CIFS that are making this program possible.

Thank you to those who responded to the survey. The outcomes of the survey will be discussed at the board meeting with the aim to outline a series of strategies to improve the association and information provided to its members.

Please consider sending in your scientific contributions for the next editions of the Bulletin. Without your contributions we will unable to signicantly enhance the scientific content of the Bulletin.

Until next time, Olaf

Olaf H. Drummer PhD(med) ARCPA MRACI CChem
Head (Forensic & Scientific Services)
Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine
Adjunct Professor,
Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine
Monash University, 57-83 Kavanagh Street, Southbank, 3006, AUSTRALIA
e-mail: olaf@vifm.org