Respected colleagues around the world,

The 25th Annual Meeting of the International Association of Medical Science Educators took place virtually on June 12–17, 2021. Although the Covid-19 pandemic continued to cause global disruptions, the meeting was a successful virtual event, which brought over 900 attendees from around the world to participate in the pre-conference workshop sessions and/or the meeting itself. Attendees from every continent tuned in for a truly global virtual venue appropriately themed “Global Perspectives on Health Sciences Education.” Almost half of the registrants were non-members of IAMSE, who we hope will join IAMSE and return next year to take advantage of all the other IAMSE sponsored activities and benefits enjoyed with membership. The Program Planning Committee designed the meeting with the student/trainee in mind as our mission was about student engagement. Approximately 9% of the registrants were students, which is the largest number of students to participate in an annual IAMSE meeting. Despite the challenges in 2021, the Program Planning Committee met monthly to plan and work with the IAMSE leadership and staff of JulNet to make the virtual experience meaningful and resourceful for all our attendees. This was the biggest accomplishment in my opinion.

The plenary speakers included Dr. David Gordon, President of the World Federation of Medical Education, who spoke on the year’s challenges and impact to medical education worldwide. Dr. Camille Bentley, in her talk on Global Health Training, shared with us her unique experiences as a global educator and leader in Global Health education and as seasoned traveler to some of the most impoverished areas of the world where she organized medical outreach experiences. Dr. Atsusi “2c” Hirumi delighted the audience with the “Top 10 Ways Instructional Design and Technology May Advance Medical Education.” Often, the activity on the chat was just as dynamic as the thoughtful and provoking questions he presented. Lastly, Dr. Stewart Mennin’s “Ten Global Challenges in Medical Education: Lessons from the Field” was just as thought provoking. The 2021 Annual Meeting did not disappoint with the camaraderie. Although we could not meet in person, the level of engagement in the discussions was evident by the comments and activity of the chat. In the daily evening rounds, the plenary speakers further entertained many of the questions presented during the daily plenary talks.

Aside from the brilliant plenary sessions, the Pre-Conference Workshops, Focus Sessions, Poster, and Oral Presentations, representative of the health sciences professions from institutions from around the world did not disappoint in quality, and as expected the overall feedback was very positive. The virtual meeting also provided unique opportunities for networking. There was a Mindfulness session led by Dr. Aviad Haramati and even Virtual Yoga sessions led by Dr. Audrey Vasauskas.

I want to recognize the IAMSE Award recipients: Dr. Alice Fornari who received the Distinguished Career Awards for Excellence and Education Scholarship; Dr. Kimberly Dahlman who received the Early Career for Excellence in Teaching and Innovation; and Dr. Nehad El-Sawi who received the Edward Patrick Lifetime Achievement Award. Also, I want to mention the exhibitors: ScholarRx, Aquifer, ASPET, ELSEVIER, ASME, Wolters Kluwer, Lecturio, AMBOSS, AMEE, and many others who also helped support many of the activities during the meeting.

On behalf of the 2021 Program Committee, I would like to thank you, the attendees, for making the IAMSE meeting truly fantastic. Your participation and contributions made the Annual 2021 Meeting experience more enriching and enjoyable. I look forward to seeing you all in person at the 2022 Annual IAMSE meeting in Denver.

Sincerely,

Mark Hernandez, PhD.

2021 Chair of IAMSE Program Planning Committee.