I have thoroughly enjoyed being the President of the British Cardiovascular Society. It has been challenging, stimulating and a great priviledge to interact with so many talented people.

Anything that has been achieved during my term of office has been the result of huge team effort. Some of the more important developments have been:

• Implementation of the new governance structure which amongst other things has resulted in much improved collaboration with the Royal College of Physicians.
• Working party reports eg around non-medical staff issues
• There has been an increase in Research Training Fellowships and there are some new awards (which will be announced at the AGM on Wednesday)
• There is a revalidation project which is ongoing and will be important for the future
• We have set up a group of Network advisors.

Advice for my successor? I would suggest he focuses on a few projects and delegate as there is a great team to help out!

What are my plans? I am heading to the Test Match......

I have enjoyed working with the Programme Committee and Affiliated Groups to pull this years programme together. There has been a number of developments within the programme; The first was the drinks reception party on Monday evening in the Exhibition. In the future we may look to develop this informal reception on a more regular basis. The number of Moderated Posters has been expanded considerably and occur on each day of the meeting this year. The Practical Workshops have been expanded with the addition of an HRUK workshop on Wednesday. I am delighted that we now have the abstract acceptance rate at just above 50% of submitted abstracts. This has been a target we set many years ago but the first time we have managed to achieve this. I very much hope that you have a stimulating and rewarding meeting.

I want to make the Society and the meeting more relevant to younger people, so that they can get more involved. I would like to see more social events for them and give good value for money when joining the Society.

I have several goals including:

1.Forging greater links with the British Heart Foundation at many levels.

I would like to see a more joined up public relations program between the two organizations. I would like to develop a cardiovascular plan as a blueprint for how services should develop over the next 10-15 years in conjunction with VOICE (voluntary organizations with an interest in cardiovascular health- which is an umbrella organization for 20+ charities looking at stroke, diabetes, vascular disease ie (cardiovascular diseases). The model would need to take into account changing patterns of disease and demographics.

I would also like to increase the BHF input into the Annual meeting.

2. Reviewing Society membership arrangements and benefits

I would like to see a package of membership options which will offer something to everyone, allowing us to recruit and retain members.

3. Developing the Clinical Standards Division.

I would like to see systems for accrediting professionals in place and develop accredited training courses for different groups eg: GP's, nurses, technicians and radiographers.

4. Recertification

I would like to see an outline model of what recertification/revalidation would look like.