Online regional Members’ Forums – a great success!
Hearing our Association Member Representatives’ feedback and suggestions for our future direction is essential to ensure we serve our members needs and continue to strengthen our global veterinary community.
The move to a hybrid model for #WSAVA2020 means that we will not be able to meet our Member Representatives face to face for some time so, on September 14, we held four regional Member’ Forum meetings on Zoom. A hundred of our Member Representatives attended – a great result! – and feedback on the new format was very positive.
During the meetings, Member Representatives worked together in breakout rooms to discuss questions from the Executive Board regarding the future of the WSAVA in terms of membership, benefits and communication. They also participated in a series of polls to gain a snapshot of opinion before taking part in a wider discussion with their regional colleagues. Their comments and feedback on the questions raised are being collated and will be discussed by the Executive Board shortly.
Our Member Representatives from Europe, the Middle East and Africa
Incoming WSAVA President Dr Siraya Chunekamrai says:
[blockquote author=”” link=”” target=”_blank”] We are learning new ways to communicate in the pandemic age and need to ensure that our Member Representatives can continue to share their opinions as to how the WSAVA can best serve its members.[/blockquote]
[blockquote author=”” link=”” target=”_blank”]It was great to see so many familiar faces on our screens and the lively discussions in the break- out rooms showed that many of us are embracing this new normal. We can’t wait to meet face-to- face again but, in the meantime, for a global association, holding some meetings online is a great solution and we thank all those who joined us for their comments and feedback.[/blockquote]
Our Member Representatives from North America
Member Representative feedback:
Dr Manfred Hochleithner, member of the Financial Advisory Committee: “I never thought that it would be possible to have our usual small group discussions during a Zoom meeting but I was surprised! In my opinion it was a great success and a very important step which I think will change communication between members in the future.”
Dr Deb Osborne, Former Chair of the Financial Advisory Committee and Member Representative for Australian Small Animal Veterinarians: “I am now a convert and think Zoom works very well for a forum discussion on a specific topic. Only one person can speak at a time, you don’t have people chatting amongst themselves and distracting the group and people tend to be more focussed. But I do miss the social side of our face-to-face meetings!”
Dr Junya Yasuda from Japan, Member of the WSAVA Translation Committee: “It was a great opportunity to talk with many colleagues online. I hope to have this kind of opportunity to discuss topics in the near future.”
Dr Jim Berry, Chair of the WSAVA Congress Steering Committee: “I did think the Zoom format worked quite well and the breakout sessions provided the sense of engagement that is normally missing on a Zoom meeting. The downside was my cat jumping on the keyboard and disconnecting me.”
Dr Nalinika Obeysekere, Member Representative for Society of Companion Animal Practitioners of Sri Lanka: “I enjoyed it very much as I was really missing contact with my international colleagues. Sri Lanka being an island, is even more of an island with the COVID situation. I do however miss face-to-face bonding and spontaneous extraordinary conversations with my global colleagues.”
Our Member Representatives from Asia and Oceania