"Few events are addressed to students in the field of pediatrics and pediatric cardiology, yet there is tremendous interest in them," explained Natalia Pawłowska, the chairwoman of the organizing committee of the conference and the Student Research Club at the Department of Pediatric Cardiology and General Pediatrics which organized the conference. "The PediCardia conference is a unique opportunity to explore the secrets of pediatric cardiology, meet inspiring specialists and gain valuable knowledge.”
UCC WUM practitioners as speakers
The conference consisted of four parts. The first one was opened by Prof. Bożena Werner, a national consultant in pediatric cardiology, who delivered the opening lecture on cardiac tamponade. Then, Radosław Pietrzak, MD, PhD, took the floor with a lecture "Interatrial septum – under pressure when we have to get to the left atrium during ablation." Next, Dr Tomasz Książczyk spoke about the challenges and safety limits of ablation in children, and Dr Jakub Kosma Rokicki discussed the remote monitoring of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators and monitoring heart activity during childhood.
The second session included a lecture on congenital heart disease surgery by Dr Marlena Janoska-Jaździk, and Dr Michał Gefrerer discussed oral cavity rehabilitation in children prior to cardiac surgery.
The third session began with a lecture by Dr Anna Prowotorow-Iwaniukowicz on the preparation for heart transplantation. Then, Dr Michał Buczyński talked about the harvesting and transporting the organ for transplantation and the preparation of the child for heart transplant surgery. Dr Katarzyna Ostrzyżek-Przeździecka discussed reduced muscle tone with a heart defect and the role of a physiotherapist in highly specialized care.
Finally, Dr Ewa Smereczyńska-Wierzbicka delivered a lecture concerning pulmonary arteries.
Workshops
Conference participants could take part in the following workshops: surgical suturing in cardiac surgery, basics and interpretation of echocardiography, analysis of clinical cases based on ECG and Basic Life Support (BLS) with the use of medical emergency simulation. The workshops were organized in the modern facilities of the Center for Medical Simulation WUM.
The conference was held under the patronage of the Rector of the Medical University of Warsaw, the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine WUM and the national consultant in pediatric cardiology. The scientific aspects of the conference were supervised by: Radosław Pietrzak, MD, PhD, the Head of the Department of Pediatric Cardiology and General Pediatrics and Dr Piotr Wieniawski – the supervisor of the Student Research Club at the Department of Pediatric Cardiology and General Pediatrics. The organizing committee included Magdalena Warych, Jakub Zabłocki and Karolina Krysińska.
