Hiromi Sanada PhD, RN, WOCN, FAAN
Conference President, 9th APETNA
Professor, Department of Gerontological Nursing/
Wound Care Management
Director, Global Nursing Research Center
Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo

First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to all the health care workers who are at the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus and are preparing for further outbreak of COVID-19, which has challenged the evolution and wisdom of humanity.

The 9th Asia Pacific Enterostomal Therapy Nurse Association Conference (APETNA) will be a virtual conference. The contents of the conference will be provided by live streaming from July 3rd (Sat) to 5th (Mon), 2021, and on-demand streaming from July 6th (Tue) to 30th (Fri), 2021, which aims at developing the science of wound, ostomy, and continence management and improving the quality of clinical practice in the Asia-Pacific region. I am delighted that this event will be held in Japan for the first time and I feel a great sense of responsibility. We are also commemorating the 30th anniversary of the establishment of JWOCM and it is a great honor to host this historic event.

The theme for the upcoming conference is “Integrating Science and Art for Next Generation WOC Management”. This theme was chosen two years ago with the aim of passing on the WOC field to the next generation. Reflecting on the difficult circumstances due to COVID-19, I am now very eager to pass on the knowledge, along with the great expectations for the future of nursing science. The world is constantly changing with ‘‘new lifestyles’’ which may completely change the concept of nursing science. For instance, social distancing is likely to further enhance the adoption of ICT, robots, and artificial intelligence (AI) into medical work. Almost without exaggeration, it may be said that the era of remote nursing has arrived 10 years earlier than predicted. Under these circumstances, we will focus not only on science but also on art that is individualized according to patients’ needs and entrust the next generation with the future of WOC nursing. Although the impact of COVID-19 is immeasurable, we are hoping to discuss next-generation WOC nursing with people gathered from all over the world.

In line with the theme of the conference, we are planning symposiums that will allow participants to experience next-generation WOC management, and workshops for participants to try out the latest technologies. For the JWOCM 30th Anniversary Special Lecture, we are inviting two great experts in this field, Dr. Barbara Braden (Professor Emeritus of Creighton University) and Dr. Yoshiki Miyachi (Professor Emeritus of Kyoto University; President, Shizuoka Graduate University of Public Health) to talk about the future of WOC management from their perspectives as pioneers. For the special lectures, we are inviting Dr. Gregory Schultz (Professor at the University of Florida), an international expert in wound healing, and Dr. Ichiro Sakuma, a key opinion leader of medical-engineering integration. We hope to welcome you all through services and entertaining events incorporating various technological advances.

My dream is to create a legacy through the synergy between the 9th APETNA and the 30th JWOCM as the reference standard for next-generation nursing, and I am looking forward to joining us from around the world.