Belo Horizonte, 17th March 2020

 

First circular

 

Dear colleagues,

 

I hope that all of you and those around you are well.

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There is no doubt that we are going through a difficult and delicate moment that requires everyone to act with wisdom, responsibility, attention and care. The exponential growth of COVID19, the speed of its dissemination and the daily increase in the number of deaths require that everyone be cautious and do their part.

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The situation here in Brazil raises as much concern as in all other regions of the planet. In the last few days the number of suspected cases has risen from 2064 to 8819, and the cases whose tests are positive total 291 (not counting the untested cases!). 57% are imported cases, of people who returned from trips abroad; 32% of cases result from contamination by contact with imported cases; and at the weekend, community contamination began, totaling 12% of cases today. This week, we had the first deaths caused by the virus and started quarantining. And there is no prospect of its suspension before 30 to 60 days.

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In the midst of the preparations for our conference, to which we have dedicated ourselves diligently in order to provide everyone with a beautiful conference, we find ourselves at the impasse of whether it will be possible to hold it on the scheduled date. We are considering - depending on the course of the pandemic in the coming weeks - the possibility of postponing the holding of the Seventh IAPS Conference, which would take place in Belo Horizonte (Brazil), from July 13 to 17 this year.

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We will continue to monitor the situation and evaluate the possibilities, in order to make the one that will be the best possible decision regarding this issue.

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We will keep you informed and we intend to make a final decision no later than the first week of April.

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In the meantime, let us all take care of ourselves and do our part so that the pandemic can be overcome as soon as possible and that it has the least possible consequences.

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Sincerely,

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Miriam Peixoto