The 2004 International Conference on Pharmacoepidemiology & Therapeutic Risk Management will take place on August 22-25. "This event is a must," explains one of the organizers, Professor Nicholas Moore from Bordeaux 2 University.

"Pharmacoepidemiology is a vast field, encompassing the advantages, benefits, risks, utilization, and effects related to drug use in populations. A discipline of multiple dimensions, pharmacoepidemiology considers all the stages of a drug's life: its creation, production, marketing, distribution, use, and effects. This concern with the appropriate utilization of drugs is at the heart of public health priorities.

"We are expecting more than 1,000 people"
The Bordeaux conference, which has been planned for three years, will promote French pharmacoepidemiology (including its leading international role in pharmacovigilance), as well as the Bordeaux pharmacology unit, one of the world's most reputable pharmacoepidemiology teams. This was why we chose to hold the event in Bordeaux, in the city's excellent, new, multipurpose Convention Centre.

This international meeting will bring together many professionals, including Bordeaux 2 University Vice-Chancellor Bernard Bégaud. The plenary meetings will discuss pharmacoepidemiology in health profession training programs and public health policy. We are expecting more than 1,000 people to attend, and have already received hundreds of abstracts for proposed presentations, so the conference promises to be fascinating."

The International Conference on Pharmacoepidemiology website:
http://www.pharmacoepi.org/meetings/20thconf/index.cfm

The SFM (French Microbiology Society) will hold its sixth national conference at the Bordeaux Convention Centre on May 10th, 11th, and 12th 2004.

This unique event will bring together experts from different disciplines, including Henri Monteil, President of the SFM as well as Director and Department Head of the Strasbourg Bacteriology Institute.

Bordeaux, a natural choice
"The Bordeaux Convention Centre seemed an obvious venue for the 2004 international conference thanks to its design and facilities, as well as its superb setting in a world-famous city.
Bordeaux is a major university city with a great scientific reputation, as well as an excellent local network of experts in our field.

This sixth national conference will be an exceptional event, with various specialists gathering to discuss progress and challenges in microbiology, which explains this year's title, 'A Bridge Between Disciplines'.
All aspects of microbiology will be examined: infectious agents, cellular and molecular biology, food microbiology, ecology, and virology. More than 450 papers are expected."

SFM is one of France's most important scientific organizations, with 2,600 members. Affiliated with the Federation of European Microbiological Societies, the European Federation of Biotechnology, and the International Union of Microbiological Societies, SFM organized the last world conference on the theme of 'The World of Microbes' in Paris in 2002. The Society also publishes a quarterly report and gives grants to young researchers. They also sponsor about thirty scientific events every year in the field of microbiology.

The SFM website:
http://www.sfm.asso.fr

and Development Centre in Bordeaux-Mérignac.
Eurovia's spokeswoman Emilie Sotton explains:
"These conferences are held annually. This year, more than 1,000 people met in Bordeaux for the first time. It was decided to hold the event in Bordeaux because of the recent opening of our international research centre in the area, and also because the city's new, perfectly-equipped Convention Centre. A world-famous, easily accessible city, Bordeaux meets all the criteria for this type of meeting.

Above and beyond this important conference, our Research and Development Centre welcomes visitors from all over the world in Bordeaux every day. The Bordeaux area has numerous assets: an international airport, many fine hotels, and excellent food and wine."

Eurovia is established in 17 countries and has 35,000 employees who produce a full range of products using processes originating from the Mérignac Research and Development Centre.

The Eurovia website:
http://www.eurovia.com