The Ministry of Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine and the Department of Ayurveda, in collaboration with University of Sri Jayewardenepura and World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a program to share expertise, knowledge and skills on cutting edge research interventions and inventions on Traditional and Complementary Medicine through an International Symposium on Traditional and Complementary Medicine, and an Educational Exhibition and Trade Fair – 2017 from November 23 to 24 at the Water’s Edge Hotel, Colombo.
This International conference aims to promote the need of Evidence Based Research leading to an Integrative approach and personalized medical systems through Evidence Based Practices and creating a platform to form Multidisciplinary Research Collaborations and Public Private Partnerships.
The International symposium will be attended by over 30 eminent speakers from USA, UK, Australia, Singapore, Japan, China, India, South Korea, Netherlands, Iran and Thailand, where more than 48 lecture sessions will be conducted by Local and International experts.
Researchers will be offered an opportunity to share their research findings through oral and poster presentations. Abstracts to be presented will be selected based on the scientific validity through peer review by a panel of internationally selected reviewers who are specialized in each subject.
Approximately 120 original abstracts will be selected for oral presentation and 100 abstract will be selected for poster presentation.
The outstanding abstracts (100-150) will be published in the Biomed Central Journal of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (Impact Factor- 2.288). This is the first time that Sri Lankan Traditional Medicine Symposium proceedings will be published in an International Journal listed in PubMed of the US National Library of Medicine.
The overall aim of the International Symposium is to share the expertise and novelties in evidence based practices of Traditional Medical systems in disease prevention, diagnosis and management and use of modern science and technology, diagnostic tools, bio-medical information system in traditional medicine in relation to the safe and effective product development with quality and standard. Also promote strategies for healthy life style to public through a public forum.
Another expected outcome of the International Symposium is the issuance of Colombo Declaration/ Statement, a Ministerial level commitment of the participating countries to implement important outcomes of the Symposium. Target audience will be International and local practitioners and stakeholders of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and other traditional/ indigenous systems of medicine, researchers in natural/ herbal products development, academics, scientists, researchers, professionals, industrialists and investors, policy makers and Educational Exhibition and Trade Fair will be free for all and open for public.
The Educational Exhibition and Trade Fair will be a parallel event to the symposium and will an opportunity for representatives of local and international herbal based industries to meet under one umbrella.