Dear Friends,

I am very honoured to address you all in my new role as President of EULAR and extend my warmest greetings to all of you. EULAR has been a beacon of excellence in the field of Rheumatology since its establishment in 1947, earning a distinguished reputation as a non-profit organisation in the service for individuals with musculoskeletal disease in Europe and around the world.

As a new president, you are frequently faced with the question about “your” agenda for the elected term. While this question is flattering, it is important to state here that EULAR, by its growth and current size, has become a huge ocean cruiser: no single person will (and should!) create substantial deviations from this successful path. It has become more and more important to have a trusting and collegial leadership team where one presidency links into the agenda of the one before and paths the way for the one following.

Nevertheless, there are obviously several items that are close to my heart: EULAR stands for the advancement of research and education in rheumatology and for using all its professionalism, heart, and passion for advocating for rheumatic conditions on the political level. And to fight inequity. For example, access to drugs and medical care is still highly varying across European nations, and one of EULAR’s core missions must be to create equal opportunity for all patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal disease regardless of which part of the continent they call their home. Europe’s intrinsic diversity must not serve as a convenient excuse in this context, rather, this diversity of healthcare systems across Europe is exactly why an umbrella organisation like EULAR can actually make a difference. EULAR can, for example, coordinate European-wide projects that help provide the actual data to better quantify and better understand inequity so that strategies can be implemented to improve the status quo. And EULAR continuously strives to improve, expand its offerings, and, most importantly, understand and follow the needs of the members of its constituency.

Improving the lives of patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases certainly goes beyond Europe, and EULAR has a global mission. Here, it is pleasant and encouraging at the same time to find EULAR, together with regional leagues around the world, working collaboratively on the worldwide improvement of rheumatological care. This spirit has become a reality as, over many years, trust and an atmosphere of friendship have created bonds that allow many things to materialise across the globe in a coordinated way to the best of EULAR’s most central stakeholders: our patients.

But speaking about things that are close to my heart, the EULAR European Congress of Rheumatology simply fills me with pride: it is not only our flagship event, delivering an unparalleled experience year after year; it is also the place where the patients, health professionals, rheumatologists and industry partners network in the midst of the latest scientific breakthroughs in clinical, translational, and basic research. The sole and central anchor of the Congress will always have to be excellence, which EULAR also as an organisation stands for. In the future, the implementation of evidence in real life and for the good of all patients will be one of the challenges to tackle. The EULAR 2023 Congress in Milan was a tremendous success with both onsite and online components, with extended access to the complete Scientific Programme for the whole of the remaining year, and the EULAR 2024 Congress in the beautiful city of Vienna, Austria, will kick off exactly from there.

Finally, I want to convey my words of great appreciation and thanks to all our volunteers in EULAR, scientists and patients affected by rheumatic conditions, who work hours and hours next to their “real” jobs, who inspire EULAR with their genuine passion; and I wish to thank the Office in Kilchberg, which has grown to a large team that I am convinced is not only going to manage any challenge that we may face in the future, but which will be the guarantee for moving that path to the future of European rheumatology efficiently and smoothly.

With warmest regards,

Daniel Aletaha 
EULAR President 

​EULAR Board ​