The New Normal

With the pandemic, organising any sort of gathering is a problem. The Pharmaceutical companies usually hold talks and lectures, introducing their products as well as disseminating their marketing information with lectures and discussions, laced with some nice meals. The Doctors benefited by having the chance to hear directly from global leading Opinion Leaders and regional speakers, face to face.

Unfortunately, with the travel restrictions, organising talks proved a problem, conferences had been postponed, and big yearly international meet-ups had gone virtual! The local Pharmaceuticals had been organising talks and webinars constantly, and lately, with too many of them going on, it had been getting on my nerves. After listening to one or two, I started to get the hang of things.

The content was usually the same, something I had heard for the past couple of years - some even the last five years. But they had made it a twist - such as “Managing blood clots in the time of COVID-19 pandemic”. The guidelines and choice of treatments remain the same. The same rhetorics and messages spewed. Worse still, the speakers were not even a real expert in that particular field, often practising in a different speciality.

After a few sessions, I started to become selective in which webinars I participated in. I always email the organisers back for confirmation either I would be joining the talks or otherwise. Some were understanding, but a few felt that I was ungracious for declining their invite. And lately, I no longer gives a hoot. If I am interested in the subject, I will listen to it.

Last week, there were a couple of good talks—one on lymphoma and another on myeloma. There was no disguise by the organiser. None of the “in the era of COVID-19” bull. No point wasting everybody’s time. And the speakers were world-renowned as well, making it worth everybody’s time. Despite the 12 hours time difference, the talk went on without a hitch. No technical issues encountered. No dinner included, though ...