Dr Lucky Cuenza

"So, hello, everyone. I am Dr Lucky Cuenza and with me is Dr Aaysha Cader. She’s an interventional cardiologist from Bangladesh. And we are the social media editors for the Journal of the Asian Pacific Society of Cardiology. And we have a very special guest today. Clinical Associate Professor Jonathan Yap is an interventional cardiologist and consultant at the National Heart Centre, Singapore. He is part of the organising committee as Scientific chairman of the upcoming APSC Congress 2023.In addition, Dr. Jonathan Yap is an associate editor of the Journal of the Asian Pacific Society of cardiology, published by Radcliffe cardiology on behalf of the Asian Pacific Society of Cardiology. So, welcome, Jonathan.

Prof Jonathan Yap

Thanks for having me.

Dr Lucky Cuenza

So, let's get right to it, Jonathan. Tell us about this year's APSC meeting and who should be attending.

Prof Jonathan Yap

Thanks, Lucky. This year's APSC is one of the first fully in person meetings after the end of the pandemic. And, as you know, our team is emerging from COVID stronger than ever, and the comprehensive programme has been prepared by a committee and faculty. We have a stellar line-up plan with reputable speakers covering a breadth of talks. We hope the conference will not only cater to cardiologists and cardiac surgeons, but also appeal to other physicians, trainees, medical students, nurses, and allied health. We hope there will be lots of lively discussions and meaningful interactions between faculty and participants during this in-person meeting.

Dr Aaysha Cader

Thanks, John. Expanding on the scientific programme, what are the breadth of the topics being covered at this year's APSC meeting? Could you tell us, please?

Prof Jonathan Yap

Thanks, Aaysha. First, I would like to highlight the comprehensive pre-Congress workshops that have been prepared. This includes an exercise prescription workshop, a CT reading workshop, heart failure preceptorship course and the EECC examination preparatory course. We strongly encourage everyone to attend some of these pre-congress workshops. For the main congress itself, there has been an extensive range of topics covered that will cater to varied interests, beyond the usual interventional, imaging and electrophysiology sessions planned with world-class talks. Other areas covered include the latest in management of metabolic diseases, numerous innovations in cardiology, and sessions on critical care, women in cardiology, sports cardiology, and pulmonary hypertension, amongst many others.

Dr Lucky Cuenza

You've already mentioned some of the highlights of the scientific programme for this year. What should people look forward to at APSC and why should we go to APSC?

Prof Jonathan Yap

That's a tough, tough question. All right. Everything has been thoughtfully and meticulously planned, and it's probably quite hard to choose between things. If I may, some highlights will include the vessel sessions by the APSC Young Cardiology Committee. We have a session discussing complex issues in cardiology, like revascularization and antiplatelet therapy, as well as an exciting session on heart failure guidelines. Some other highlights include our plenary session on innovations in valve therapy, and there will be a great lecture delivered by the world-renowned Professor Chaim Lotan. We also like to encourage everyone to attend some of the industry sessions as these are very educational as well.

Dr Aaysha Cader

Awesome. John. Just to wrap up, you're also the associate editor of the Journal of Asia Pacific Society of Cardiology. That’s JAPSC. Would you like to introduce to our viewers what the journal is and perhaps a little bit about its scope?

Prof Jonathan Yap

It’s really an honour to be able to introduce this journal to everyone. The JAPSC is really the flagship journal of the Asian Pacific Society of Cardiology. It’s really envisioned to be a journal for the people of the Asia Pacific. Aims to provide a platform for the Cardiology Scientific Committee in the region to publish relevant articles from the region. The journal publishes quite a wide range of article types, from original research reviews to case reports, and will be a great stage to showcase your research works to everyone. So, we strongly encourage everyone to submit good quality research to our journal.

Dr Lucky Cuenza

Thank you very much to my colleague Aaysha and to Dr Jonathan Yap for graciously taking the time to answer our questions and we look forward to seeing you and everyone at APSC 2023 in Singapore. Thanks, everyone.”