Value creation at EASL does not stop at its members, partners, and delegates. EASL is committed to providing a lasting, positive impact on the lives of those who are connected to our events, as well as all the people living and working in the communities who host them. EASL Impact projects are designed to leave a lasting impression of sustainable action and healthy change.
In 2022, EASL launched its first impact projects to coincide with the International Liver Congress™ (ILC) hosted in London, UK.
Activities took place locally in London, on the congress premises, in the community & in medical schools while leveraging lay media to raise awareness nationally and even internationally.
At ILC London 2022, our impact events were focused on providing early education on liver health, attracting key talent in the field, and supporting efforts to improve preventive screening of liver diseases.
Media Coverage
The projects were covered by various national press outlets within the UK and abroad. EASL used the media momentum to address liver health, prevention, early detection, and stigma more broadly with public readers across Europe.
Dissemination & Recognition
ICCA Community Forum
Shared insights and inspired delegates at the ICCA Community Forum in Lausanne, Switzerland 2022 on the importance of creative impact and adding social value to medical congresses.
ICCA Annual Congress
At the ICCA Annual Congress in Krakow, Poland in 2022, EASL presented the impact projects as a case study on the success of measuring social impact and driving change in host destinations and won a Shark Tank Pitch on the best impact projects presented
Be Nice to Your Liver
To enhance awareness of liver health in the young population and local communities to encourage prevention and reduce barriers to early detection and care.
This project brought local elementary school students to the forefront of prevention and education via an interactive discussion with a hepatologist.
Younger people are at the core stage of habit forming, and positive messaging makes a massive difference on the habits of exercise and healthy diets
– Dr. Kosh Agarwal, Hepatologist
At Calverton Primary, a local London school, students aged 10-11 were encouraged to take care of their livers to lead healthy and happy lives. They illustrated their newly found understanding of common risk factors in posters that were then presented, during the opening ceremony of ILC 2022 at which they had front row seats.
Look after your liver.
Ingest healthy food.
Violent attacks of sugar,
Leave her in a bad mood.
Everyone knows
She’s like an engine.
Boring into chemicals
In the blood system
– Calverton Primary student
We are quite lucky today. We’ve never had workshops such as this, especially to touch on something as important as the liver, something that, I think, we’ve all underestimated
– Mr. Abiola, Calverton Teacher
Hepatology is Hot
To promote excellence in liver health care and research by attracting the best young minds to hepatology as a medical specialty
I am honoured to be part of EASL – this forward-looking organisation trying to engage and inspire the next generation of hepatologists. It was a pleasure being able to transfer my knowledge and passion for liver health to the incredible emerging doctors in the field
– Prof. Emmanuel Tsochatzis, Hepatologist and former EASL Scientific Committee Chair
‘Hepatology is Hot’ focused on creating an interactive presentation on the opportunities and advantages that a career in hepatology can offer. Medical students in their 4th and 5th year at UCL Medical School were invited to participate and learn about the burden of liver disease, the latest advances in hepatology care and research. They were given special access passes to the Congress and introduced to how a medical society like EASL can accompany health professionals throughout their careers. These students were shown the benefits of choosing hepatology in their upcoming specialisation and were given the chance to network with EASL ambassadors – hepatologists working and teaching in their university.
I have a daughter who is a student and I know how important it is for young professionals to have open conversations and respectful exchanges of ideas between generations. This can be a major contributing factor for their future career, and I can only continue to encourage this initiative in the future
– Prof. Rajeshwar Mookerjee, Hepatologist
Love Your Liver
To be the catalyst of knowledge dissemination around the importance of preventive liver screening and the positive impacts it can have through early diagnosis of liver diseases, treatment and quality of life.
In partnership with the British Liver Trust, a mobile unit outfitted with a Fibroscan screening device was set up in the venue of the congress and offered participants and venue staff free liver screenings and consultations. ‘Love Your Liver’ promoted the value of preventive screening while discussing risk factors and lifestyle habits in a safe and comfortable space. EASL organised this event to give back to the local community that worked with EASL to make the Congress a success.
Going to the doctor and having tests done can be daunting. The mobile unit is a much less formal environment, so you feel more relaxed going for a test and talking about the health of your liver. The whole experience made me reflect on the importance of pro-actively monitoring your general health and well-being
– Claire Sellick, Senior Marketing Manager at ExCel London
By being fully engaged partners in the EASL impact project, we managed to showcase the potential of community involvement. By inviting local school pupils to learn about liver health at the Congress and offering free liver health checks to ExCel staff, we made the London community a true part of the event and left an enduring and positive legacy
– ExCel London
