Virtual but with a human touch

At a time when social distancing is in force, in which we are all at home due to COVID -19, FIMP decided to maintain the contact with its members, offering a unique and personalized place where they could meet. Usually we meet in a conference center, a public and neutral place, but in this historical moment it was thought that it was better to meet at home, from home, in a large hospitable and welcoming villa, where they could discuss in serenity and simplicity, in a serious and respectful environment, not too formal but efficient. FIMP thus welcomed its members and all those who chose to attend to the FIMP House.The congress was celebrated in virtual mode over 3 days, from 15^th to 17^th October, when the FIMP House opened its doors.

As simple as a visit to a friend’s house

The access to the house was in the main entrance by ringing the bell and entering the password.The living room was the heart of the house, from where you could make a tour of the house and find the different rooms which were allocated different sessions and topics of interest.The navigation was simple: Click on the TV monitor in the room and the broadcasting of the sessions starts and if you want to ask a question just click on the appropriate button and start the chat. An Info Point staffed by the Organising Secretariat answered any questions or delegates could consult the Program, which was a catalogue placed in the middle of all the rooms.

Personalize the use of content

Each participant could move freely among the rooms and the garden, looking around and staying according to their interests and their time. Each visit was personal and unique.

The Dining Room was the setting for the plenary sessions, held every morning and accredited for CME. From the Living Room, you could access the afternoon sessions, which took place in parallel in the Kitchen, in the Bedroom, in the Study and in the Garden. The Kitchen was dedicated to issues such as proper nutrition, vegetarian cuisine or diabetes. In the Bedroom issues related to neuroscience and sleep disorders were addressed. The Study gave space to infantile neurodevelopment, hypotonic children, gastroenterology, the appropriateness of antibiotics. In the Garden, you could find sessions dedicated to child neuropsychiatry and dermatology.

All the sessions were available on demand for six months, so that everyone could attend each of the parallel sessions in their own time.

Meet the Sponsors

The discreet presence of sponsors accompanied the doctors’ visit and was harmoniously integrated into the visit. In the Living Room, some paintings depicted Sponsors who supported the Congress and who were available to meet in the external exhibition area. A panoramic view from above the outdoor exhibition area featured all the stands, where you could choose which one to visit. Once you entered the virtual stand, you could, for example, consult pdf brochures, watch promotional videos, click on external company links and start a direct contact form or, in some cases, a video chat with company staff. It was perceived to be a lively and useful experience.