Australasian College of Phlebology: 2015 Annual Conferring Ceremony

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. It is with great pleasure that my wife Kaye and I warmly welcome you all, in particular interstate and international visitors, to Queensland, to Noosa, and to the Australasian College of Phlebology’s 2015 Conferring Ceremony. 

I thank the College for inviting us to participate this evening and for its inspired choice of location for the 2015 Annual Scientific Meeting, of which this ceremony is a highlight. 

There are many stunningly beautiful parts of Queensland and we are most certainly in one of them today.  Better still, Noosa’s natural beauty is complemented by the good food and retail therapy opportunities for which the region is also famed.

Without encouraging you to skip any part of your busy program, I believe it would be a great shame if you were not also able to enjoy the many attractions of this splendid part of Queensland. Please do!

Kaye and I are doubly fortunate in that attendance at this evening’s event is part of our first official visit to this beautiful spot since I was sworn in as Governor in July last year.

Phlebology is a word that may not ring an immediate bell with everyone.  But that is no reflection on its importance to the health and well-being of the community. 

After all, veins are so familiar and important to us that we use the word as a common metaphor in our everyday speech.   

One short but eminent example will serve this evening.  Martin Luther King once said there was a need “... to inject a new dimension of love into the veins of civilisation”. We understand his meaning instinctively. Aptly, it’s also a medical metaphor.

Diagnosis and treatment of venous conditions brings together a broad coalition of specialists and other medical professionals, scientists and institutions. And our State is delighted to welcome such an eminent gathering of the phlebology “family” in 2015.

The seventeenth Scientific Meeting is a major opportunity for professionals in the field to share invaluable knowledge and experience.

My own experience of professional conferences is that they have something in common with icebergs.

The program of formal presentations is the highly visible face of the event that sits above the surface.  But much of the useful work happens under the surface, in less formal encounters in the corridors, over morning and afternoon breaks, lunch and evening functions – including tonight’s.

I hope you are all experiencing a challenging, productive and enjoyable 2015 Meeting.  I hope also that you return home refreshed and with new knowledge and ideas that will ultimately benefit your communities.

Formal gatherings such as the 2015 Scientific Meeting also serve another highly significant purpose, which is to recognise outstanding service and leadership.

That is the purpose of this evening’s ceremony, and I look forward with great pleasure to presenting two prestigious awards in a short while.   

The gentlemen in question have dedicated many decades to phlebology, whether through pioneering techniques for better diagnosis and treatment or through education and training, ensuring that new generations of highly skilled phlebology specialists emerge.

Let us take their service to the community and pride in their achievements as emblematic of the commitment and ambition of all those present this evening.

I thank the Executive Board of the College for bringing us together for this happy occasion. I congratulate in advance all tonight’s awardees on the honour conferred on them by their peers.

In that uplifting spirit, Kaye and I wish you all an enjoyable and a memorable evening and a marvellous week in beautiful Noosa. Thank you.