SUMMARY REPORT OF THE 12TH GENEVA CONFERENCE ON PERSON CENTERED MEDICINE

The Board of the ICPCM suggested Prof. Robert Cloninger from St. Louis, USA to become the Program Director for this event and he graciously accepted. The theme was chosen as “Promoting well-being and overcoming burn out.” This came as a natural follow-up of previous conferences where well-being has been a prominent issue. Furthermore, it has been evident in recent years that burnout among health professionals has become a real threat, not only to those that are being inflicted by the situation but also to those who rely on service provided by these professionals. This is not a new phenomenon but has been increasing in prevalence throughout the world in recent years and is therefore gaining increased attention. Health authorities have recognized these problems and are concerned but the solutions they generally propose to solve the problem seem not be very efficient. A great emphasis is on increasing resilience of health professionals and to adopt methods to help those already having signs of burnout or that have even entered into the full blown situation. A reflection of the cause of burnout and thereby the root to the solution is found in the preamble of the Declaration adopted by the Board of ICPCM following the event (see in more detail later): “Burnout is caused by a variety of dehumanizing processes in which there is a gap between who a person is and what they are required to do.” Furthermore, this is stated at the end of the preamble: “Effective improvement in the well-being cannot succeed without recognizing that the foundation for well-being in healthcare is respect for the intrinsic dignity of every person. Medical institutions initially tried to minimize or ignore the toxicity of organizational environments in which medical students and practitioners must operate. Hospitals and medical schools tried to improve the resilience of healthcare providers to stress, rather than admitting the need to change toxic organizational conditions. Unfortunately, there has been little benefit from such efforts because the fundamental problem was not addressed. Specifically, person-centered healthcare and people-centered healthcare systems are essential for promoting well-being and overcoming burnout.”

The Legacy of Zhou Enlai’s Diplomacy: Beyond a Memory

Summary Zhou Enlai held the first Premiership of China from 1949, and was the chief executive of Chinese diplomacy until 1976. He set out the communist ideology and the doctrine of realpolitik in light of a calculation between core interests and a flexible approach to the issues. He opined that diplomacy remained a constructive means, even though no immediate fruits were present. Zhou’s negotiating calibre was noted at the Geneva Conference (1954), his persuasive tactics were proven at the Bandung Conference (1955) and his pragmatic approach was recognised during his safari in Africa (1963-1964). This article explores how Zhou convinced his foreign counterparts that China had no intention of challenging the status quo while pursuing its legitimate rights in the world order. Given this, Zhou’s legacy should serve as a policy guide as well as a personal eulogy for the peaceful rise of China today.

SUMMARY REPORT FROM THE 6TH INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF PERSON CENTERED MEDICINE

The idea that the Indian Medical Association (IMA) could host a congress on person-centered medicine (PCM) was presented at the 10th Geneva Conference on PCM in April 2017. The idea was well received and accepted by Prof. Ketan Desai, then President of the World Medical Association (WMA) and former President of the IMA. Soon thereafter preparations began as a collaborative effort of IMA and the International College of Person Centered Medicine (ICPCM). A contract was signed by representatives of IMA and ICPCM stipulating the framework and the financial issues of the congress.

US and Indian Policies in Direct Conflict, Part II

India asserted its influence at the Geneva Conference through the informal participation of Krishna Menon in behind-the-scenes discussions. The Geneva settlement reduced fears among smaller powers that China would intervene in Indo-China and weakened their incentives to join a US-sponsored mutual security alliance. It also deprived China of a rationale for its own expansion to meet a US threat. The “area of peace” thereby served India’s aspiration to protect its role in Indo-China. But this was immediately countered by the US plan to establish SEATO. Indian policymakers treated the United States as its enemy and competitor in Southeast Asia.

Korea

North Korea’s attack against South Korea evoked an immediate military response from the United States, under a UN command, to draw the line against communist expansion in Asia. Once the Chinese entered the war on the side of North Korea, India could not sustain its policy of nonalignment on the merits but began to practice nonalignment as an informal version of neutrality justified as its commitment to seek peace in the nuclear age. When Mao prolonged the war in an effort to win total victory and force the United States out of Asia, India’s bias toward China in the United Nations met with the US decision to exclude India from the Geneva Conference on Korea and Indo-China, paving the way for China to assert its position as a great power.

From Geneva to Geneva: A Discourse on Geo-Political Dimension of Conflict in Laos: 1954–1962

During the cold war period, the problem of Laos was exacerbated due to strategic location of Laos and national interest of external actors. The present paper would analyze various ramifications of the conflict in Laos. Beginning from First Indochina War (1946-1954), fate of Laos was linked very closely with that of Vietnam. With the escalation of conflict, a solution to problem of Laos was nowhere in sight. The Geneva Conference of 1954 did not solve the problem. The three major strands in Laos; Pathet Lao, neutralists and the rightists became a constant feature of Lao politics. Both the United States and North Vietnam came into conflict, as they were committed to help their respective allies in Laos, and regarded the other’s action in Laos as harmful to their interest in South Vietnam. An agreement on Laos became contingent upon ending the war in Vietnam. The net result of outside intervention was prolongation of conflict in Laos. A solution to Lao conflict was in sight after the Geneva accords of 1962. However, the gradual linkage of the country with the Vietnam War made the solution of dependent upon the outcome of conflict in Vietnam. Laos was going to be embroiled in the Vietnam War and there was no peace in sight unless a solution was there in Vietnam. Laos became a sideshow in Vietnam War.

Interview with professor C. Robert Cloninger

On March 26, 2019, at the 12th Geneva Conference on Personality-centered Medicine, I had the opportunity to interview Professor Cloninger – a contemporary theoretician of the personality, creator of the psychobiological theory of personal structure, Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology and Genetics at Wallace Renard, Director of the Center for Social Care at the University of Washington and beyond his many contributions, he is a very warm, positive and spiritual person.