2018 Year-End Letter From the President

Dear Members of World Sleep Society,

As 2018 winds to a close, I want to convey that we can all feel pride about our accomplishments within the field of sleep medicine and research. World Sleep Society has grown tremendously in the last few years, placing ourselves as a leader in the sleep medicine field.

Success like we have experienced could not have been possible without the dedication of our international committee members, coupled with the solid leadership and hard work of our dedicated staff at the central office. Mentioning World Sleep Society’s growth, several examples came to mind. (Read the full 2018 Annual Report.)

World Sleep Congress
It is an exciting time in the field of sleep medicine and research. World Sleep 2019 will take place in September in Vancouver, Canada. Though months away, we have already accepted more science and seen more attendance interest than in the past. We are working hard at selecting the best science from the more than 160 symposia proposals that were received. This success must be credited to you—the World Sleep Society community—and your revolutionary science. Thank you for your passion and involvement.

Awareness
Though our worldwide congress was not held in 2018, our impressions made did not cease. We have increased our subscriber list 81% since 2016. Our followers on social media have increased 191%, as #WorldSleepDay rose to the #1 trend on Twitter in March. World Sleep Day 2018 was the most internationally diverse of any on record—adding eight new participating countries. With nearly 300 individuals teaching healthy sleep principles around the globe, sleep is increasingly recognized as one of the pillars for sustainable health. And our community is at the forefront of this recognition.

Education
World Sleep Society’s International Sleep Research Training Program (ISRTP) is making progress, thanks to Dr. Clete Kushida who spearheaded this initiative. This exciting, multi-year program will provide sleep research training to international trainees (i.e., post-doctoral students with PhD, MD, or equivalent degrees). ISRTP will provide an opportunity for trainees, especially those in underserved countries, to train at major academic institutions so they can acquire sleep research skills from experienced investigators. In turn, the program will foster a cohort of future sleep research leaders who will keep the field of sleep medicine and research vibrant with their new ideas, plans and goals.

As 2019 begins, please allow us to say thank you. Thank you for your continued dedication, loyalty and support. It is a great honor to lead this fine organization with the aid of our many international committees and leading experts. May we all take a moment to relish in our success before taking that first step toward creating an even more successful next year. We are advancing sleep health worldwide.

Sincerely,

Charles M. Morin, PhD

President, World Sleep Society
2019 Program Committee