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OtherNews25 Jun 2026

DISSECT COST Action Holds Fourth Parallel Working Group Meeting

DISSECT held its fourth Parallel Working Group Meeting on June 25, 2026, bringing together all five Working Groups alongside updates on the upcoming Ghent meeting, new grant opportunities, the Action's website and first newsletter, and two proposed training schools. Maria Aleksandrova presented a report and demonstration of the DISSECT platform. Working Groups then shared progress on their year-one deliverables before breaking into parallel sessions and reporting back on key discussion points and next steps.

Author

Maria Aleksandrova

The DISSECT COST Action Meeting

The DISSECT COST Action will convene its fourth round of Parallel Working Group Meetings today, June 25, 2026, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM CET, bringing together all five Working Groups for a session focused on year-one deliverables, platform development, and upcoming training opportunities. The meeting will be moderated by Pallvi Kaul.

Plenary Updates and Opening the Session

The first 45 minutes of the meeting are dedicated to plenary updates across several action-wide initiatives. Pallvi Kaul will open with a welcome note and an update on the Action's first publication, followed by a series of short briefings:

  • Wim Ceelen will provide updates on the upcoming Ghent meeting, including dates, program details, and the reimbursement selection criteria for attendees.
  • Sarah Cosyns, in her role as Grant Awarding Coordinator, will share information on grants available for the next funding period.
  • Miroslava Chortova will update members on the Action's social media channels and website, including the launch of its first newsletter.
  • Dara Lundon will present a proposal for a training school to be held in Ireland.
  • Daniel Wettstein will introduce a separate training school focused on mentorship.
  • Maria Aleksandrova will close the plenary segment with a report and live demonstration of the DISSECT platform.

Working Group Reports and Breakout Sessions

From 5:45 to 6:10 PM, each of the five Working Groups will deliver short summaries (five minutes each) on the status of their year-one deliverables, survey dissemination, and early results:

  • WG1 – Identifying Disparities (Jean Calleja Aguis / Pallvi Kaul)
  • WG2 – Building Research Capacity (Carmela Caballero / Dara Lundon)
  • WG3 – MDT (Henry Smith / Eric van der Stok), reporting on survey dissemination, early results, and a proposed exploration of an EU-wide AI survey raised by Carmela Caballero
  • WG4 – Surgical Mentorship (Stefan Stättner / Susanna Polotto)
  • WG5 – Innovation (Karol Połom / Pedro Gouveia)

Members will then break into parallel breakout sessions from 6:10 to 6:40 PM for focused group discussion. The meeting reconvenes at 6:40 PM for brief three-minute report-backs from each Working Group, summarizing key discussion points and outlining future activities, before Wim Ceelen delivers the closing wrap-up at 6:55 PM.