University

• M.D. Catholic University of Leuven 1967
• Specialist in Internal Medicine KULeuven 1972, with interest in Geriatric Medicine
• Medical Director of St.Jozef Hospital, from 1980-1999; and from AZDamiaan from 1999 till now (One of the bigger teaching hospitals in Belgium).
• Official recognition as Geriatrician 2006
• Associate Professor KULeuven 1996
• Professor Benelux Universitair Centrum
• Invited Professor Université du Luxembourg 2006

Principal Scientific assignments

• Full member of the Belgian Society of Gerontology and Geriatrics (BSGG)1971
• Secretary General BSGG from 1977 till today.
• President BSGG 1981-1983
• President of the Prof.Hellemans Foundation for Research in Geriatric medicine from 1984 till today.
• Member of the Scientific Board of the “Stichting voor Psychogeriatrie”
• Full Overseas member of the British Geriatric Society 1981
• Member of the American Geriatric Association 1984
• Member of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Geriatrie e.V. 1985
• Secretary of the Clinical Section of the International Association of Gerontology – European Region 1999-2003
• Member of the advisory board “Revue de Gériatrie”
• Founding member and Treasurer of the European Union Geriatric medicine Society 2000.
• President of the Clinical Section of the International Association of Gerontology – European Region 2003- 2007
• Chair of the European Nutrition for Health alliance 2005-now
• Member (and former Vice-Chair) of the Belgian National Council of Hospitals

Medical activity

• Head of the department of Geriatric Medicine of the AZ Damiaan in Ostende from 1974 till today (now General Hospital DAMIAAN), with training of many trainees in Geriatric Medicine.

Topics of interests and research

• Rehabilitation Geriatric Patients
• Rehabilitation Stroke patients
• Rehabilitation Swallowing problems after stroke
• Financing Geriatric Care in Hospitals
• DRG’s and Geriatrics
• Regional Organization of the Care of the older persons
• Dementia
• Palliative Care
• Medications in Geriatric Care

Prof. Norah Keating is Chair of the North American Regional Committee of IAGG. She is Past President of the Canadian Association on Gerontology and served on its board of directors during the planning for the IAGG World Congress in Vancouver in 2001. She is involved in international in research and policy development and has had recent international research fellowships and consultations with the Centre for Social Policy Research and Development (Bangor, UK), The Centre for Social Gerontology (Keele, UK), University of Victoria (NZ), Taiwan Family Caregivers Association, and University of Heidelberg (Germany). Prof. Keating has been recognized for her contributions to health research by the award of Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences and is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America.

Prof. Keating is a founding member and co-director of Research on Aging, Policies and Practice, University of Alberta which has an international group of co-investigators, collaborators, and policy and practice partners. RAPP is recognized for its research on unpaid work (caregiving, volunteer, and community engagement), ageing well, and community support to older adults; and for its impact on public policy related to population aging.

Prof. Keating often is invited to national and international conferences and policy meetings to discuss caregiving in Canada and community issues related to population aging. Author of more than 150 publications, Prof. Keating is the lead author on the book, ‘Eldercare in Canada’ which provided the first national profile of family and friend caregiving in Canada. She is known for her work on deconstructing assumptions about family/friend caregiving and often consults with government on caregiving policy. Her program of research also focuses on the contributions made by older adults in the voluntary, community and family/friend sectors. She is the editor of ‘Critical perspectives on rural ageing’ which addresses processes of aging in rural areas and considers older adults in the contexts of their social networks, the formal services sector, and their communities.

Prof. Keating is actively involved in mentorship of young scholars. She has supervised more than 40 postgraduate students, and has worked with postdoctoral fellows in her lab and elsewhere in her research networks. She has helped develop national and international student gerontology associations. Recently she received the Evelyn Shapiro Mentorship award from the Canadian Association on Gerontology in recognition of this work.

Dr. Mohd Ghazali Abdul Ghaib obtained his PHD in Industrial Relation System from New Castle University, USA and has vast experience in the field of Industrial Relation System, particularly in the Malaysian context.

• He has worked with the Government of Malaysia for 30 years, in various Departments of the Ministry of Human Resource. He was the Deputy Director General of the Department of Industrial Relations and later promoted to Director General in the Department of Employees Union Affairs under the Ministry of Human Resource Malaysia.
• In 2008, he was nominated as the Chairman of the Public Transport Investigation Commission and he is currently lecturing at the Malacca Technical University.
• Besides being the President of the Gerontological Association of Malaysia (GeM) he is also the Deputy President of the Malaysia Human Resources Consultants Association and is also a member of the Asian Institute Management Science.
• He has his own consultancy firm QHR Consultancy of which he is the Chairman.
• During his appointment with the Government, he represented Malaysia in many conferences and training courses  in the field of Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations held in countries like Switzerland, Japan and Thailand.
• In 2008, he was nominated as a member of the National Advisory Council on Ageing , one of the highest Committee on Ageing Issues of Malaysia chaired by the Honourable Minister of Women, Family and Community Development.
• In 2008 he was nominated as one of the members of the Technical Committee on Population Strategic Plan Study by the National Population and Family Development Board Malaysia. The Committee is at national level entrusted to evaluate and monitor the long term population growth objective which is to raise the quality of human life in Malaysia through appropriate population and development policies.
• At intervals he is invited to give talks at seminars and conferences on topics related to effective communications, bridging the intergenerational gap, moral values, motivational talks and grand parenting.

Dr. Valerie WRIGHT-ST CLAIR is a registered occupational therapist and senior lecturer at the Department of Occupational Science & Therapy, AUT University, Auckland, New Zealand. Dr. WRIGHT-ST CLAIR's academic interests span the fields of gerontology, occupational science, cross cultural research and interpretive phenomenology. Her research focuses on being in the everyday in advanced age, elders' everyday occupations, the relationship between elder's participation & longevity, and exploring the meaning of what people do.

Prof. Yesim Gökce Kutsal is the director of Research and Application Center of Geriatric  Sciences GEBAM and professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University Ankara-Turkey. She has got the European Board Certificate in 2000. Dr.Gökçe Kutsal is the representative of her country in International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics (IAGG) and observer member of European Union Geriatric Medicine Society (EUGMS).

Dr.Gökçe Kutsal is the Founder and President of Turkish Geriatrics Society since 2003, Founder and Executive Board member of the Turkish Osteoporosis Society since 1998, Founder Vice President of the Society of Life With Osteoporosis since 2002, Scientific Board member of the “Turkish Medical Index”  in the Scientific and Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK ULAKBİM) since 1994.

She has worked as a member of the “Executive Board” of Turkish Medical Association between the years 1998-2000, member of the “Honorary Committee” of Ankara Chamber of Medical Doctors in 1998-2002, member of the “Consultation Group for Ethical Problems” in the Scientific and Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) in 1999-2000, member of “Clinical Consultancy Board for Analgesic Drugs” in Ministry of Health in 1992-1993.

She is the Chief Editor of “Turkish Journal of Geriatrics” (in SCI Exp) since 1998, Editorial Board member of “Turkish Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine” since 1993 and  she works as a Scientific Reviewer in International Journal of Age and Aging and Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences and also six national journals. She is a member of various international and national scientific societies and associations in her field and has been an invited speaker on numerous international courses and congresses.

Specific areas of interest and expertise: Aging of the musculoskeletal system, Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis, Geriatric rehabilitation, Rationale drug use in elderly, Quality of life in elderly, Low back pain, Evidence based medicine, Medical ethics, Good clinical practice.

Publications: Dr.Gökçe Kutsal has edited one international, and 22 national books, has written 4 chapters in international and 26 chapters in national books, has a total of 45 articles published in international journals and 217 articles published in national journals.