WAIMH 2024 Interim World Congress
- ke-pe 5.–7.6.2024
- Tampere, Finland
The World Association for Infant Mental Health (WAIMH) järjestämä kongressi 5-7.7.2024 Tampereella
Invitation from the WAIMH President
We are excited to announce that the interim WAIMH World Congress for Infant Mental Health will be held in Tampere, Finland on the 5th to 7th June 2024. This is an interim Congress as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the 17th World Congress in Brisbane and the 18th World Congress in Dublin and disrupted the rhythm of our biennial Congress. This interim smaller congress in Tampere will bring our biennial Congress into the previous rhythm of even-numbered years.
We are inviting WAIMH members and all those in infant and family mental health working with infants, young children, and families to submit poster presentations around the theme as to how we can provide the best mental health services for infants, young children, and their families in today’s complex world. We will be interested in posters which represent your recent scientific and research, clinical or advocacy activities.
There are huge discrepancies in the quality of infant and relationship mental health and safety around the world with major social, economic impacting upon the infant and parent relationship between different countries, and within individual nations.
We are planning an exciting series of plenary presentations, but without any parallel sessions.
We invite you to submit a poster about your research and clinical work and ideas following the themes of the Congress. There will be an award for the best poster presentation in the Congress.
Under the general theme of best care for infants and families, there are five themes:
- Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)
- Infants, Young Children and Families of First Nations Peoples
- Infants in Crisis Situations
- Nordic Services in Infant Mental Health
- Other
Accepted poster abstracts will be published and included in a special Congress edition of the Infant Mental Health Journal.
We have much to learn about important and diverse community structures, mental health and social needs of infants and families from the world’s First Nations peoples and our most populous countries.
In Finland, and many other countries, parents and their newborn baby receive a “baby box”, with some clothing, baby, essential care supplies, and the box itself which can function as a beginning crib. This is as a concrete gesture of support for the exciting and awesome tasks ahead for parents.
We invite Congress participants to submit a poster or images of what might be available to support families in your area of the world, or your country. This may form a separate poster display at the Congress.
The Congress will be working closely with the Nordic WAIMH affiliate and colleagues.
There will be Invited Plenary Presentations on June 5, 6 & 7, and opportunities to view and discuss the many poster presentations in the breaks on these days.
The Congress language will be English.
There may be a pre-Congress opportunity to meet with Finnish and other Nordic professionals working within the field of early childhood.
We look forward to seeing many colleagues working with infants and families from across the world at our Interim Congress in Finland. Tampere is a wonderful train ride through the Finnish countryside directly from Helsinki airport. We are planning an opening ceremony at that Tampere Congress Hall, a welcome reception at the City Hall nearby, and a congress dinner at the Vapriikki Museum. The famed Moomin Museum is located at the Congress Hall. We are sure that you will have wonderful time in the Land of the Midnight Sun.
Again, on behalf of the Board of WAIMH, we invite you to join us in exploring developments in infant mental health in Tampere, Finland, next year.
Campbell Paul
President of WAIMH
