The EAACI‐AAAAI‐WAO Junior Members’ joint survey: A worldwide snapshot of Allergy and Clinical Immunology specialty

Abstract

Background Education and training in Allergy and Clinical Immunology (A/I) are characterized by a great variability worldwide. However, objective and worldwide data regarding this topic are lacking. Methods To investigate personal information, education, and involvement in scientific societies of juniors engaged in A/I field, a questionnaire was developed by representatives from the JMs’ boards of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI), and the World Allergy Organization (WAO). Results A total of 543 questionnaires were collected from 76 regions of all continents. The geographic distribution of responders was as follows: Africa‐Middle East 3.0%, Asia‐Pacific 21.4%, Europe 48.2%, Latin America 12.1%, and North America 15.3%. 59.0% of responders declared that A/I is recognized as a separate specialty in their country, Europe mostly accounting for that proportion. Primary interest in the field represents the main motivation for choosing A/I specialty. Concerning involvement in scientific societies, 41.1% of responders ever attended an EAACI Congress, 20.6% an AAAAI Congress, and 20.4% a WAO Congress. According to 40.3% of responders, scientific societies do not provide enough opportunities for young members, and 96.4% believes in a more intensive cooperation between the A/I Societies. Conclusions The survey provides the first worldwide perspective about A/I specialty. It represents the first ever example of a structured collaboration between the junior members (JMs) of the three main A/I Societies. The findings suggest the need for harmonization, at least in terms of training and formation in the field of A/I worldwide.

Real‐life impact of COVID‐19 pandemic lockdown on the management of pediatric and adult asthma: A survey by the EAACI Asthma Section

“…On the other hand, part of the data collected in EAACI survey is only indicative of the subjective appreciation of the responders. Moreover, similar to previous multinational surveys on allergy, 5,12 our study has a predominance of European responders, especially from Mediterranean countries. This finding likely reflects both the origin of EAACI membership and the regional differences in the implementation of Allergy specialty.…”

“…Although a larger sample size would have been desirable, the number of survey participants is in line with previous multinational studies using a similar methodology. 5,12 Even though national guidelines for asthma management during the pandemic existed in most countries, in many cases they were not crucial to determine the strategy to follow, as the responders were following the same approach before being aware of the guidelines. As previously reported, 13 this observation probably reflects that most national documents were mainly based on expertconsensus just providing common sense recommendations that would be anyways implemented.…”

Perspectives and gaps in the management of food allergy and anaphylaxis in the Asia-Pacific Region

“…According to that survey, the Asia-Pacific area had the lowest recognition of allergy/immunology as a specialty, with 30% of respondents in the Asia-Pacific region stating that allergy/immunology was considered a specialty in their country or territorty, compared to 60-70% in Europe and America. 23 The diagnosis and management of allergic diseases often require a multidisciplinary approach, including collaboration with other health care providers such as primary care physicians, gastroenterologists, and dermatologists. Allergists frequently play a central role in encouraging cross-disciplinary care such that the quality of care for patients with complex allergic disease can be improved.…”