The International Conference on Neuro Degenerative Disorders (nEUROcare Project) – 9th and 10th of February 2023

The International Conference on Neuro Degenerative Disorders was held at the University of Colombo on the 9^th and 10^th of February 2023 as a part of the nEUROcre project. The event was organized by the Faculty of Nursing, University of Colombo (UOC), and Prof. SSP Warnakulasooriya, the Dean Faculty of Nursing, UOC, and the Country Manager of the nEUROcare project chaired the event. Prof. Håkan Pihl, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Kristianstad, graced the event as the chief guest.

Major General Milinda Peiris, the Vice Chancellor of KDU, Dr. Prasanna Herath (Project Manager – KDU), and team members Dr. Kalpani Abhayasinghe, Dr. Dinithi Vidanage , Dr. Maliga Wijesiri and Mr. Chandima Kumara from the Department of Nursing and Midwifery, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences- KDU, have participated in this international conference. Prof. HD Karunarathne, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo, Prof. M.D. Lamawansa, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Peradeniya, and Prof. Sujeewa Amarasena, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ruhuna have also participated in this conference. Prof. Martin Jens Person, the international coordinator of the nEUROcare project, and project managers and team members from Sri Lankan and international Universities including the University of Colombo, University of Peradeniya, and the University of Ruhuna, University of Ljubljana in Slovenia, Neapolis University Pafos in Cyprus, the University of Tartu in Estonia, and the Triskelion Institute in Norway, have attended the event. Over 400 students and healthcare professionals in Sri Lanka attended the conference. Local and international module leaders of the upcoming Masters’s degree programme presented the details of the modules, and fifteen authors presented their research findings.

Prof. Zvezdan Pirtošek, Professor of Neurology and Cognitive Neuroscience and Head of the Chair of Neurology at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, delivered the keynote speech. Dr. Prasanna Herath and Dr. Dinithi Vidanage also delivered presentations as module leaders of the project, representing the KDU. At the end of the conference, a panel discussion was held regarding neurodegenerative disorders in Sri Lanka and Dr. Indika Mudalige, Senior Lecturer and Consultant Psychiatrist, attended the discussion, representing the KDU.