Welcome letter
Dear colleagues and friends,
On the occasion of organizing the first joint congress “Dermatology – in the Service of One Health,” which will bring together experts in human and veterinary medicine, we warmly welcome you on behalf of the interdisciplinary organizing committee.
The organizers of this international congress are the Dermatology Section of the Croatian Veterinary Chamber, the Croatian Society for Dermatologic Oncology of the Croatian Medical Association, the Croatian Dermatovenerological Society of the Croatian Medical Association, and the Croatian Society for Allergology and Clinical Immunology of the Croatian Medical Association.
What inspired us to jointly consider the life, needs, and vulnerabilities of humans and animals, and what does the concept of “One Health” really mean? In the historical development of the “One Health” initiative, early guidelines and a clear need for a broad multidisciplinary understanding of infectious diseases were provided by the German pathologist Rudolf Virchow (1821–1902), who first introduced the term “zoonosis” as a collective name for infectious diseases transmitted between humans and animals. His thinking about the necessity of a unified approach to medicine is best reflected in his statement:
“There is no dividing line, nor should there be, between human and veterinary medicine. The object is different, but the knowledge gained forms the foundation of all medicine.”
Thus, the coexistence of humans with other living beings and the environment is essential to their health. For the survival of the human population, animals and plants are indispensable, but this relationship must meet the needs of all parties, as well as the environment, to be sustainable and safe. Due to numerous challenges in these relationships, there is a need to develop a concept that integrates needs and acts holistically, ensuring a healthy life for humans, animals, plants, and a safe environment. This concept—“One Health”—is a global initiative and strategy to expand interdisciplinary collaboration and communication for the shared protection of human, animal, and environmental health. It is a complex philosophy developed in response to numerous zoonoses and disease groups shared by humans and animals, some of which are transmissible between the two.
Human healthcare providers must never forget that public health protection is at the core of veterinary medicine—something too often overlooked.
Our wish is to bring together renowned domestic and international experts in human and veterinary dermatology, dermatologic oncology, and allergology and clinical immunology to jointly address dermatological diseases through the lens of the “One Health” concept.
Join us with confidence, and let us learn together that all living beings are an inseparable part of planet Earth!
