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This important session was held in the main auditorium and started with the lecture on “Ethical considerations during the Covid-19 pandemic” by Marco Vergano from Italy. He made a deep overview on clinical and organisational ethics for the allocations of patients in intensive care. The lecture went through strategies for scarce resources. Prioritising patients is the key point in a pandemic situation. He discussed the situation in Italy since February when the first Covid-19 case was registered and then followed the exponential increase in cases, which made Italy the most affected country by Covid-19 after China. His group has published allocation strategies for ICU resources, including triage principles and criteria. Prof Vergano gave an overview of UK well as American guidelines. Interestingly, some data showed that some patients will never completely recover after ICU admissions. Therefore, “ICU is not a panacea”. Age and associated frailty are the two most important factors in this decision-making process. Finally, the most important lessons of this time is that “tolerating uncertainty” might be the next medical revolution.

The Opening Session of the sixth EAN Congress, the first Virtual EAN Congress in our society's history, was special in more than one way. The unprecedented upheaval of the global COVID-19 pandemic affects societies across the globe and mirrors the turbulent times we all live in. EAN has made a great contribution to improve this unsettling situation by moving the 6th EAN Congress online and offering free registration to all, providing thousands of medical professionals with important access to medical education.

Despite some positive slowing of new cases and deaths in some countries, the COVID-19 pandemic has infected until today over 3.5 million people, leading to more than 250,000 deaths across the globe. Without a doubt, the crisis sparked by this pandemic has also wreaked havoc on healthcare systems and economies while causing massive disruption to the everyday lives of people around the world.

For May 2020, we have selected: Lechien JR, Chiesa-Estomba CM, De Siati DR et al. Olfactory and gustatory dysfunctions as a clinical presentation of mild‑to‑moderate forms of the coronavirus disease (COVID‑19): a multicenter European study.

France is a country of tradition and innovation: France was a pioneer country in Neurology since the 19th century, with seminal clinical and pathological description of many neurological diseases by Charcot (1825-1893) in Salpêtriere hospital in Paris and his colleagues, illustrated by the famous painting by Brouillet “a clinical lesson at the Salpêtriere”.

Covid-19 has affected over 500,000 people and caused over 21,000 deaths. People from all over the world are making great sacrifices, from social distancing to sustaining economic loss. Healthcare workers are on the frontline, and neurologists are increasingly involved as well.

In these troubled times, our Paper of the Month for April is: Grasselli G, Pesenti A, Cecconi M. Critical care utilization for the Covid-19 outbreak in Lombardy, Italy: Early experience and forecast during an emergency response.

As the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise in the majority of European Countries, including Italy, neurologists should prepare to manage these cases. As already known, preparation has been challenged by rapidly changing guidelines, inconsistent directives, and a lack of testing capability.

As a society aiming to promote excellence in neurology across Europe, one of the European Academy of Neurology’s greatest assets is undoubtedly the strong support from its National Neurological Society Members. As a region with a wide variety of languages, cultures, jurisdictions and needs, Europe certainly presents some challenges when it comes to coordinated action, but what we all have in common as neurologists is a strong desire to reach for excellence, ensure the best possible patient care and to work together to achieve it.

For March 2020, we have selected: Olanow et al, Apomorphine sublingual film for off episodes in Parkinson’s disease: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase 3 study. Lancet Neurology; 19: 135-44.

Ireland – Hibernia (“land of winter” according to the Romans) – sits as the last outpost of North-Western Europe before the vast Atlantic Ocean that separates us from North America. Anyone who has visited the Cliffs of Moher (Figure) on the West Coast of Ireland will appreciate the precipitous point at which Europe ends.

It is such a pleasure for me to see how EAN has been continuously growing in terms of members, activities, engagements, promotion, and impact on several important activities inside the European Community.

For February 2020, we have selected: Kleine-Borgmann J, Schmidt K, Hellmann A, Bingel U. Effects of open-label placebo on pain, functional disability, and spine mobility in patients with chronic back pain: a randomized controlled trial.

Iceland is a country of 360,000 inhabitants, who are mostly of Icelandic ethnic origin together with 11% of people, who are of eastern European ancestry. There are seven universities in Iceland. The University of Iceland has a faculty of medicine, from which around 48 physicians graduate each year. Medical education consists of seven years: three preclinical years, three clinical years and an internship year. Training mostly takes place in the University Hospital in Reykjavik but also in several local hospitals and primary care clinics outside the main hospital. For specialty training in neurology, physicians have to move abroad, and most go to Scandinavia, or to the United States.

One of the main aims of the European Academy of Neurology is to establish common standards of diagnosis, treatment and care within the various subfields of neurology across Europe. As a region of diverse jurisdictions, languages, markets and healthcare challenges, European neurology needs to establish not only guidelines for the diagnosis and the treatment of neurological disorders, but also in order to maintain and enhance the discipline and practice of neurology.