International Fluid Academy (iFAD)

A neglected topic for way too long, the interest in fluid therapy seems to be quickly rising as the medical community is making a shift from looking at fluids as a mere method of stabilization towards the appreciation of its relevant side effects. Fluids should be seen as drugs with indications and contraindications and indeed potential side-effects, as such the best fluids is probably the one that has not been given to the patient. As Paracelsus nicely stated it is the dose that makes the poison, and less is true when it comes to fluid management in the critically ill: it is all about the type of fluids, the dose, the timing and the speed of administration. As a result the International Fluid Academy (IFA) was founded in 2011 to serve as a platform for gathering experts in the field and for organizing workshops and teaching courses. The IFA is part of iMERiT (International Medical Education and Research Institute, an international non-profit organization based in Belgium).

The goals of the IFA are to foster education and promote research on fluid management, and thereby improve the survival of critically ill patients by bringing together physicians, nurses, and others from a variety of clinical disciplines. The primary goal of the IFA is to establish an international collaboration group with the final aim to improve and standardize care and outcome of critically ill patients with an emphasis on fluids, fluid management, monitoring and organ support. This can be achieved by collaborative research projects, guideline development, joint data registration and international exchange of health care workers and researchers. The acquired knowledge and results of research will be published in Fluids, the international journal on medical fluid management, and shared with his peer group each year during international scientific meetings like the iFAD.