History of the IFCC
Introduction
In 1952, Professor E J King of the
Royal Postgraduate Medical School in London suggested that the then
emerging national societies of clinical chemistry should organise
into an international body under the auspices of the International
Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). This was accomplished
on July 24, 1952, at the Second International Congress of
Biochemistry in Paris, by the formation of the International
Association of Clinical Biochemists. A year later, in Stockholm, it
was resolved to change the name to the International Federation of
Clinical Chemistry, and this was formally adopted at the next
meeting which took place in 1955 in Brussels.
The initial objectives of the
Federation were to "advance knowledge and promote the interests of
biochemistry in its clinical (medical) aspects". In the early
years, IFCC was closely associated with the IUPAC Commission (later
Section) of Clinical Chemistry, and initially, the Committee of
IFCC comprised the members of the IUPAC Commission. It was
recognised, however that the IFCC should become independent, but
would retain its contacts with IUPAC through affiliation as an
Associate Member.
This was accomplished in 1967, when the two organisations were
formally separated.
With time, the organisational structure of IFCC developed so that
its efforts in science, education, and publishing, as well as its
financial affairs, and congress activities were dealt with by
Divisions or Committees and, where appropriate, supported by other
Committees and groups responsible for specific tasks. IFCC is now a
Federation of 86 Full Member Societies of Clinical Chemistry and
Laboratory Medicine and 9 Affiliate Members, representing about
45.000 individual clinical chemists, laboratory scientists, and
laboratory physicians and 47 Corporate Members covering the major
areas of clinical laboratory developments.
IFCC Presidents
The history of IFCC must include
reference to the eminent clinical chemists who have served as
President and guided its development. Professor E J
King conceived the idea of the Federation, brought it into
being, and guided it through its early years to become the group to
which all national societies of Clinical Chemistry could look for
guidance. His untimely death created a vacuum which
Professor Monroe Freeman ably filled for three
years.
He was followed by
Professor J E Courtois until 1967, during which
time the statutes and bylaws, upon which the whole working of IFCC
is based, were created.
During the seven to eight years of
the presidency of Professor Martin Rubin, IFCC
became accepted as a major international organisation and was
recognised as a non-governmental organisation in official relations
with the World Health Organisation (WHO). It became a member of the
Council of the International Organisations of Medical Sciences and
established its own regular Newsletter, developed education
programs in South America; formed Expert Panels became
authoritative groups in their own fields, and established
constructive relationships with industry.
In 1976, Dr Jörg
Frei was elected President after an eight year period as
Secretary.
Dr Rene Dybkaer
followed him in 1979 after six years as Vice-President. During
these years the collaboration with industry was formalised by
creation of Corporate Membership, IFCC Archives were established,
Congress Guidelines were formulated, an IFCC Travelling Lectureship
implemented, a major educational program conducted in Thailand, and
the IFCC Distinguished International Services Award established in
addition to the earlier Distinguished Clinical Chemist Award. As a
new concept, a General Conference of IFCC Officers, Divisions and
Committees, together with Associate Members, was launched in
Denmark in 1982. Finally, a Task Force prepared new Articles for
the Federation which were approved by Council in 1984.
Dr Donald Young became President in 1985, after a
three year term as Vice-President. During his six years as
President, Dr Young reorganised the committee structure of the
IFCC. The previous Expert Panels were redefined as Committees and
an integrated structure was formed to allow better communications
and delegation of responsibility and activity. Dr Young initiated a
further review and modification of the IFCC Statutes which was
completed in 1993. During Dr Young's tenure IFCC initiated the
publication of its own journal - Journal of the International
Federation of Clinical Chemistry. A broader interpretation of
clinical chemistry to include other areas of laboratory medicine
was developed. Formal associations were initiated with clinical
chemistry organisations in Latin America and the Asian and Pacific
region.
Professor G.
Siest, who was President from 1991 to 1996, worked with
the Board and Members to develop a Strategic Plan which would guide
the organisation into the 21st Century. This involved the
identification of six key Strategic issues, relating to :
Scientific Credibility, Linkage of Clinical Chemistry to Improved
Patient Care, Communication, Promotion of IFCC Products and
Services, People and Succession, and Finance. New agreements with
the European region (FESCC) and the Latin American Region
(COLABIOCLI) were signed. The strategic plan was endorsed by the
IFCC Council in 1996.
From 1997-99 the President was
Professor Matthew McQueen who was previously a
member of the Scientific Committee from 1982-87, Treasurer from
1989-90 and Vice President 1991-96. During his Term the Executive
Board translated the Strategic Plan into specific actions. These
included increasing scientific activity in the areas of
standardisation and reference materials and improved scientific
co-operation with other international laboratory professional
organisations. The Education and Management Division expanded its
role in the pre-analytical and post-analytical phases, while the
Communication and Publications Division restructured to meet the
challenges of electronic publication. One highlight was the very
important name change to the International Federation of Clinical
Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, highlighting the clinical
relevance and importance of our profession. The Statutes of the
Federation were modified to implement "term limits" for members of
the Executive Board. Representatives from the Corporate members
were formally included in the structure of each Division. This
Executive Board successfully concluded discussions with the World
Association of Societies of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
producing a joint policy statement on "Principles of Clinical
Laboratory Accreditation". This clearly stated that the Laboratory
could be directed by Scientists or Physicians, with the appropriate
initial qualifications and specialized post-graduate professional
education and training in clinical laboratory work.
Prof. Mathias M.
Müller served as President for the period 2000 - 2005,
having previously served the Federation as Secretary,
Vice-President, and Vice-Chair and Chair of the Scientific
Division. Under his guidance the Federation continued to stress
high quality scientific endeavour as the backbone of the
Federation. Since 2000, the Executive Board emphasized the
interdisciplinary character of our discipline and has focused on
clinically relevant topics. In this context, the establishment of
reference systems for glycated haemoglobin and enzyme activity
measurements as well as a global campaign for monitoring diabetes
mellitus were initiated. With the growing complexity of IFCC
projects, the requirement for an intellectual property policy
became evident. This has been developed. A working relationship
with the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards/NCCLS
(now known as the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute/CLSI)
was formalised and joint NCCLSIFCC projects started.
Standardisation on high metrological levels has always been a major
undertaking and has contributed to the credibility of IFCC. As a
consequence of this policy, collaboration with the Bureau
International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM), the National Institute
of Standards and Technology (NIST), the Institute of Reference
Materials and Measurements (IRMM), European, American and Japanese
IVD Associations, and the International Laboratory Accreditation
Cooperation (ILAC) is being established for the implementation of
traceability in Laboratory Medicine. New awards for significant
contributions in molecular diagnostics, in education and in patient
care were created. With the opening of the IFCC Office in Milan the
IFCC Web site was restructured becoming the main communication
vehicle between the Federation and the membership.
Professor Jocelyn
Hicks served as President from 2005 to 2008. She also
served the Federation as Chair of the Publications Division and as
Treasurer .She continued to encourage the scientific excellence for
which IFCC is justifiably proud. She assembled a group of
clinicians from the key diabetes bodies to develop a consensus
statement regarding the use of the new standard for glycated
haemoglobin. As President she worked to enhance the quality of
laboratory testing worldwide with the able assistance of the
Education and Management Division. Under her direction the
Communications and Publications Division took public relations and
communications to a new level. They, for example, published a PR
brochure in many languages. She considered assistance to the lesser
developed country Members to be paramount, as it is the patient who
benefits. Under her leadership the Visiting Lecturer Program was
greatly expanded with the substantial grant from Abbott
Laboratories. Travel scholarships to attend major IFCC Congresses
were introduced with a generous grant from Roche Diagnostics Gmbh.
These were awarded on a competitive basis to young scientists from
developing countries. Siemens Healthcare Solutions assisted us
greatly with starting a distance e-learning program for all
members, but with emphasis on topics to assist those in developing
countries. A new conference that links the clinician with the
clinical laboratory was stared with the substantial grant from
Ortho Clinical Diagnostics. The first of these was held in
Birmingham in the UK in 2008. The topic was on Cardiac Biomarkers.
Two new awards were introduced, one in Laboratory Medicine and
Patient Care sponsored by Ortho Clinical Diagnostics and one on
outstanding contributions to Standardization sponsored by The
National Institute on Standards and Technology and the Clinical
Laboratory Standards Institute.
Professor Hicks developed a new program for National and Corporate
Representatives to be involved actively in the General Conference
in 2008. This Conference was organized with the assistance of The
Congress and Conference Committee, the Turkish Association and the
IFCC Office. A successful International Congress of Clinical
Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine was held in Brazil in 2008 with
the able assistance of the Brazilian Association. The number of
full Members grew from 72 to 83 during this period. Professor Hicks
visited many of our Member countries. The number of Corporate
Members also increased despite many mergers. All of these
activities were made possible with the assistance of the Executive
Board, the Divisions, the Committees, working Groups and the IFCC
office.
Dr Graham Beastall
was elected as President for 2009-2011. He is based in Glasgow (UK)
and is the former Clinical Lead for a large multi-site network
Department of Clinical Biochemistry. He has been Chairman and
President of the Association of Clinical Biochemistry and Vice
President of the Royal College of Pathologists. With the
recognition that ~70% of clinical decisions are influenced by
Laboratory Medicine Dr Beastall believes that the time is right for
IFCC to be more visible and more active in the clinical area.
'Adding Value to Laboratory Medicine' will be the strap line during
his Presidency. Dr Beastall will also seek to engender greater
connectivity with and involvement of IFCC members in promoting the
contribution of Laboratory Medicine to healthcare at local,
national and international level.
The number of Full members increased to 86 during Dr. Beastall's
term. The number of Corporate Members grew to 47 during this
period. Dr. Beastall organized a General Conference in Corfu,
Greece on April 2010 with the Executive Board. The program included
interactive sessions with the Divisions, Committees, Working
Groups and Special Task Forces. Unfortunately the Corfu General
Conference was greatly affected by the Icelandic ash cloud which
prevented many participants from reaching Corfu.
The IFCC Office
As the scope of the Federation's
activities has expanded, so has the requirement for the exchange of
information and the documentation of the various activities which
were taking place. As with most other professional groups, the
initial secretarial functions were provided by the individual
officers and scientists within the Federation.
A considerable debt is owed to these individuals and their
employing organisations.
However, it was obvious to the Executive Board that for the
Federation to continue its development, a Secretariat was required.
The Federation was fortunate originally to be supported by
Radiometer A/S of Copenhagen, which agreed to provide office space
and secretarial support. This facility was generously placed at the
disposal of the Executive Board and became known in 1983 as the
IFCC Technical Secretariat. During this period, the Federation was
fortunate in obtaining the services of Mrs Maj-Britt Petersen, who
provided invaluable support, in particular for the Scientific
Division. In order to facilitate the appropriate distribution of
documents, the Technical Secretariat also kept a master file of
names and addresses of all those who play a part in the
Federation's affairs. During 1988-1990 the Executive Board devoted
considerable effort to determining the role and structure of a
central office. In 1990 a new Technical Secretariat was established
in Nancy, France with the assistance of Prof Gerard Siest. The
opening of this office was a major event for the IFCC as for the
first time the IFCC employed its own staff. The Technical
Secretariat was transferred into the hands of Mrs Chantal Thirion
and remained in Nancy until 2001. In 2001 when additional
professional administrative services were needed, the Office was
transferred to Milan, Italy where it shares resources with a major
Professional Conference Organiser.
External Links
The IFCC has maintained its relations with WHO and transferred
its International Medical Laboratory Information System to WHO. In
addition, it has expanded its support of regional organisations and
regular regional congresses that are held in Europe, in the Arab
Region, in the Asian and Pacific Region, in the Latin
American Region and in Africa. IFCC has signed Memorandum of
Understanding with EFCC and APFCB.
The IFCC has accepted the ICSU Principles of free circulation of
scientists and has assured the attendance of visiting scientist at
all meetings. The interests of IFCC continue to expand. lt has
addressed the policy of patenting key products for analytical
methods, and continues to work collaboratively with many
international organisations to sponsor major educational programs
in Mexico and Argentina. The IFCC is also working with a number of
other International Organisations such as IRMM, NIST, CLSI and BIPM
in developing new standards and in the area of standardisation of
methods. The IFCC continues to be very influential in defining and
reviewing appropriate terminology in Laboratory Medicine and other
fields of chemistry. In addition, the management structure of the
Federation has been reorganized continuously to enable it to
respond effectively to contemporary issues.
IFCC has signed Memorandum of Understanding agreements with ILAC
and WaSPALM to formalize and improve collaboration.
Membership of IFCC Executive Boards
|
President
|
Secretary
|
| EJ King (UK) |
1952 - 1960 |
IDP Wootton (UK) |
1952 - 1958 |
| ME Freeman (US) |
1960 - 1963 |
ME Freeman (US) |
1959 - 1960 |
| JE Courtois (FR) |
1963 - 1967 |
B Josephson (SE) |
1960 - 1963 |
| M Rubin (US) |
1967 - 1975 |
MC Sanz (CH) |
1963 - 1967 |
| J Frei (CH) |
1976 - 1978 |
J Frei (CH) |
1967 - 1975 |
| R Dybkaer (DK) |
1979 - 1984 |
PMG Broughton (UK) |
1976 - 1978 |
| DS Young (US) |
1985 - 1990 |
A Kallner (SE) |
1979 - 1981 |
| G Siest (FR) |
1991 - 1996 |
JG Hill (CA) |
1982 - 1984 |
| MJ Mc Queen (CA) |
1997 - 1999 |
MM Müller (AT) |
1985 - 1987 |
| MM Müller (AT) |
2000 - 2005 |
R Vihko (FI) |
1988 - 1990 |
| JMB Hicks (US) |
2006 - 2008 |
P Garcia Webb (AU) |
1991 - 1993 |
| GH Beastall (UK) |
2009 - 2014 |
O Zinder (IL) |
1993 - 1996 |
| |
|
J Whitfield (AU) |
1997 - 1999 |
| |
|
R Bais (AU) |
2000 - 2005 |
| |
|
PH Laitinen (FI) |
2006 - 2011 |
| |
S Bernardini (IT) |
2012 -2014 |
|
Vice President
|
Treasurer
|
| E Werle (DE) |
1966 - 1972 |
L Hartmann (FR) |
1966 - 1972 |
| R Dybkaer (DK) |
1972 - 1978 |
PMG Broughton (UK) |
1972 - 1975 |
| RG Edwards (AU) |
1979 - 1981 |
RG Edwards (AU) |
1976 - 1978 |
| DS Young (US) |
1982 - 1984 |
JG Hill (CA) |
1979 - 1981 |
| A Kallner (SE) |
1985 - 1990 |
A Kallner (SE) |
1982 - 1984 |
| MJ Mc Queen (CA) |
1991 - 1996 |
ML Castillo de Sanchez (MX) |
1985 - 1987 |
| MM Müller (AT) |
1997 - 1999 |
MJ McQueen (CA) |
1988 - 1990 |
| CA Burtis (US) |
2000 - 2005 |
NC Den Boer (NL) |
1991 - 1996 |
| V Palicka (CZ) |
2006 - 2008 |
P Mocarelli (IT) |
1997 - 2002 |
| CWK Lam (HK) |
2009 - 2011 |
JMB Hicks (US) |
2003 - 2005 |
| H Morris (AU) |
2012 - 2014 |
G Shannan (SY) |
2006 - 2011 |
| . |
. |
B Gouget (FR) |
2012 - 2014 |
| . |
. |
|
Assistant Secretary
|
|
| G Siest (FR) |
1972 - 1975 |
|
|
| A Kallner (SE) |
1976- 1978 |
|
|
Members of Executive Board
| A Sobel (US) |
1952 - 1954 |
HP Lehmann (US) |
1990 - 1994 |
| P Fleury (FR) |
1952 - 1960 |
N Montalbetti (IT) |
1990 - 1992 |
| B Josephson (SE) |
1952 - 1960 |
N de Cediel (CO) |
1991 - 1993 |
| JCM Verschure (NL) |
1954 - 1959 |
O Zinder (IL) |
1991 - 1994 |
| WM Sperry (US) |
1955 - 1960 |
P Mocarelli (IT) |
1994 - 1999 |
| JE Courtois (FR) |
1958 - 1963 |
JB Whitfield (AU) |
1994 - 1999 |
| K Hinsberg (DE) |
1958 - 1963 |
A Kallner (SE) |
1994 - 1999 |
| MC Sanz (CH) |
1958 - 1963 |
H Wetzel (DE) |
1994 - 1999 |
| NF Maclagan (UK) |
1960 - 1967 |
L Muszbek (HU) |
1997 - 1999 |
| VN Orekhovich (SU) |
1960 - 1967 |
TD Geary (AU) |
1994 - 1999 |
| SH Jackson (CA) |
1960 - 1967 |
RI Sierra Amor (MX) |
1997 - 2002 |
| R Ruyseen (BE) |
1963 - 1967 |
W Hölzel (DE) |
2000 - 2003 |
| M Rubin (US) |
1963 - 1967 |
CWK Lam (HK) |
2000 - 2005 |
| J de Wael (NL) |
1966 - 1967 |
G Shannan (SY) |
2000 - 2002 |
| I Nagy (HU) |
1980 - 1987 |
V Palicka (CZ) |
2003 - 2005 |
| FW Sunderman Jr (US) |
1981 - 1985 |
D Mazziotta (AR) |
2003 - 2008 |
| N Montalbetti (IT) |
1981 - 1985 |
M Thomas (UK) |
2006 - 2008 |
| H Wishinsky (US) |
1985 - 1987 |
JB Lopez (MY) |
2006 - 2011 |
| SS Brown (GB) |
1985 - 1990 |
B Gouget FR) |
2009 - 2011 |
| J Jaervisalo (FI) |
1985 - 1990 |
U Tuma (BR) |
2009 - 2014 |
| I-K Tan (SG) |
1985 - 1990 |
T Brinkmann (DE) |
2009 - 2014 |
| D Scheuch (DE) |
1985 - 1990 |
L Kricka (US) |
2012 - 2014 |
| F Dati (DE) |
1988 - 1993 |
V Steenkamp (ZA) |
2012 - 2014 |
Until 1967 the Titular Members of the Commission on Clinical
Chemistry of IUPAC also functioned as the Executive Board of
IFCC.