SOBRATAFE

Our Commission

The first seed of the future SOBRATAFE was planted at the subsequent congresses in Las Vegas (Swac fall and WHS), at the Caesars Palace Hotel. We were a group of seven Brazilians, one of whom was a dermatologist, two plastic surgeons and the others vascular surgeons. Taking part in these highly relevant events, with their extensive and up-to-date content, led us to think about creating a Society for Advanced Wound Care, We wanted to create an organization that could spread knowledge, be inter- and multidisciplinary, with a medical directorate but embracing all the professionals involved in wound care. So, during the events, we held a small meeting and chose a name. Back in Brazil, we started to move around and it wasn't until 2005 that the organization was actually founded.

We held two small events, one in the ABC region and the other at the Hospital do Servidor Estadual. After that, it was only in 2011 that we were able to really take our dream to the next level. Sobratafe's First São Paulo Conference, The event, held in Águas de São Pedro, has already featured international guests such as Dr. Carlos Blanco, Paul Glat, Gustavo Prezzavento, among others.

From then on, we continued with events ranging from smaller days and symposia to much larger international events; 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019, all of them in person, but the last ones already translated into English with Latin American, North American and European guests.
We made great friends and partners in the SBACV (Brazilian Society of Angiology and Vascular Surgery), a ABTPE (Brazilian Foot and Ankle Society) and the incredible Brazilian Nursing Society, a SOBENFEE (Brazilian Society of Nursing and Aesthetics), SOBEST (Brazilian Society of Stomatherapy) e SOBENDE (Brazilian Society of Nursing and Dermatology), in addition to SBMH (Brazilian Society of Hyperbaric Medicine). We always had great help and participation from those responsible for DLS (Diabetic Limb Salvage), Prof. Cristopher Attinger and Jonh Steinberg.

Also in 2019 we created the Walter Soares Pinto Award, for scientific work. He was a great man, a plastic surgeon and he supported and participated in all our events until his death in 2020, as well as being my beloved father and encourager.

In 2020, we had to make an emergency adaptation so that the event that had already been scheduled would be completely online because we were living through the COVID 19 pandemic, which led us to hold our biggest 6-day event in 2021, with over 200 speakers half of them international, all listed in our photos, on an innovative, fully connected platform, with 30 full minutes of discussions all in real time, respecting the time zone of the 30 participating countries. This was the first event to include veterinary medicine and the third to include dentistry. It was a difficult job, but very important. From it, translated and subtitled into 3 languages, Portuguese, Spanish and English, we had the feedback that the English-speaking countries were very happy to be able to really interact, understand and discuss with Latin American speakers, because there was no language barrier. This event was supported by EWMA.

We've kept going, increasing our participation in events, publications and more recently we've also created the Paul Glat Award for best academic paper, in honor of this eminent North American plastic surgeon and great friend, who for so many years led the John A. Bostwick Burn and Wound Care Symposium, Maui, Hawaii, USA, which we attended a few times, always with great joy, including at the time of dear Prof. Paul Silverstein.

So, friends, this is part of the story of a group of health professionals who love what they do, often go through difficulties, but continue to write the pages of what happens day by day and dream of a more inclusive tomorrow in advanced wound care. May we be able to reach and help the most remote places, create protocols that are suitable for the most diverse locations and also protocols for rescuing and treating injured and burned animals, as climate change only increases.

So everyone is welcome to learn and teach, exchange knowledge and expand our large family of wound care professionals, always maintaining a strong link with developed countries, which are starting to use new technologies early and encourage us to grow more and more.

We would like to express our enormous gratitude to each and every one of you who is already a part of our history and to those who are yet to come in the future.