The event, which will be held on the 16th and 17th, can be followed in person or online and has the participation of 50 speakers from 9 countries

Expourense is preparing to host the 1st International Congress on Water and Health organized by Termatalia 2020 International Fair of Tourism of Health, Thermal and Wellness. It will be held on 16 and 17 September and can be followed in person at the Expourense facilities, located in the thermal capital of Ourense, or followed online through a virtual platform. The aim of these two days is to bring the thermal community together again and to continue positioning Termatalia as one of the most important international forums for knowledge and specialized training in the field of health tourism and thermalism.

The program of this 1st Congress on Water and Health counts with the participation of 50 recognized international professionals from 9 countries (Argentina, Brazil, Spain, United States, Italy, Portugal, Thailand, Tunisia and Uruguay) and that will also participate in a mixed way. This panel of experts makes this congress a multidisciplinary event that addresses the future of the sector from the current situation marked by the pandemic caused by the COVID-19. The quality and innovation of the program of this congress is evident by the fact that, to date, more than 300 registrations have been received from professionals in the sector from around twenty countries on four continents, including, along with Spain, attendees from Portugal and Argentina.

Program

The scientific program of this congress will deal with health tourism from a current multidisciplinary perspective. It will count, among others, with the participation of the presidents and directors of the national associations of Spas of Spain (ANBAL), Thermal Baths of Portugal, of the European Association of Cities with Thermal Historical Patrimony (E.H.T.T.A.), or of the International Federation of Hydrotherapy and Climatotherapy (FEMTEC), or of other entities as the Consellería de Turismo of the Xunta de Galicia, the Spanish Society of Medical Hydrology or of the president of the Entity of Tourism Porto e Norte of Portugal.

Medical Hydrology, COVID19 and tourism, among the topics

The situation experienced by the sector in relation to the pandemic will be the focus of one of the sessions of the congress, with debate tables centred on the reactivation of the sector, on how to face the future with less uncertainty and how to reduce the economic impact. Related to the pandemic there will also be a panel on “Safety and prevention protocols in spas and thermal centers” which will be moderated by Dr. Juan Gestal. Director of the Chair of Medical Hydrology of the University of Santiago de Compostela. In this panel, the Institute of Spanish Tourist Quality (ICTE), Fernando Fraile, who will present the measures for the reduction of the contagion by the SARS – CoV-2 in Spas. It will also be presented the seal “Clean & Safe” created by Termas de Portugal; the protocol of action before the COVID of the Grupo Caldaria and Termas de Chaves and also will be analyzed the situation in the Primary Care.

This Congress will include a session dedicated to the medical hydrology and another one dedicated to the presentation of innovative tourist products in the Iberian Peninsula that will conclude with the celebration of a showcooking organized by the project “A rest in the roads” that has the objective to promote Galicia as healthy destination.

Like all scientific congresses, this one will also have a space dedicated to the presentation of the last investigations carried out in the sectors of the water and the thermalism. This session will be coordinated by the president of the Galician Society of Thalassotherapy, Lourdes Mourelle, and will host the presentation of 10 workers of researchers coming from 5 countries.

Registrations

Participation in this Congress will be free of charge by invitation from Termatalia or the entities collaborating with the fair. The registration form and the conference program can be found on the congress website www.congreso.termatalia.com

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