Press Release (96)68 3 May 1996

4th NATO Civil - Military Blood Conference From the 6th until 8th May 1996 the 4th NATO Civil - Military Blood Conference will be held at the Netherlands Defence College in Ypenburg (near the Hague) in the Netherlands. The NATO Blood Conference, a biennial event organised by one of the member nations of the Alliance and sponsored by NATO's Joint Medical Committee, provides a forum for discussion of scientific and logistic issues related to the development and procurement of blood and blood products in the framework of military and international humanitarian issues. This fourth NATO Civil - Military Blood Conference, will be the first one open to all NACC and PfP Countries. More than 150 military and civilian scientists and experts from 25 NATO and PfP countries will participate in this conference and will: discuss the latest developments in the collection, preparation and storage of blood and blood products, including new techniques on viral inactivation; discuss new techniques in artificial oxygen carriers and their use in military and humanitarian operations; discuss transfusion and medical aspects in NATO and UN Peace Support operations, including the use of deep frozen blood products; and generate recommendations for standardisation, validation and certification of military and civil blood banks. The conference will be opened by the Netherlands Minister of Defence J. Voorhoeve. For further information please contact Mr. E.G.J. Somer, NATO Civil Emergency Planning Directorate, (Int'l +) 32 2 707.4069