Terry Kemple is a retired GP living in Bristol with various roles promoting greater sustainability in general practice. He is past President of the Royal College of General Practitioners. He is on X: @TKemple
Annual conferences hosted by academic and member organisations can be costly for attendees and risky for the organisers, but they can be very profitable, influential, and enjoyable events.
Every day, along with requests to write for obscure journals, my email inbox fills with unsolicited invitations to attend, speak at, or even be a keynote speaker at an international conference. Some relate to my areas of interest or expertise, but most have no real connection. These invitations are predatory,1 designed to flatter my ego and empty my wallet.
Even the value of reputable conferences can be a concern. Take, for example, the 2024 WONCA Europe 2-day conference in Dublin. A UK attendee would spend at least £1000 on conference fees, travel, and accommodation. Similarly, the 2024 Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) annual conference in Liverpool cost about the same but did offer discounts for specific attendee groups. Many participants may have their expenses covered by their academic or educational institutions. These conferences may not be predatory, but are they good value in terms of how they plan, assess, and report their economic, social, and environmental impacts and outcomes?
“… organising teams should have a responsible officer for social impacts and outcomes …”
A generation ago, the large GP conferences were often organised by enthusiastic members of the hosting organisations. The aim was to strengthen the professional network and find and spread best practices faster. The quality of these conferences varied greatly from year to year and the financial risks were significant. Today, third-party commercial organisers frequently take on the financial risks, but impose their own rules and claim a share of the profits.
For instance, GUARANT International, a Czech company, organised the 2024 WONCA conference, and Haymarket Media Group managed the 2024 RCGP conference. Despite professional event management, UK medical conferences can fall short compared to the best in class (often their equivalent US conferences) in terms of their organisation, content, and experience.
These conferences can be important fund-raising events for their host organisations. Conference organisers need to have sponsorships, sell exhibition spaces, and attract presenters and attendees. They use marketing tactics to help them. These can include inviting potential attendees to be presenters at the conference, extending deadlines to attract more presenters, and adjusting presentation formats. For example, a presenter might submit a 90-minute workshop but be allocated only a 10-minute talk. If given a 90-minute workshop they may have a room that is too small or unsuitable for the session format. Commercial organisers may blame academic organisers for such issues, but complaints can go unanswered.
High-quality GP conferences should raise their standards and report on their ‘triple bottom line’ — the economic, social, and environmental impacts and outcomes.
Economic impacts and outcomes
Prudent conference organisers already manage income and expenses carefully to avoid financial losses. Good speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors are needed to increase interest and reduce cost for attendees. Making a profit is important and it can be used to support the host organisation, improve the quality of future conferences, reduce attendee costs, increase their appeal, and enhance their influence.
Social impacts and outcomes
Social impacts are often neglected. Until this need is recognised and established, organising teams should have a responsible officer for social impacts and outcomes to ensure aspects like the following are considered:
• professional networks should be strengthened;
• best practices should be found and spread faster;
• goals should align with the organisation’s mission and priorities, and follow relevant legislation and guidance;
• and choices regarding the venue, speakers, topics, sponsors, and exhibitors should be carefully considered to stimulate discussion but avoid harmful controversy.
Feedback from attendees and stakeholders about poor experiences at the conference should be requested and addressed to improve social outcomes for future events.
Environmental impacts and sustainability
Conferences rarely address their environmental footprint. Until this need is embedded, organising teams should include a responsible officer to focus on sustainability. The WONCA Working Party on Planetary Health already provides recommendations on how to organise eco-friendly and sustainable conferences.2 Many conferences now offer hybrid formats, allowing participants to attend either in person or online, which can both broaden their influence and reduce their environmental impact.
Some questions to ask yourself about the value of a conference:
• Does the conference declare and report on its triple bottom line?
• Are the costs and benefits of attending worthwhile? Consider the time and money spent and the desired outcomes. If someone else is subsidising your expenses, what benefits will attendance bring to them?
• What is the environmental impact of attendance? Ask the event organisers how they will help minimise the environmental impact of attending the conference.
• Is in-person attendance necessary? Video link conferences are improving but only in-person events currently offer the extra experience of informal conversations and networking that help expand personal learning and connections.
• Is feedback important to the organisers? If something about the triple bottom line isn’t right before, during, or after the conference then will messaging the organisers produce a response?
Planning, assessing, and reporting of quality improvements like the triple bottom line is not easy,3 but better planning, transparency, and feedback will improve the value of conferences through the process of challenge and change.
References
1. Laine C, Babski D, Bachelet VC, et al. Predatory journals: what can we do to protect their prey? BMJ 2025; 388: q2850.
2. Yin R, Pendrey C, Randenikumara S, et al. WONCA planetary health equitable and sustainable events policy 2023. https://www.globalfamilydoctor.com/site/DefaultSite/filesystem/documents/Groups/Environment/WONCA%20Planetary%20Health%20Equitable%20and%20Sustainable%20Events%20Policy_20230513.pdf (accessed 29 Jan 2025).
3. Toulany A, Shojania KG. Measurement for improvement. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2025.
Featured photo by Ioann-Mark Kuznietsov on Unsplash.
