The role of the Thalassaemia International Federation in health professionals' education.

The Thalassaemia International Federation (TIF) was established in 1986. The Federation has two important objectives: 1. To promote the continued control of thalassaemia major in countries with existing policies aimed at control, and 2. To support the establishment of policies of control in every affected country of the world. Over the years TIF has: - Held workshops and seminars attended by over 7,000 from 35 countries - Organized 11 International Conferences attended by 5,150 from 62 countries - Organized field trips/delegation visits in 42 countries - Prepared, published and distributed 70,000 books to 96 countries - Trained physicians and scientists from medical centres in the UK, US, Italy, Greece and Cyprus - Initiated and co-ordinated projects and clinical studies overseen by international experts in over 50 countries. - Established a vast network of scientific collaborators from every corner of the world, and - Has promoted close and productive collaborations with major health organizations. One of the most important projects that TIF has conducted was a multi-centre study on endocrine complications in the different affected regions of the world. It is hopeful that through the analysis of data already obtained and expected, other projects related to blood transfusion therapy, iron chelation and chronic hepatitis could be organized.