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JUNE 23(Fri.) - JUNE 24(Sat.)
Clinical Research Building, Lecture Hall
SAPPORO MEDICAL UNIVERSITY
HOKKAIDO, JAPAN

GREETING FROM PRESIDENT, SAPPORO MEDICAL UNIVERSITY

Distinguished guests, and all attendants including staff members and students of Sapporo Medical University; we are pleased to welcome you to the International Symposium of the Northern Region Medicine and Health Sciences. This Symposium is one of the major events celebrating the 50^th Anniversary of our school.

First of all, let me give you some historical background to our school and hospital. Our University was founded in 1950 as Sapporo Medical College. The graduate school of medicine was established in 1956 and the premedical course in 1958. The School of Health Sciences was established in 1993. Thereafter, the name of the institution was changed to Sapporo Medical University. The graduate school (master course) in nursing and rehabilitation was established in 1998, and a Ph.D. course in rehabilitation is starting from this year. It is a publicly funded institution and receives most of its support from the Hokkaido prefectural government.

To function as the main, comprehensive, academic medical center to be supported by Hokkaido prefectural government, we have been actively involved in not only academic medical research and educational activities, but also in sending physicians and co-medical people to rural areas of Hokkaido. We established a medical exchange program with five medical schools in Finland in 1978. Since then we have continued successfully to carry out the exchanges under the support of the Paulo Foundation in Finland. We also established a medical exchange program with China Medical University in 1982, and with the University of Alberta and University of Calgary in 1984. Our international medical exchange program extended to include the University of Massachusetts in 1996. The major objective of this international exchange program is to exchange scientific knowledge and information and to collaborate together to improve the health and welfare of people with climate and living conditions common to each other. We are particularly gratified to be able to hold this International Symposium, in conjunction with the 50^th Anniversary of our school and in the symbolic year of 2000, which marks the beginning of the new millennium. We wish to express our sincere appreciation to all the guests and attendants for making this Symposium possible; and in particular to those people, coming from foreign countries, including Finland, China, Canada and the United States of America.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Toyoaki Akino, President

GREETING FROM ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

We, the members of the Organizing Committee for the International Symposium of Northern-Region Medicine and Health Sciences wish to welcome all of the attendants to this event. Our school, Sapporo Medical University, has been engaged actively in medical exchanges with foreign countries for the purpose of improving the health and welfare of people living in the northern regions. To this end, we have had international exchanges of medical scientists, physicians and co-medical professionals with universities of Finland, China, Canada and the United States of America. At the turn of the 20^st century, our school will have its 50th anniversary, and we are honored to have so many distinguished guests from foreign countries for this International Symposium, one of the major ceremonial events of our anniversary. This symposium’s goal is to review, and reach some new consensus on the pathophysiology of diseases, and their diagnosis and management for people residing in the northern regions.

Lastly we hope that all attendants of this symposium will enjoy staying in this beautiful town, with its clear, dry and comfortable June climate.

*COMMITTEE MEMBERS*
Kowichi Jimbow, Chair	Hiroyuki Matsumoto
Mamoru Aoki	Tsuyoshi Sato
Kazuo Hashi	Haruyuki Tatsumi
Kohzoh Imai i	Taiji Tsukamoto
Seiichi Ishii