17 International Workshops on Neonatology and Pediatrics in Cagliari, Italy: a network of scientific and human relations

In this paper, we describe the history of the 17 International Workshops on Neonatology and Pediatrics held in Cagliari, Italy, which saw the overall presence of about 11,500 participants. Some of the world’s most renowned specialists from more than 60 countries have been present in Cagliari in these years. They have created a network of scientific and human relations that have changed, improved and enriched us all. In 2019 the meeting was followed by the 40th Congress of the Union of Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean Pediatric Societies (UMEMPS), founded 60 years ago. In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the meeting was virtual. Also this year, the meeting will be virtual. The title of this year’s Workshop, “The future is now”, underscores the trajectory that assistance, research and teaching will follow in the coming years, in an integrated way with Adult Medicine, taking into account what happened or is still going to happen. These advances are strictly related to children’s future, to their health in terms of new therapies and prevention.