On the options for the European cardiologist in the enlarging European Community

In conclusion, European integration in 1992 will mean several things for the European cardiologist, the most important of which are the following: 1. The E.S.C. will and must be able to exert more influence than ever before on the legislative and executive processes in Brussels, now and in 1993, and therefore collectively in the partner countries. 2. Only then, like its American counterparts the A.C.C. and A.H.A., will the E.S.C. be able to join with the politicians to guide the all-important question of allotment of funds. Funds for patient care, teaching, research, advanced planning, for investments in hospitals and laboratories, are all part of our fight against heart disease. These can much better be applied for and allocated on a European scale than on a national basis. The mere avoidance of duplication and repetition may be the greatest benefit of integration. 3. Only by strengthening the E.S.C. with a "cadre" of experienced cardiologists we can deliver the expert manpower which this integrative process will require: "Let not our Society miss the opportunities which 1992 offers!" 4. As a final point, only when we, as a professional unit show that we can make choices, and desist from asking everything possible for every patient we see, will we be able to regain and retain the trust of the patient as well as the political representatives of our member nations. Let us capture this genie before it, too, escapes from the bottle (Braunwald, 1988). These points are symbolized in Figure 1.