Jos Willems

From Rutgers Medical Informatics History Project

"The national representative to IMIA for Belgium since 1978, Jos Willems accepted the position of IMIA Vice President and President Elect at MedInfo 86. He stepped down from his presidency at the closing ceremonies for MedInfo 92 in Geneva, Switzerland.

As Willems saw it, 'The major challenge of the presidency is to keep IMIA's activities going. The major task is to stimulate people. The organization is up to now entirely run by volunteers. IMIA needs a paid executive secretary and secretariat if the organization wants to grow.'

Among his achievements as President was the publication of the first Yearbook of Medical Informatics in time for MedInfo 92. This volume, he hoped, 'will stimulate our field and encourage investigators to produce work of high scientific quality and medical relevance.' IMIA also received official recognition as Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Willems recalled the social activities of the Board with great pleasure and credited IMIA with broadening his professional horizons 'as a result of the many international contacts in different continents.'"

- from "Bridging to New Worlds", Marion Ball, 1995