IPA Events

Providing educational opportunities for professionals to share knowledge and advance their level of expertise is fundamental to IPA's mission. Through scientific meetings, workshops, and online education, IPA is committed to providing educational programs which address the full spectrum of geriatric mental health. IPA is also committed to a diverse educational platform which features speakers from all around the world.

IPA International Congress and IPA Regional Meetings

The first IPA International Congress took place in Cairo, Egypt in 1982. Since then IPA has grown to offer multiple scientific meetings per year. The annual IPA International Congress features diverse speakers from all disciplines related to geriatric mental health. IPA's Regional Meetings offer the same caliber of scientific programming, but in a smaller setting designed to highlight regional areas of interest. Opportunities to interact with the local community at each meeting include:

Site Visits to Long-Term Care Facilities – This is an IPA favorite as professionals have the opportunity at most of IPA’s congresses and regional meetings to visit local care facilities, meet with colleagues, and observe local practices.

Public Lectures – When IPA states that it seeks better mental health for older people it recognizes that this also means sharing the tremendous expertise of its leaders and speakers with the local public. Lectures to the public on topics of interest reflect IPA’s ongoing commitment to serving our patient population and their caregivers all around the world.

Expert Meetings

From the the landmark Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) in the 1990s, which defined the myriad of symptoms and coined the term BPSD, to the most recent development of a universal definition for agitation for care and research, IPA has been at the forefront of geriatric mental health.  IPA regularly assembles renowned leaders for invitation-only meetings in order to review and discuss a specific significant issue or challenge within the field in an effort to reach consensus and advance the field.

Workshops & Symposia

Workshops are pre-event educational programs held in conjunction with an IPA Congress or Regional Meeting which provide an in-depth focus on a particular topic. Symposia are stand-alone events and typically run from one to three days.
Both Workshops and Symposia are wonderful opportunities for you and your colleagues to immerse yourselves in a particular area of geriatric mental health. Past IPA programs have included neuroimaging in dementia, long-term care colloquium, and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).