Carina received support in launching an international conference – an experience that has since strengthened her career

Carina Lundby has made it her life’s work to research how we can improve the process of stopping medication – especially among older adults – when it no longer provides value to the individual patient. In other words: deprescribing.

While pursuing her PhD in deprescribing at Odense University Hospital and the University of Southern Denmark, Carina realised that something was missing. The field was relatively new, but the volume of research was growing rapidly. The challenge was that the research was scattered across different environments.

Together with fellow PhD student Wade Thompson, Carina decided to bring the entire research community together through an international conference: the International Conference on Deprescribing (ICOD). The goal was to create a space where researchers from around the world could meet and share knowledge.

The conference has since become a success and has significantly strengthened Carina’s career. It has also benefited her research group at the Research Unit at Sygehusapotek Fyn at Odense University Hospital, where she now serves as head of the unit.

“Our research groups at both OUH and SDU have gained international visibility – people around the world now know that we work with deprescribing, and we’ve been recognised as highly skilled and competent in the field,” she explains.

The conference has opened doors to new international collaborations, which are especially important in the context of research. But launching an international conference is no easy task, and Carina emphasises the importance of seeking support.

A great help

Carina Lundby completed her PhD at Sygehusapotek Fyn at Odense University Hospital and at the Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Pharmacy and Environmental Medicine at the University of Southern Denmark. Today, she is still employed at both institutions. It was experienced colleagues from these departments who recommended that Carina and her fellow PhD student seek external support.

While there is substantial support available internally at Odense University Hospital and the University of Southern Denmark, external assistance can also be invaluable. One such resource is the Destination Fyn Convention Bureau.

Carina Lundby and Wade Thompson discovered that help was available from Inspiring Denmark, which supported the attraction and development of conferences. Today, this support is offered by Destination Fyn, which has a dedicated team for this purpose – including Marie Rademacher, who also assisted Carina at the time.

For Carina and Wade, the collaboration with the organization was indispensable.

“Marie got involved quite early on, and it was really helpful to have her onboard,” says Carina Lundby.

Neither Carina nor Wade had prior experience in organizing an international conference.

"We were just two PhD students without any experience or knowledge of what it actually takes, and we were quite unclear about what to expect,” Carina explains.

That’s why external support meant so much.

In addition, the hosting duo received help from OUH and SDU, which eventually became official hosts of the conference. The event was also organized in collaboration with the Network of European Researchers in Deprescribing (NERD), the Danish Society for Clinical Pharmacology, and the Odense Deprescribing INitiative (ODIN) – a research collaboration between five units at OUH and SDU.

Today, a successful conference

Although feelings of doubt and uncertainty crept in along the way and weighed heavily, the conference ultimately became a great success and had a significant impact on Carina Lundby’s later career.

The conference has now been successfully held in Denmark in 2022 and in France in 2024, and in 2026 it will take place in Canada.

“It didn’t take long after the conference ended in 2022 before we were contacted by a group from France who wanted to host ICOD2. We got involved again, and it was another huge success,” she says, adding:

“Now we’re once again involved in organizing the third conference in Canada.”

The major effort by Carina Lundby and Wade Thompson to launch ICOD continues to thrive to this day – and with such success that several countries expressed interest in hosting the upcoming 2026 edition.

Helpful advice for conference hosts

If others are considering launching an international conference, Carina Lundby has one key piece of advice that can make the startup phase a bit easier than what she experienced herself.

“First and foremost, talk to others who’ve done it before to understand how much work it actually involves. What should we be aware of, and what does it require? And team up with Destination Fyn Convention Bureau right from the start to get external input,” says Carina Lundby.

Today, Carina Lundby is Head of Research at the Research Unit at Sygehusapotek Fyn at Odense University Hospital and a researcher at the University of Southern Denmark.

She can clearly feel the impact of having initiated the first international conference of its kind within her field.

“It has meant a great deal, because people in the field now know who we are. And we’ll always be remembered as the ones who hosted the first conference. It’s incredibly successful that the third edition is now being organized. There were people from Australia, the USA, and Canada who wanted to take it on. It’s amazing,” says Carina Lundby.

Facts about Destination Fyn Convention Bureau

Destination Fyn Convention Bureau provides tailored support and guidance to anyone interested in hosting conferences, congresses, and meetings on the island of Fyn. 

The assistance is completely free of charge and comes with no commission. This service includes everything from advice and information about hosting conferences on Fyn to help with identifying suitable venues and hotels, obtaining quotes, and offering professional project management and strategic input throughout the process.

You can read more here: Free support and guidance

Fact box: Support available for (potential) hosts from OUH and SDU

If you are affiliated with Odense University Hospital (OUH), you can find more information about conferences and the support available for hosting events at OUH.

If you are affiliated with the University of Southern Denmark (SDU), you can find more details about the assistance available for organizing conferences at SDU.