2018 Life Time EAPM Award
EAPM Frits Huyse Award: Prof. Marco Rigatelli
The European Association of Psychosomatic Medicine’s Frits Huyse award is presented to a person who has demonstrated outstanding contribution to the development of consultation-liaison psychiatry in Europe. The awardee should also be a person who is recognized for being willing to share knowledge, support others and fostering collaboration between Europeans in the field of C-L psychiatry. With approval from the board of the EAPM, the Award Committee, composed by Carsten Leue, Gerhard Schlusser and Ulrik Malt has decided to assign the 2018 Frits Huyse Award to prof. Marco Rigatelli, from Modena, Italy.
Prof. Marco Rigatelli, Full Professor in Psychiatry at the University of Modena & Reggio Emilia, Italy, has been the undiscussed pioneer of C-L psychiatry in Italy. Back in 1989, he founded the Modena Service for Consultation Psychiatry and Psychosomatics, based at the Modena General University Hospital. He was co-founder and President and is currently member emeritus of the Italian Society of Consultation Psychiatry (SIPC): within the SIPC, he headed, conducted or supported many research projects, training events, seminars, presentations at scientific congresses that contributed significantly to the development of CLP on a national level, particularly by discussing the common grounds and the specificities of CLP vs. Psychosomatic Medicine. He was also member of the Italian Society of Psychosomatic Medicine (SIMP) and vice-President of the SIMP from 1977 to 1995. Later on, he was one of the co-founders of the Italian Research Group in Psychosomatics. Finally, he has been president of the Section for CLP within the Italian Psychiatric Association and member of the Section for CLP within the European Psychiatric Association.
Furthermore, on an international level, he was the Italian key-person of the European Consultation-Liaison Workgroup (ECLW), contributing to the development of the European-funded multicentric research projects that the workgroup conducted across Europe in the 90s. As a natural emanation of the activities within the ECLW, he was co-founder, in 1993, of the European Association for Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Psychosomatics (EACLPP): within the EACLPP, he served as member of the Executive Committee and Treasurer for many years. He was able to have many other Italian colleagues actively involved in the activities of the EACLPP, thus contributing significantly to its expansion and diffusion on a national and international level. Furthermore, he served as “Officer” of the Section “General Hospital Psychiatry” of the World Psychiatric Association and was “Fellow” of the International College of Psychosomatic Medicine.
His kind and easy-going attitude, combined to his spontaneity and warm-heartedness, has always made a great pleasure to meet and relate to Marco. His ability to provide smoothly clever advice on difficult issues, his wisdom and availability are rare qualities that were always highly appreciated by closer collaborators as well as many other colleagues across the world and the scientific community. Therefore the EAPM is happy and honoured to present Marco Rigatelli as winner of the Frits Huyse Award 2018.
