It was a pleasure connecting with our member societies at the Congress Centre La Nuvola in Rome, Italy, for the IOF Patient National Societies Day, a special all-day capacity-building and networking event for IOF member organisations, held on April 12, 2025. 

The sessions were insightful and inspiring, covering many of the key topics relevant to patient societies worldwide. As well, there were also several opportunities for targeted discussion within workshops. We extend our heartfelt thanks to all participants and speakers for their invaluable support. A special note of appreciation goes to CNS Chair, Famida Jiwa, and Vice-Chairs, Sansin Tüzün and Terésa Hough, for their outstanding leadership and dedication. We are also deeply grateful to our valued partners—UCB, Sunsweet, and Promedius—for their generous contributions in support of this event.

Sessions included:

• Fundraising for patient societies (I. Ragain)
• Bridging Borders: Communication Strategies for Raising Osteoporosis Awareness Roundtable G. Altamar (ACOMM/Colombia), F. Jiwa (Osteoporosis Canada), T. Hough (NOFSA/South Africa)
• The evolution of osteoporosis management throughout the years and its impact on guidelines development (M-L. Brandi)
• Evidence and practical tips for implementing exercise for fracture prevention (L. Giangregorio)
• Patient Advisory Group - the regional pilot in LATAM (P. Clark / M. Calo)
• Workshop – “Education and training – the necessary step towards a better-engaged patient”  ( F. Jiwa / T. Hough).
  • Topics within the workshop included:
    Patient Literacy, the key to an empowered patient; 
    Giving Patient a Voice – Why? What can it bring? How to do it; 
    Ideal Patient Journey (Identification, Treatment, Monitoring, from primary care to FLS); 
    Expert patients and what they can bring 
    Followed by discussion, and summary of key points discussed by the break-out groups. 

The day closed with Workshop take-home messages and concluding remarks as well as a final Networking session. 

The event was a unique occasion for our member organizations, now numbering more than 340 in 152 countries, to discuss and network while benefiting from targeted information shared within specially curated sessions. 

Together, we’re strengthening the global patient voice!