Our activities are mainly focused on knowledge transfer to our colleagues abroad, for whom the access to medical information is impeded by various factors, financial ones being often mentioned.

Helping our colleagues to travel to meetings, organising lectures and training by eminent experts and providing better access to literature does directly influence the quality of treatment within our specialty, which is one of our contributions to overall public health improvement. However, we have experienced that funding for our activities is difficult to find, as we
do not directly help individual patients or participate in nationwide public health programmes, and thus do not qualify for funding by governmental or humanitarian organisations.

Therefore, we solicit the help of individuals and of the medical and pharmaceutical industry. Our relationship to sponsors and contributors follows the guidelines of the Swiss Medical Association and ther Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences (see www.fmh.ch ). We insist on accountability of expences and on total independance from any sponsor's interests in the whole of our activities.

Medical and pharmaceutical companies may become corporate members of our Society, allthough without decisional voting rights. They are kept informed on our programmes and may present their products at the meetings of ORL-BAL and the Society of Friends of Otorhinolaryngology to a special member rate. Corporate membership is fixed at 300 SFr a year. Flag space on this Webpage may be obtained, contact us under mihael.podvinec@ksa.ch