WHY ASCEND?

Retrieval medicine is different.

The environment is constrained.

Resources are limited.

Decisions are time-critical.

Teams are often small.

And the patients we move are among the most physiologically vulnerable in healthcare.

ASCEND has been created to explore the clinical, operational and human challenges of providing critical care between places.

Through practical learning, case discussion, simulation, expert faculty and multidisciplinary conversation, ASCEND aims to challenge the way we think about retrieval — and improve the way we deliver it.

WHO IS ASCEND FOR?

ASCEND is designed for anyone involved in the care or movement of critically ill and injured patients.

This includes:

Whether your retrieval environment is a helicopter, fixed-wing aircraft, ambulance, emergency centre, ICU or referral hospital, ASCEND is designed for you.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Practical. Relevant. Multidisciplinary.

ASCEND will combine a practical pre-conference programme with two days of immersive conference learning.

Expect:

ASCEND is designed to create conversation, not simply deliver lectures.

PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS

Learn by doing.

Before the main symposium begins, delegates will have the opportunity to participate in focused practical workshops covering key areas of retrieval medicine.

Planned topics include:

Workshop places will be limited to preserve a highly practical learning experience.

THE MAIN SYMPOSIUM

Two days of retrieval medicine without the silos.

ASCEND brings doctors, nurses, paramedics and operational leaders into the same conversation.

The programme will explore:

Clinical excellence

The physiology, interventions and decision-making required to safely move critically ill patients.

Human performance

Communication, teamwork, leadership, cognitive load and decision-making under pressure.

Retrieval systems

How activation, coordination, logistics and clinical governance influence patient care.

Patient safety

Learning from success, failure and the systems that shape performance.

Neonatal & paediatric retrieval

The unique challenges of moving our smallest and most vulnerable patients.

Innovation

Technology, equipment and emerging approaches that may shape the future of retrieval.

Retrieval in Africa

Building systems that work within our own geography, resources and clinical realities.

BEYOND THE LECTURE THEATRE

Retrieval medicine cannot be understood only through PowerPoint.

ASCEND will create opportunities for delegates to interact with:

We want delegates to see, touch, discuss and experience the tools used in critical care retrieval.

THE FACULTY

ASCEND will bring together clinicians and educators with experience across retrieval medicine, emergency care, critical care, aviation, simulation, human factors and patient safety.

Faculty will include speakers from South Africa and the international retrieval community.

Our focus is not simply on impressive titles.

We want people who have something useful to teach.

People who have done the work.

People willing to share the lessons.

And people prepared to challenge how we currently think.

WHY SOUTH AFRICA?

South Africa provides an extraordinary environment in which to explore retrieval medicine.

Our teams operate across enormous distances, variable resources, urban and rural environments, road transport, rotor-wing aviation and fixed-wing retrieval.

The challenges are complex — but so is the expertise that has developed in response to them.

ASCEND provides an opportunity to connect that experience with the international retrieval community and create a conversation about what critical care transport can become across Africa.

PARTNER WITH ASCEND

Put your organisation at the heart of critical care retrieval.

ASCEND provides a unique opportunity for organisations working in healthcare, technology, aviation and medical education to engage directly with a focused audience of retrieval clinicians and leaders.

We are inviting a limited number of organisations to join the inaugural symposium as:

Our approach is different.

We want partners to become part of the experience — creating opportunities for clinicians to interact with relevant technology, equipment and solutions within meaningful clinical and practical environments.

Become part of the beginning.

There will only ever be one inaugural ASCEND.

Organisations supporting ASCEND in 2027 will have the opportunity to become part of the story from the very beginning.

INDEPENDENT EDUCATION

ASCEND values meaningful collaboration with industry while protecting the independence of its educational programme.

Commercial sponsorship does not determine:

Sponsored sessions, activities and commercial content will be clearly identified.

Credible education matters.

So does responsible partnership.

STAY INFORMED

Be part of ASCEND 2027.

Registration, programme announcements, faculty releases and workshop information will be published as the symposium approaches.

Register your interest to receive updates.

ASCEND 2027

Critical Care Retrieval Symposium

May 2027 | South Africa

Retrieval. Innovation. Collaboration.

Critical care doesn’t stop when the patient starts moving.

One line in particular feels strong enough to become a recurring piece of the ASCEND brand:

“Critical care doesn’t stop when the patient starts moving.”

That could sit beneath the homepage hero, on social media, on delegate material and eventually on the sponsor prospectus as a secondary message.