VENUE
The Venue for the Conference is the RDS - Royal Dublin Society - Conference & Exhibition centre, Merrion Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4. This is a NON-SMOKING venue.
For more details about what's happening in Dublin click on www.visitdublin.com

OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
English is the official language of the Conference. All Posters, slides and other presentations must be presented in English. No simultaneous translation will be provided.

SOCIAL PROGRAMME
SUNDAY 23RD MAY 2004:
Opening Ceremony (including a Wine & Canapé Reception): 6.00pm–7.30pm
Concert Hall, RDS, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4

TUESDAY 25TH MAY 2004:
Morning Panoramic Tour of Dublin City for Registered Accompanying Guests -
Departing from the RDS @ 09.30am, finishing at approx. 12.30
Ministerial Wine & Canapé Reception: 7.30pm–9.00pm, Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, Dublin 2

Panoramic Tour of Dublin City
This coach tour will take in the City Centre of Dublin, where your guide will point out the various places of interest.

Dublin City is over a thousand years old. Successive centuries have left their distinctive overlays of character and architecture, but none more strikingly than the great Georgian period of the eighteenth century. The tour will pass through the famous Georgian Squares of Dublin, including Merrion Square & Fitzwilliam Square.

Fitzwilliam Square. The earliest houses in the square date from as far back as 1714, but the ensemble was not completed until 1830. The square thus neatly spans the entire Georgian period from the accession of George I to the death of George IV. It was the last Georgian square to be completed and is of superb quality. Most of the houses have their original fanlights, some still with box shaped glass recesses in which a lamp would have been placed. Also worth observing are the door-knockers and the elaborate iron footscrapers. There are some examples of a simple security device in the form of a fan-shaped arrangement of spikes set into the wall beside a window to foil burglars. You will have a photo-opportunity here.

The tour will also pass by:
The Irish Parliament buildings on Kildare Street and Merrion Street;
Trinity College, founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth 1 of England,
College Green where can be found The Bank of Ireland on the corner opposite Trinity, which was originally designed by Edward Lovett Pearce and built between 1729 and 1739 to house the Irish Parliament. The Parliament later moved to the larger building in Kildare Street.

It will go by Mediaeval Dublin which includes

• St Patrick’s Cathedral (Ireland’s largest church, which was founded beside a sacred well where St. Patrick is said to have baptised converts around AD450. Much of the present building dates back to work completed between 1254 and 1270).
• Christchurch Cathedral (This Cathedral was commissioned in 1172 by Strongbow, the Anglo-Norman conqueror of Dublin, and Archbishop Laurence O’Toole. It replaced an earlier wooden church built by the Vikings in 1038. At the time of the Reformation, the cathedral passed t the Protestant church of Ireland).

The tour will finish up at The Guinness Storehouse. Guinness is a black beer, known as “stout”, renowned for its distinctive malty flavour and smooth, creamy head. In December 1759, 34-year-old Arthur Guinness signed a 9,000 year lease to take over the St. James’s Gate Brewery which had lain vacant for almost 10 years.
This converted warehouse houses an exhibition explaining how the famous “stout” is brewed, since 1759, and illustrating the evolution of the world-famous brewery with the city.
At the very top of the building is the Gravity Bar, the froth on the Storehouse's giant pint!, which is the highest bar and public viewing area in Dublin. The circular glass walls provide a 360-degree panoramic view over the city and the Wicklow hills. Sit back, enjoy the view and your “pint of plain”.

REGISTRATION DESK
The registration desk at the RDS will be open from 7.00 am to 6.00pm each day. The registration desk will include the following:

Collection of Delegate Badges & Bags for those who have pre-registered.
On-site Registration
General Information

ORGANISERS / SECRETARIAT OFFICE
The office is located to the right-hand side the Registration Desk
The phone number there, to used in case of emergency is: (+353 1) 668 9878
The Fax Number is: (+353 1) 240 7241
An Emergency Medical Technician will be on duty at this office during the Congress hours.

NOTICE BOARD
A notice board is provided at the rear of the registration desk within the Exhibition area. Any changes to the timetable and personal messages will be displayed on the Notice Board.

AUDIO VISUAL
The audio visual room is located to the rear of the Exhibition area, just outside the Hall, and will signposted. It is available for all presenters. Opening hours are as follows:

Please ensure that you collect your presentation from the audio visual room, as altered presentations will not be returned after the close of the Congress.

POSTER PRESENTATIONS
The Poster Presentations will be displayed on the Balcony, above the Main Hall. Posters are to be erected by 7.45am each day, and must be removed at 6.00pm. Velcro will be provided to put up the posters. Please collect the exact location of your poster from the Registration Desk the evening before.

LUNCH, TEA & COFFEE
Cold packed lunches will be served at the rear of the exhibition hall. During lunch, tea and coffee will be served on the balcony.

For the morning and afternoon tea and coffee breaks, beverages will be served at the rear of the exhibition hall.

CERTIFICATE OF ATTENDANCE
Certificates of Attendance will be provided for all participants.

BADGES
Attendees will be required to wear their Delegate Badge at all times, to access the Exhibition area, the Conference rooms and the Posters area.

EXHIBITION
A commercial exhibition of medical equipment, pharmaceutical products and publications, will be located in the Main Hall area of the RDS, during the Conference.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT TO THE CONFERENCE VENUE
The conference venue, the RDS, is situated on the Merrion Road in the South side of the City. There is an excellent public bus service passing this venue all day to and from the city centre. The Bus numbers which service this area are: 5; 7; 7A; 7X; 8; 45. If you wish to avail of any of these buses to get to the RDS from the City Centre, they all stop at Nassau Street, beside Trinity College. Buses stop only when they are hailed by passengers waiting at the bus stops, or when a passenger wishing to alight rings the bell inside the bus. Buses operate an “Exact Fare System”, and change will NOT be given. The average fare from the city centre to the RDS is either €0.85 or €1.30. Coins are inserted into a box beside the driver’s cab, and he will issue a ticket. Do NOT offer the driver any currency in notes, as change will not be given. Smoking is prohibited on all public transport.

TAXIS
All taxis are licensed and fares metered. There are a number of taxi ranks around the city centre – St Stephen’s Green (opposite Habitat and outside the Shelbourne Hotel); College Green (opposite Trinity College); O’Connell Street (opposite The Gresham Hotel); and at the Railway Stations and the Airport. Hotel porters will also call taxis by phone. Taxis can be hailed on the street. Hackney Cabs also operate in the city, but cannot be hailed. They are licensed, but must be pre-booked by telephone. A non-smoking policy applies to all taxi customers.

DART
The DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transport) is a rapid commuter rail line, which runs along the coast of Dublin from Howth in the North side through the city to Bray on the South side. There are stations along the line, and the nearest one to the RDS is at Sandymount. The fares are approximately the same as the bus fares. Tickets are bought at the ticket desk in the station prior to boarding. Smoking is prohibited on the DART.

TOURIST INFORMATION
The main Tourist Information Office is located in Suffolk Street, Dublin 2, near Trinity College. The office is open to the public from 09.00 to 17.30 daily Monday to Saturday. There is also a smaller Information Office located on Baggot Street Bridge in the Head Office of the Irish Tourist Board. This office is open to the public from 09.30 to 17.30, Monday to Friday.

CURRENCY
The Euro (€) is the currency accepted in Ireland. Credit cards are widely accepted. If you have an internationally-recognised credit card, cash advances can be obtained at any cash point machine displaying the appropriate card sign.
To report lost or stolen credit cards while in Ireland, call: American Express: 1800 282 728 free phone; Visa: 1800 406 136 free phone; MasterCard: 001 314 275 6690 reverse charge call accepted.

SHOPPING
Store opening times are generally from 9.00am to 6.00pm, Monday to Saturday, with late-night city centre shopping on Thursday nights until 8.00pm. Some department stores and bookshops are open on Sundays from 12.00 noon to 6.00pm.

VAT REFUND SCHEME
If you hold a non-EU passport it is worth investigating the VAT (Value Added Tax) Retail Export Scheme. In Ireland VAT is charged on most goods, apart from food and children’s clothing. The rate of 20% on items such as clothing, jewellery, crystal, and cameras can be claimed back if purchases are taken out of Ireland within three months. Tax is paid at the point of purchase and claimed back later. When shopping ask for VAT vouchers. When leaving the country go to the VAT-back desk at the airport and they will assist you with your claim. You may be asked to present the goods and if the vouchers equal more than IR£200.00, you may be asked to report to the nearby customs desk for authorisation.

ELECTRICITY
Mains electricity is supplied at 220 volts (50 cycles). Plugs have three square pins. A transformer is needed to convert American and some European appliances. Adapters are available at the airport.

DRIVING
In Ireland we drive on the left-hand side of the road. You can drive in the Republic of Ireland with an overseas driving license, so long as it has been held for more than a year. Some car hire firms impose age restrictions. Most car hire operators have desks at Dublin Airport. Information also available from hotel receptionist. Please note that if you are driving in Ireland the road signs are being changed from miles to kilometers, but not all have yet been changed. The speed limit signs are in miles per hour; the speedometers on car dials are in miles, with kilometers marked in a smaller size.

WEATHER
Dublin has a fairly mild climate, and May can be very warm. The East coast is much drier than the West coast, but the weather is notoriously unpredictable so blue skies can cloud over in minutes. The average temperature in September ranges from 60 - 65 F (15 - 17 C). Pack a light rain-coat / jacket, and a warm fleece or sweater just to be on the safe side!

TIME
Clocks are set to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT); they go forward by one hour at the end of March to start Summer Time, reverting to GMT at the end of October.

HOTELS
A map showing the location of each of the city centre hotels (which are listed in the 'Accommodation' section) can be viewed by clicking the link below.