It's done: 13 founding members launched the ELIAS association on Friday.
The aim is to support people who suffer from long-term corona consequences.
District
- The name is a bit awkward, but the abbreviation is easy to remember: Association for those suffering from COVID-19 and long-term injuries as well as their relatives for information, education and self-help. In short: ELIAS. ELIAS was launched on Friday. 13 founding members signed the association's statutes in Gammelsdorf. The initiator of ELIAS, member of the Bundestag Erich Irlstorfer, was elected founding chairman. Now the work begins. A lot of work.
Corona and COVID-19 - the topic has been determining life in Germany for almost a year and a half. Many people are affected by it, and the long-term consequences of COVID-19 are increasingly becoming an important issue. Erich Irlstorfer is someone who can tell a song about it from his own experience. And that's why he had the idea for ELIAS (we reported), and was "very touched" on Friday at the founding meeting that the idea had now become a reality.
According to the statutes, the purpose and aim of the association is to "urgently" provide information on medical, therapeutic and technical possibilities and further developments to those suffering from SARS CoV-2 and long-term injuries from COVID-19 in the districts of Freising, Pfaffenhofen and Neuburg-Schrobenhausen wants to educate and advise as well as give advice on social help. It is also important because deficits can still be observed in this area: working towards “improving medical education and medical care for those affected” and promoting “cooperation between those affected, their relatives and the doctors and scientists”.
Irlstorfer said there are thousands of people in Germany who are suffering from the long-term effects of COVID-19. For them there is currently hardly any approach to help "so that it becomes the way it was before". ELIAS, as Irlstorfer made it clear, does not want to “dwarf”, but neither does one want to overturn. The result: ELIAS has “regional roots”, but also strives for initiatives on a national and international level. Central to the successful work of ELIAS are, on the one hand, regional advisory boards, which are appointed at the beginning of June and are supposed to specify the topics for the association. On the other hand, an advisory board for national and international tasks should establish contacts with research and science. “We bring knowledge and science together,” says Irlstorfer literally.
One possible problem and one danger from which one must protect oneself is the "infiltration" by lateral thinkers and right-wing radicals, one emphasized at the inaugural meeting. Members are therefore carefully screened before they are accepted into ELIAS. The founding board includes people who were almost all affected by a COVID-19 infection themselves and mostly still suffer from long-term effects, or, to put it in Irlstorfer's words: "They know what they are doing", those who deal with Corona patients are very sensitive and know about the consequences of COVID-19. Who, according to Irlstorfer, but also with their membership and their commitment to ELIAS, put on “combat gear” and face the challenges of Long-Covid.
In addition to Irlstorfer, Nathalie Deischl, Phillip Gerdau and Gabriele Uitz were elected as deputy chairmen.
Treasurers are Helga Engelhard-Kraus and Christian Sievers, secretaries are Andreas Beschorner and Emma Irlstorfer.
Sabine Schmidmeir, Karin Linz, Heike Stoffels and Ute Mennecke act as assessors.
The cash auditors are Christoph Reger and Harald Regulator.
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