Dear colleagues, ,

I am extremely happy that the Pediatric Drug Formulary CDRom and Book - one of the prestigious projects that I had selected for the Presidential Action Plan this year - is to be released at the XXXXIInd IAP National Conference, Pedicon 2005, at Kolkota.

IAP has always promoted ethical and rational drug therapy in pediatric care and this excellent compilation will serve as a guideline for years to come in this endeavour.

The proposal to make it a continuing agenda, with updates once a year and that too, through the web, had caught my imagination when the proposal was first brought to my notice. The task also sets up the possibility of having IAP recommended treatment protocols for every pediatric illness in the book and that is a dream come true. Committees, over the years, could use the data provided in this book as a baseline to formulate fresh guidelines every year.

The value of this book is due to the eminence of its contributors who have shared with us the knowledge they have acquired with years of practice in their specialty. The concept of utilising the expertise of successive office bearers of the respective IAP sub-specialty chapters for updating the formulary ensures a fresh look at the presentation of the information provided in the book and the CDRom.

The IAP CMEG has made its presence felt with this project and our sincere appreciation goes wholly to Dr Jeeson C Unni who conceived and implemented this herculean task with aplomb.

IAP President 2004

Director, Child Development Centre,

Thruvananthapuram