Introducing a new HERMES project on respiratory infections

The development of a HERMES curriculum for training in respiratory infections is now in progress http://ow.ly/Y76aO In 2014, the European Respiratory Society (ERS) took the lead in harmonising training programmes in a field of emerging interest across Europe, respiratory infections. In order to establish defined standards of knowledge and skills in this new field, the ERS has launched the educational task force “Respiratory Infections” under the HERMES (Harmonised Education in Respiratory Medicine for European Specialists) initiative (hermes.ersnet.org). Most countries do not have their own system for training physicians in respiratory infections. To fulfil this unmet need, the educational task force aims to support the harmonisation of training through different tools: in the first instance, by developing a training syllabus and curriculum for respiratory infections, and in the future, by designing educational resources that could lead to voluntary assessments and certification. In this editorial, we will focus on explaining the rationale behind the HERMES Respiratory Infections project and present the first steps in the development of a training syllabus.