The VIII Asian & Oceanic Congress of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and the First Congress of the Royal Australian College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, 1981
As we near the AOFOG Congress in Sydney this October, it seems an opportune moment to look back at the last time this momentous event was held in Australia. The year was 1981, and RACOG took the reins as Melbourne hosted the VIII Asian & Oceanic Congress of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Notably, this event also functioned as the first ever RACOG Congress following the formation of the Australian College in 1978/79.
Held over six days, from 25-31 October, the Congress hosted more than 1000 delegates from all corners of the globe. The two major scientific venues were the Dallas Brooks Hall and the nearby Hilton Hotel, a short walk from each other near the Fitzroy Gardens in East Melbourne. The College clearly liked the area so much that it decided to stay a while, for by the end of 1981 it had purchased the neighbouring 254 Albert Street to function as the new College House.
Fig. 1. Map of the conference venues from the Congress program.
Fig. 2. Map of the trade exhibit floor plan from the Congress program.
Proceedings commenced with the Congress Opening Ceremony, which kicked off at 7.30pm on Sunday, 25 October, at Dallas Brooks Hall. The ceremony was supported by a performance from the RAAF Central Band and featured a keynote speech by the then Governor-General of Australia, Sir Zelman Cowen. In his address, the Governor-General reflected on his involvement with RACOG, having been part of its inauguration ceremony in August 1979, and involved in the proceedings undertaken to grant the College permission to use the “Royal” prefix. In a brief but broad-ranging speech, he also reflected on the involvement of Australian specialists in the Asia and Pacific region and on the topic of in vitro fertilisation. During the ceremony, Sir Zelman Cowen accepted the invitation to become the first Honorary Fellow of RACOG.
Fig. 3. Program and ticket for the Congress Opening Ceremony, alongside a copy of Sir Zelman Cowen’s keynote address.
Fig. 4. His Excellency the Right Honourable Sir Zelman Cowen with Dr Geoff Bishop (Chair of the 1981 Congress Organising Committee) at the 1981 Congress.
The following day, the Congress began in earnest. Over four days and 54 sessions, it covered the topics of trophoblastic disease, perinatal mortality, oncology, endocrinology, in vitro fertilisation, fertility control, ultrasound, maternal mortality, education, and surgery. For most of the Congress, main sessions ran concurrently with Free Communications sessions, allowing delegates choice of the topics they most wished to engage with.
Fig. 5. Program and Proceedings for the 1981 Congress.
Wednesday, 28 October, offered delegates a chance for some mid-Congress respite and sightseeing. With no scientific program on offer, the day was dedicated to social activities. Delegates had the choice of three organised tours. The first saw delegates visit Barringo Wildlife Reserve and Australia’s oldest homestead at Emu Bottom, where they were treated to the opportunity to walk amongst and feed native wildlife as well as “demonstrations of sheep shearing, competition wood chopping, sheep dog trials and boomerang throwing.” Alternatively, delegates were invited to take a coach trip to Ballarat and tour Sovereign Hill and the “exciting and brilliant gold museum”, or to take a trip to Phillip Island to see the “endearing fairy penguins waddle up from the sea” and visit a koala centre. These events sat alongside a full social program for the families of delegates, which ran concurrently with the Congress itself. Organised activities for families included Australian film screenings, shopping and craft tours, walking tours, wine tastings, and tours of scenic local attractions such as Healesville Sanctuary and the Dandenong Ranges.
Fig. 6-7. Materials issued to delegates to the 1981 Congress, including guides to local attractions and a small kangaroo ornament.
As part of the RACOG side of proceedings, the Congress hosted the inaugural RACOG Admission Ceremony. Held at Dallas Brooks Hall on the evening of Tuesday, 27 October, the ceremony saw 10 members and 24 Fellows presented to the President of the College, Professor J F Correy,, as well as one Fellowship Ad Eundem which was presented to Professor James Boyer Brown. The ceremony included the presentation of the F J Browne Medal to Dr Ian Hammond. This event was followed later in the evening by a chamber music recital at the National Gallery of Victoria.
Fig. 8-10. Program for the First Admission Ceremony, 1981. The back of the program has been autographed by some of the attendees.
The final day of the Congress concluded with a Banquet held at Moonee Valley Racing Club on the evening of Friday, 30 October. A menu for the banquet, held in the RANZCOG archives, tells us that Congress delegates were treated to kangaroo tail soup, followed by Port Phillip scallops, eye fillet steak, and vegetables, before finishing the meal with strawberries and gooseberries in meringue and cream.
Fig. 11-12. Menu for the Congress Banquet, 1981.
In a serendipitous turn of events, the year 1979 marked the 50th anniversary of the foundation of RCOG in the UK. In honour of this milestone, RACOG commissioned an official history of the College in Australia. Entitled Super Ardua, the history was written by RACOG Fellows Dr Ian McDonald, Dr Ian Cope, and Dr Frank Forster, and a complimentary copy was issued to all Congress delegates. Today, Super Ardua remains a valuable source of learning regarding the history of the profession in Australia.
The fact that we can still paint such a full picture of an event held 45 years ago shows the value of archives and historical collections in preserving memory and history.
A large amount of material about this event was retained in the College’s records, including organising committee minutes, delegate lists, tickets, conference programs and materials, and even copies of some of the ephemera gifted to delegates, such as those pictured in this article. Many of these items would have had little appreciable immediate value, so the foresight to retain them is to be commended. My grateful thanks to my predecessors and their diligence for enabling me to share this story in such detail. I also encourage everyone to register for this year’s AOFOG Congress – the first to be held in Australia in over four decades!
