Harrogate is a beautiful town and home to the Combined British Renal Symposium and Nephrology In Practice meeting. This year's event, the third, attracted over 850 delegates from a variety of healthcare professions, including social workers, doctors, nurses, dieticians and technicians.

High-quality papers covered a range of topics. Vascular access, trends in peritoneal dialysis, transplantation, renewed interest in home haemodialysis, were presented alongside insights into recruitment and retention and molecular biology. One of the most interesting and innovative papers was presented by Sue Perrin of Manchester Royal Infirmary. She described the "Advanced Directives" created by patients addressing their future management.

Invited speakers were of exceptional quality, particularly Anne Keogh, whose inspiring words encouraged nurses to strive to be leaders in their field of practice.

Liam Plant and Colin Jones led an lively clinico-pathological session early Saturday morning. Using a voting system, delegates indicated their preferred therapies for the cases presented. It was reassuring to see consistency among the treatment paths selected.

Just a few years ago, a poster presentation consisted merely of pieces of paper pinned to a board. Nowadays, the glossy colour creations provide informative and easy-to-read displays and have raised the standard of this form of presentation to welcome new heights. Near the poster presentations, there was a wonderful display of archaic dialysis machines, organised by the Association of Renal Technicians.

Networking is a key benefit of any conference. While I found my fellow delegates warm and friendly, easy to talk to and open to sharing ideas, I would have welcomed more seating, particularly during lunch, where many had to stand to eat.

The closing session, The NHS as we will come to know it, introduced an interesting perspective from Harry Burns, the Director of Public Health in Glasgow. Unfortunately, this serious presentation was followed by a lighter performance from the established speaker Roy Lily. His pertinent points could have been condensed into less than five minutes of useful commentary.

After the conference formalities were over the organised social event saw the resurrection of ABBA, which created a full and active dance floor.

All in all, the conference was well organised and a joy to attend, attracting many high-quality papers and experts in the field. However, for a truly multidisciplinary conference, there needs to be a greater emphasis on integrated sessions, where doctors and the other healthcare professions present side by side, stimulating cross-discipline discussion and debate.