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We deeply regret the passing of Dr Salvador Tranche, President of Semfyc (Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine). WONCA sends its deepest condolences to family, friends and colleagues from the medical community in Spain andtheworld.

Difficult days for family medicine in Spain. Salvador Tranche Iparraguirre, president of Semfyc (Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine), suddenly died on his way home on Sunday, 13 February. Salva had been president of Semfyc since 2016. Together with his team, they have advanced family and community medicine with a firm and determined commitment in many political, social and scientific forums, without neglecting the dayto-day work in his family doctor's surgery at the Cristo health centre in Oviedo in Asturias, Spain. SemFYC members will always be grateful for his support and leadership over the years. At the international level, we counted on his support in the WONCA working groups, in which semFYC members participate. He also actively participated in WONCA world, Ibero-American and European conferences. He was a committed person, passionate about family medicine, conciliatory and open to dialogue. He has been an undisputed leader of family medicine in Spain during the COVID19 pandemic and developed a relevant activity in disseminating the role of family and community medicine in the Spanish health system. He had become a national reference when it came to checking and publicising the situation of the Primary Care network in Spain Given the great sadness of the semFYC community, we have decided to open this digital space for condolences. Salvador Tranche, you left the way you have lived, always at the forefront of family medicine. Rest in peace. We will all carry on together, where your footsteps have left us. Dr María Pilar Astier Peña WONCA Member at Large

SALVADOR TRANCHE

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HALFWAY - THE UNEXPECTED PASSING OF SALVADOR TRANCHE

It was in Lima, during the 5th Ibero-American Congress of Family and Community Medicine, when we met Salvador. The first CIMF event after his assumption as the highest representative of Spanishfamilyandcommunitymedicine,in2016. That was just the first day of many in which we saw him arrive with his projects and proposals under his arm: literal -physical, carried in foldersor even imaginary, but always very tangible. The projects never came alone, were always driven by passion and collective work behind each proposal: the participation as an Ibero-American region in the WONCA events, the strong presence of a Spanish speaking space in the events of our world organisation, the strengthening of our link between CIMF member associations, are just someexamples. National, regional and world events located in Barcelona, Braga, Cali and Seoul allowed us to share, in addition to the passion for family and community medicine, the human aspects, the affectionandthemeetinginafacetofacetimes. Later, Vitoria, Abu Dhabi, Guatemala and Mexico brought us together in events and missions on virtual platforms. The pandemic made us change our ways but did not stop our march. Of course, we miss hugging, walking, sharing meals; but since 2017, there was a continuous work and activitieswhereSalvadorwasalwayspresent. Sunday, February 13 2022, came with the news of Salvador's passing. We barely had a year to share the daily work of the CIMF Executive Committee. In February 2021, he assumed the vice presidency of the Iberian subregion, succeeding Jorge Brandao from Portugal. That year was short and particularly hard, not only because of the pandemicandthemultipleepidemicwavesinour countries. The fatigue accumulated by previous months of COVID-19 weighed heavily, including the battles in defence of primary care, public health or family medicine/family and community medicineexperiencedintheregion.

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In Spain, this had been particularly intense. During the pandemic, primary care and the public healthsystem,proudlyknownbyitscitizensanda reference for Ibero-America, were threatened. Semfyc redoubled the defence. Salvador, from a mentor position, repeatedly pointed out the lack of a hierarchy in "primary" and the necessary recognition of family medicine as an essential resource for care during and after the pandemic. Of course, he wasn't alone. At Semfyc and CIMF, Salvador was a team person, and even in adversity, he brought joy, smiles, encouragement toeachofhiscolleagues. Salvador gradually positioned itself as a regional benchmark, transcending its country. His experience, commitment, honesty and clarity of proposalsalwaysshedlightoncollectivework.He knew that he had a lot to contribute to the Confederation, including his experience leading Semfyc. That clearly weighed on his decision to run for the ICMF presidency in our last election. Salvador was not elected, but his participation in the Executive Committee continued with the samecamaraderieandjoyasalways. Salvador's candidacy put on the table an issue that is not easy for our region: the integration between Iberia and Latin America. Incorporating WONCA as a single region, even though Spain and PortugalarealsopartoftheEuropeanregion,was a planned and thoughtful decision at the end of the 20th century, ultimately finalized between 2001and2004. But the pain runs through the link between Iberia and Latin America from its origin. The conquest, loaded with deaths, gave way to colonization that in many aspects persists. That is why it is necessary to advance in a decolonizing perspective favouring the deployment of the maximum potential in all territories, also in Europe, strengthened by the richness of the encounter. We know that family and community medicine is as necessary on one side of the ocean as it is on the other. We know that the difficulties to consolidate and preserve it are very similar here and there and that some problems are typical here, some others are there. We also know that each region is human and professional wealthy, enhanced by diversity. We know that there are grounds to think of ourselves together as an Ibero-American region that can work well jointly. Possibly, Salvador's candidacy was essentially a vote for integration, a message to the future. We keepthinkingaboutthis. We know that family and community medicine is as necessary on one side of the ocean as it is on the other. We know that the difficulties to consolidate and preserve it are very similar here and there and that some problems are typical here, some others are there. We also know that each region is human and professional wealthy, enhanced by diversity. We know that there are grounds to think of ourselves together as an Ibero-American region that can work well jointly. Possibly, Salvador's candidacy was essentially a vote for integration, a message to the future. We keepthinkingaboutthis. May Salvador's life, cut short in a moment of human and professional fulfilment, not be a loss but light to help us find the way to strengthen integration for Ibero-America. An integration that rescues, mixes, amalgamates the essence of our peoples from here and there, for a family and community medicine that is essentially human andmestizolikeourselves. May Salvador's departure reaffirms his actions in life; actions that raised work in unity, eradicated distances and became a partner of a renewed family and community medicine in this complex 21stcentury. Jacqueline Ponzo, WONCA Iberoamericana-CIMF President.