PG Courses at the 2022 Annual Meeting
Sunday, March 27, 2022

Special Promotions just for Fellows
Free registration to any of the Virtual PG Courses below by using discount code FELLOW
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Course 1: Interdisciplinary Approach and Surgical Techniques for Diagnosis and Repair of Mullerian Anomalies - Live Only
Sunday, March 27, 2022 | 8:00 am - 12:00 pm CT
Course Director: Cara King, DO
Course Faculty: Marjan Attaran, MD, Cecile A. Ferrando, MD, V. Gomez-Lobo, MD, Oz Harmanli, MD, Marc Laufer, MD, Joseph Sanfilippo, MD 

This course will provide a comprehensive overview of how to provide interdisciplinary care for patients who present with complex anatomy from Mullerian anomalies. A methodical and reproducible approach for work up and repair will be described using both didactics and video review. Participants will be taught appropriate preoperative work up including thorough physical exam and integration of imaging modalities. Specific attention will be devoted to crucial pelvic anatomy and surgical approaches for repair of congenital uterine and vaginal anomalies, as well as management of postoperative vaginal stenosis after neovagina repair. These dissection principles and anatomic relationships can be applied to multiple modalities of pelvic surgery including both laparoscopic and vaginal approaches. Furthermore, opportunity will be offered for individual case review to assist with personalized coaching for the participants.

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Course 2: Evaluation and Treatment of Vesicovaginal (VVF) and Rectovaginal (RVF) Fistulas - Live and Virtual
Sunday, March 27, 2022 | 8:00 am - 12:00 pm CT
Course Director: Saifuddin Mama, MD
Course Faculty: Joan L. Blomquist, MD, Robert E. Gutman, MD, Brittany S. Hampton, MD, Peter C. Jeppson, MD, Blair B. Washington, MD

Vesicovaginal (VVF) and rectovaginal (RVF) fistulas from obstetric-related causes remain a major source of pain and suffering worldwide. While the distortion in anatomy has some similarities with injuries induced by radiation, the diagnosis, evaluation, management, and treatment of these fistulas can be quite different from other pelvic pathology and more difficult to treat in any setting.

This course, led by faculty who have extensive experience treating fistulas in different countries and settings, is designed to provide a systematic and comprehensive approach to evaluating and treating vesicovaginal and rectovaginal fistulas.

This didactic-based course will be supplemented with surgical photos and videos, and special attention will focus on tips and tricks in diagnosis and treatment. In addition, time is set aside at the end of the course for audience Q & A.

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Course 3: Innovation and Entrepreneurship for Medical Professionals - Live and Virtual
Sunday, March 27, 2022 | 8:00 am - 12:00 pm CT
Course Director: Paula Doyle, MD
Course Faculty: Jon I. Einarsson, MD, Douglas W. Miyazaki, MD, Peter L. Rosenblatt, MD, Anthony G. Visco, MD

Medical professionals spend years of training to perfect clinical skills, and through this process, innovation for new ideas, techniques, and devices are created. However, medical professionals often don’t know how to proceed with their invention or develop the entrepreneurial skills needed.

The pathway to innovation is unclear and filled with mistrust around intellectual property, suspicion of industry, and general anxiety of the process.

This course will be a safe and structured session to guide members through the innovation process. We will teach the general guidelines for patents in and outside of academic institutions. In addition, the session will include a discussion on commercialization options after the intellectual property has been established.

The primary objective of this course is to teach and guide members through the innovation process and to communicate basic business principles. In addition, the faculty will provide additional resources for future reference.

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Course 4: Multiple Modalities of Myomectomy - Live and Virtual
Sunday, March 27, 2022 | 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm CT
Course Director: Matthew T. Siedhoff, MD
Course Faculty: Arnold P. Advincula, MD, Hye-Chun Hur, MD, Mireille D. Truong, MD, Kelly N. Wright, MD

This course provides a comprehensive review of the principles and techniques of various modalities of uterine-preserving myomectomy for fibroids. Faculty will use video extensively to illustrate techniques that allow successful outcomes.

For centuries, the “preferred” surgery for women with these benign growths has been the removal of the entire organ (i.e., hysterectomy). But the reasons for that preference—that hysterectomy is safer and a better operation—will be questioned by a review of the medical literature. The course will demonstrate, with high-quality evidence and video presentation, including all modalities of minimally invasive myomectomy--hysteroscopy, laparoscopy, robotic-assisted, and laparotomy. We will also demonstrate appropriate workup to optimize patients for the OR and discuss how to counsel and manage these women postoperatively.

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Course 5: Train the Trainer: A Vaginal Surgery Simulation Course for Educators - Live Only
Sunday, March 27, 2022 | 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm CT
Course Director: Christine M. Vaccaro, DO
Course Faculty: Chi Chiung Grace Chen, MD, Veronica T. Lerner, MD, Payton C. Schmidt, MD

Vaginal hysterectomy is a core gynecologic procedure. However, due to surgical volume decline and diversification of routes over the past few decades (laparoscopy, robotics, and vNOTES), vaginal surgical volumes have significantly declined. This shift has led to fewer operative learning opportunities and declining graduating resident surgical volume. In response, surgical simulation has been used to augment learning and maintain vaginal surgical skills, including simulation practice to a pre-specified level of proficiency before operative performance is allowed. In addition, surgical simulation is advantageous because it provides for skill acquisition and maintenance outside of the operating room in a learning environment that is safe for the learners and does not expose patients to additional risk.

This course will provide an overview of existing vaginal surgical simulation models; will review how to teach and evaluate vaginal surgical skills, and discuss the basic tenants of simulation, including content, video, pre-test, evaluation, and feedback. This course will include lectures and interactive learning via hands-on teaching and evaluating existing vaginal surgical simulation platforms.

Participants will rotate in small groups to facilitate an in-depth evaluation of the following models:
1. A commercially available ready-made vaginal hysterectomy model: Miya Model
2. Make-it-yourself vaginal hysterectomy: a low-cost model
3. Anterior and posterior colporrhaphy: a low-cost model
4. The Fundamentals of Vaginal Surgery (FVS) simulation system: a low-cost, basic vaginal skills model

Each simulation platform will be evaluated for its fidelity, cost, ease of construction (if applicable), procedural complexity, validity evidence, skills assessment capabilities (if applicable), and limitations. In addition, experts in gynecologic simulation-based education will facilitate their respective models.

This course was developed in affiliation with the SGS Education Committee and the ACOG Simulations Working Group.

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Workshop: Not Your Mama’s MySpace: Creating the Future of Gynecology Live and Virtual
Sunday, March 27, 2022 | 1:30 pm - 4:30 pm CT
SGS Social Media Workshop Chairs: Jocelyn Fitzgerald, MD and Mireille Truong, MD
Workshop Faculty: Christine Foley, MD, Courtney Fox, MD, Miguel Luna, MD, Olga Muldoon, MD, Elliott Richards, MD, Lisa Sappenfield, MD, Karen Tang, MD, Linda Yang, MD

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