SAGES

Reimagining surgical care for a healthier world

SAGES Update from President Horacio Asbun

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As I enter my eighth month of SAGES presidency, it appears surreal that my whole presidency has basically been a virtual one. What it also means is that everyone else’s  life over the last eight months has been the same. We’re still battling the virus and largely interacting in a virtual world, but despite so, SAGES has found ways to thrive through the pandemic and tried to capitalize on anything good that can come out of it.

In lieu of meeting together at the ACS Clinical Congress, we had 42 virtual committee meetings last month, and just convened our virtual board meeting. SAGES remains alive, vibrant and active as ever, representing 7,100 members worldwide. We have made tremendous strides with our strategic plan. A few highlights are below:

Global Surgical Collaborative (GSC)

As I mentioned in my July message, we formed a Coronavirus Global Surgical Collaborative in March, which included surgeons from around the globe and responded quickly to COVID, issuing ten statements in three months. The group evolved over the summer and fall to address issues facing the global surgical community, and now has been renamed the Global Surgical Collaborative.

Technology Council

Following a successful Next Big Thing (NBT) Summit/Innovation Weekend in February, the Tech Council is busy pursuing a growing number of initiatives, under the leadership of Dr. Christopher Schlachta. Given the success of the 2020 Summit, another Summit is planned for May 7-8, 2021.  New for this year, we will partner with the Surgical Disruptive Technologies Summit (SDTS), chaired by Dr. Erik Wilson, for a joint NBT/SDTS Summit.  In addition, NOSCAR will join the Summit. In parallel, there will also be a second AI Summit and second Advocacy Summit, to continue the advances made at the 2020 gathering. Also new will be an Advocacy Boot Camp, which will train attendee surgeons in how to advocate with insurance companies and regulators.

The original NBT working groups (Innovation, Evidence and Dissemination), whose tasks were delineated at the Innovation Summit and refined within SAGES Strategic Plan, continue their hard work.  The development of multiple registries of subject matter experts, resources for innovators, research expertise for clinical trials, are all in progress.

Two new technology based working groups have been added to the Tech Council, both of which can be considered “next big things.”  The goal of the Digital Surgery Group, led by Dr. Dmitry Oleynikov, is to define the relationship between technology and patient care into the next century, and to guide the next generation of surgeons through an increasingly complex technological patient care matrix.  The pandemic has quickly enabled growth in the fields of telehealth and telepresence. The goal of the Fluorescence Imaging Group, led by Dr. Raul Rosenthal, is to address innovation in this rapidly evolving field and take it to the next level of adoption and development.

Finally, the NBT is being incorporated into the SAGES meeting for 2021 and into the future.  The Emerging Technology Session will be re-branded as the NBT Session, retaining the same focus of the prior Emerging Tech Session. In 2021, a major and impactful change to the Shark Tank is being considered. Shark Tank will include a significant monetary award for the most promising innovation. Stay tuned for more details.

Reimagining the Practice of Surgery

Since its first meeting in March, the newly formed Re-Imagining the Practice of Surgery Task Force (RPS) has held several calls with members motivated to achieve the group’s goals: taking more control and promoting joy; encouraging surgeons’ optimal performance; making institutions more vested in creating a healthier, efficient and positive work environment; positively disrupting work patterns that prevent innovation, continuing to be a society that attracts new generations of successful leaders; and, obtaining knowledge to design solutions.

As it works towards actual solutions, the group is actively moving forward on a pilot research project that will involve live interviews of a diverse group of SAGES members. Members will be asked to share their thoughts about maintaining motivation and joy in the practice of surgery, retaining autonomy, and other issues related to sustaining that initial attraction of becoming a surgeon. The group will also be using its findings to create an exciting “Reimagining Wellness” session at the 2021 annual meeting.

SAGES 2021

Plan now to attend SAGES annual meeting, “Re-Imagining a Healthier World,” now tentatively scheduled for June 15-18, 2021 in Las Vegas. Drs. Adnan Alseidi & Dana Telem have an excellent program planned. Check http://www.sages2021.surgery/ frequently for updates.

We hope you will continue to keep SAGES and our mission, vision and core values in mind throughout the Fall and winter.

Mission: To innovate, educate and collaborate to improve patient care

Vision: Re-imagining surgical care for a healthier world

Values: Inclusivity, innovation, service, excellence, global community (and an unofficial value of FUN)

Lastly, I again would like to thank SAGES Executive Committee members who work with me weekly to conduct the business of the Society: Drs. Aurora Pryor, Liane Feldman, John Mellinger, Chris Schlachta, Patricia Sylla and Brent Matthews. Thank you, too, to Sallie Matthews and her team for their invaluable support to our society.

Stay safe,

Horacio J. Asbun, MD

president@sages.org

 

 

SAGES Update from President Horacio Asbun

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As I enter my fourth month as SAGES president, during continued unprecedented times in our collective lives, I am reminded that SAGES is an extraordinary organization. Although we’re not able to meet in person for the 2020 annual meeting, the work and vitality of the Society remains strong. We are pleased to debut our new monthly e-newsletter MesSAGES, replacing the prior semi-annual SCOPE. Our hope is to consolidate timely information and curtail the number of emails to your in-box.

SAGES moved rapidly in response to COVID-19, issuing ten statements between March and May, forming the Coronavirus Global Surgical Collaborative (CVGSC) with our surgical colleagues around the globe, which issued “Notes from the Battlefield” statements during the same time period, and conducting four Zoom webinars and countless Facebook webinars. All can be found at https://www.sages.org/category/covid-19/. SAGES also spearheaded the creation of International Guidelines on Safe Return to Surgical and Endoscopic Practice, a Delphi Consensus from the CVGSC, with the participation of 50 experts, patient representatives, and top policy makers from 15 countries and four continents. A rigorous process was carried and completed in a little over four weeks.

In early June, observing the unfortunate events occurring in our country, SAGES again moved quickly to issue a statement denouncing racism.

It was my honor this spring to form the Re-Imagining the Practice of Surgery (RPS) Task Force, chaired by President-Elect Dr. Liane Feldman. The RPS group met virtually in the winter and spring, conducted one of the webinars, and has the following goals:

  • Take more control and promote joys in the practice of surgery
  • Encourage surgeons to cultivate habits that support optimal performance
  • Make institutions more vested in creating a healthier, efficient and positive work environment
  • Positively disrupt work patterns that prevent innovation
  • Continue being a society that attracts new generations of successful leaders
  • Obtain knowledge to design solutions

Stay tuned for more from this exciting new group.

Despite quarantine and continued uncertainty in our collective lives, we found reason to celebrate. SAGES welcomed its 7,000th member! Our membership committee continues their efforts, and we rely on existing members to serve as our greatest ambassadors of membership recruitment. Please direct prospective members to https://www.sages.org/membership/.

Our Technology Council, under the leadership of Dr. Christopher Schlachta, continues to grow and thrive, with new working groups on Fluorescence led by Dr. Raul Rosenthal and Digital Surgery led by Dr. Dmitry Oleynikov. Following the “Next Big Thing” (NBT) Summit last February, we look forward to an NBT/ Disruptive Surgical Technologies Summit in February 2021. Stay tuned for more details.

We remain grateful to SAGES Foundation for their continued support of SAGES education and research endeavors and initiatives, and to Dr. Pon Satitpunwaycha for his generous contributions to SAGES OWLS (Organizational Worldwide Learning System), expected to launch in the coming months, and our ongoing technology for education efforts, including the Tech Council, NBT Summit, Video Based Assessment initiative, Artificial Intelligence and e-learning initiatives. Visit https://www.sagesfoundation.org/ to make a donation today, and obtain a copy of Dr. George Berci’s new autobiography.

SAGES enormous bandwidth is due to its Board, 42 committee and task force chairs/cochairs, and more than 800 committee members. The volunteer link is now closed for this year, but requests for next year can still be submitted via https://www.sages.org/leadership/committees/volunteer/.

Please plan to participate in the virtual SAGES 2020 Meeting on August 11-13 or access the presentations in the months that follow. CME credits are available. We still hope to meet in person in Las Vegas, April 7-10, 2021 for SAGES meeting, “Re-Imagining a Healthier World.” Thanks to Drs. Adnan Alseidi and Dana Telem who have put together an exciting program! Registration and housing details will come later this Fall.

We hope you will keep SAGES and our mission, vision and core values in mind throughout this year.

Mission: To innovate, educate and collaborate to improve patient care

Vision: Re-imagining surgical care for a healthier world

Values: Inclusivity, innovation, service, excellence, global community (and an unofficial value of FUN)

Lastly, I would like to thank SAGES Executive Committee members who work with me weekly to conduct the business of the Society: Drs. Aurora Pryor, Liane Feldman, John Mellinger, Chris Schlachta, Patricia Sylla and Brent Matthews. Thank you, too, to Sallie Matthews and her team for the invaluable support to our society.

It is not only an honor but also a fun job to serve as SAGES president, when working with such a remarkable group of people. And that is despite the crazy times we are all going through

Stay safe,

Horacio J. Asbun, MD
president@sages.org

Notes from the Battlefield – May 14, 2020

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Coronavirus Global Surgical Collaborative (CVGSC)*
An initiative sponsored by SAGES in collaboration with EAES, AEC, KSELS, and ELSA

A group of surgical leaders from affected countries have joined to discuss what they are learning during this Covid-19 Global crisis. The following is a brief summary of what they feel may be useful information to disseminate to the surgical community:

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on the Conduct of Surgical Research

The COVID impact on basic research has been extensive in certain areas of the world. Research labs have been affected and many times closed, except for those focused on COVID-19.  Clinical trials at institutions have been severely impacted and largely stopped.  Large streams of funding have been diverted away from non-COVID related research.  Adapting clinical research to the COVID-19 era is important and can be done incorporating COVID-19 testing and study protocol and using telehealth platforms.  For a useful guide on how to adapt research and clinical trials during this period, refer to the document prepared by the CVGSC

“Closing the Back Door” Protocol Helpful

Confidential reports from Italy and Spain confirm the efficacy of the “closing the back door protocol” in allowing an early detection of infected hospitalized surgical patients. Checking in house surgical patients twice a day – short interviews, temperature, and O2 saturation – led to several “suspected” infections. Standard operating protocol has been proven successful in identifying a few patients who later tested positive and were promptly isolated and managed accordingly. Although the early warning system increased the workload in the surgical wards, it definitely proved useful to limit in-hospital micro-outbreaks that potentially can affect other patients and staff health.

Preoperative Testing and Screening for Elective Surgery During the Pandemic to Restart Surgery

To minimize the spread and to plan appropriate protective measures for patients and OR staff, all patients should be tested prior to surgery.  The type and timing of testing remains controversial, however, and is highly dependent on local resources. Please see attached statement for further suggestions.

Participants:

Drs.  Horacio Asbun (Lead), Mohammed Abu Hilal, Jaap Bonjer, Nicolas Demartines, Nader Francis, Ho-Seong Han, Davide Lomanto, Salvador Morales, Andrea Pietrabissa, Aurora Pryor, Christopher Schlachta, Patricia Sylla, Eduardo Targarona, Suthep Udomsawaengsup

Other Surgical Societies/leaders are welcome to participate in future discussions. Please contact SAGES Executive Director, Sallie Matthews at sallie@sages.org if interested in being considered for participation.

General Disclaimer:

The following is intended to provide our members with information arising from the experience of our colleagues from Europe and Asia who experienced the pandemic first.  While the information provided is from very reliable sources, it is NOT evidence based data, since there was no time to test its validity on scientific grounds. It is merely an attempt to share practical advice based upon prior experience and current knowledge.

Did you find this information helpful?
Please consider joining SAGES or making a donation to the SAGES Education and Research Foundation so we can continue to bring content like this to the surgical community for free.

COVID-19 Medical Device Repository

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If you have a product you believe should appear on this list, please submit your request here:

https://www.sages.org/industry-repository-document-request/

Disclaimer:

This list should not be considered an endorsement of any product by SAGES, or as a SAGES recommendation. For user instructions, visit the company website, or the linked document in the table.

Disclaimer of Liability:

The information herein is offered only as a resource. It has been provided by the companies, and the accuracy of the information is solely the responsibility of the company. The products have not been researched or tested by SAGES, nor has the products’ accuracy been confirmed by SAGES.

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Commercially Available Smoke and Gas Evacuation Systems

 

 

Company Product Open Laparoscopic ULPA Passive or Active Links
Alessi Surgical
  • Ultravision
 No Yes Yes Active
Bowa
  • She Sha Smoke Evacuation System
 Yes Yes Yes Active
Braun Aesculap No Yes Yes Active
Conmed Yes Yes Yes Active
CooperSurgical No Yes Yes Passive
Ethicon Yes Yes (Mega Vac Plus Only) Yes Active
IC Medical Yes Yes (Model 450-D) Yes Active
Lexion Medical
  • PneuView XE
  • AP50/30
 No Yes Yes Active
Medtronic Yes Yes Yes Active
Olympus Yes Yes No Active
Stryker Yes Yes Yes Active
Northgate Technologies No Yes Yes Active
Karl Storz No Yes No Active (S-Pilot)
Symmetry Surgical Yes Yes Yes Active
Palliare Ltd No Yes Yes Active
Boehringer Laboratories LLC No Yes No Active

 

N95 Facepiece Respirator Decontamination Systems

Company Method of Decontamination Max number of respirators Decontamination Cycles Links
Battelle CCDS Vapor Phase Hydrogen Peroxide 80,000/per machine/day 20 FDA EUA

IFU
Steris V-Pro Vapor Phase Hydrogen Peroxide 10/machine/10 min 10 FDA EUA

IFU

 

COVID-19 Testing

Company Product Literature
Abbott Abbott Now Rapid SARS-Cov-2 Test Abbot Real Time Assay Fact Sheet
Cellex, Inc. qSARS-CoV-2 IgG/IgM Rapid Test qSARS-Cov-2 IgG/IgM Rapid Test Instructional Video
 
 

Notes from the Battlefield – April 23, 2020

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Coronavirus Global Surgical Collaborative (CVGSC)*
An initiative sponsored by SAGES in collaboration with EAES, AEC, KSELS, and ELSA

A group of surgical leaders from affected countries have joined to discuss what they are learning during this Covid-19 Global crisis. The following is a brief summary of what they feel may be useful information to disseminate to the surgical community:

Improving communication strategies for hospitalized COVID patients:

Because of the no visitor or restricted visitor policies in hospitals affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, communications between patients, families and their care teams have become extremely difficult. Understandably, clinical interactions are limited and preferentially conducted remotely, through glass doors, with in-person evaluations. Conversations are kept short and focused. Patients in isolation are particularly vulnerable to anxiety, fear of the unknown, and may have limited understanding of their condition and medical decision-making. A document on Communication Strategies during the COVID Pandemic is provided here and could be of valuable help in better understanding and addressing this issue.

Understanding COVID testing:

Several tests for the diagnosis of COVID infection have emerged. PCR, IgM and IgG are all valuable indicators at different stages of the disease. A comparison between the different tests, significance and potential pitfalls of the results are presented on the following document, courtesy of Surgery-AEC-COVID.

Transition back to surgical activities: When? How? by Whom?:

As we witness the decrease in cases in Europe and the plateau of the curve in certain parts of the US, a crucial question arises: How do we safely become operational and what will that look like? Since no one has a crystal ball to predict resurgence of the pandemic and prevalence of active infection, all answers to the question are based on predictions from expert opinion.  Clinicians and health care providers should have an important role in advising both policy makers, hospital administration and the public on the need for a thoughtful approach before calling for a full return to normal activities. A webinar on the subject will be held (link) which may shed some light on this difficult issue. At the same time, SAGES and EAES, in collaboration with several international surgical societies, are conducting a Delphi study with rigorous methodology with the goal of getting some valid information that will aid in answering this question.

Message from Italy, Spain & Netherlands to North America:

SAGES and EAES have joined forces during this crisis in creating initiatives like the CVGSC and multiple sources of information that have been of significant value to the global surgical community. It is from EAES that SAGES has received a heartfelt message of support and encouragement. SAGES thanks their European sister society for such a gesture of friendship. The letter clearly illustrates what the human spirit is and how difficult times brings people together to join forces and overcome adversity.

Participants:

Drs. Horacio Asbun (Lead), Mohammed Abu Hilal, Jaap Bonjer, Nicolas Demartines, Nader Francis, Ho-Seong Han, Davide Lomanto, Salvador Morales, Andrea Pietrabissa, Aurora Pryor, Christopher Schlachta, Patricia Sylla, Eduardo Targarona, Suthep Udomsawaengsup

Other Surgical Societies/leaders are welcome to participate in future discussions. Please contact SAGES Executive Director, Sallie Matthews at sallie@sages.org if interested in being considered for participation.

General Disclaimer:

The following is intended to provide our members with information arising from the experience of our colleagues from Europe and Asia who experienced the pandemic first.  While the information provided is from very reliable sources, it is NOT evidence based data, since there was no time to test its validity on scientific grounds. It is merely an attempt to share practical advice based upon prior experience and current knowledge.

Did you find this information helpful?
Please consider joining SAGES or making a donation to the SAGES Education and Research Foundation so we can continue to bring content like this to the surgical community for free.