AAGL Global Congress Update: General Sessions and Keynote Address
When planning the details of the AAGL Global Congress, the Scientific Program Committee must take many factors into consideration such as how to speak to the young surgeons as well as the experienced ones, how to educate on general topics and those that are more complex, and how to present the critical details and yet also inspire. Each course is carefully chosen for these purposes and none more so than our General Sessions. These sessions are truly the heart of our Global Congress and have been thoughtfully developed to make an exceptional impact in your personal and professional development.
We have five dynamic General Sessions this year, each packed with informative and thought-provoking content delivered through AAGL MED Talks, panels, and special lectures from experts in our field. Our Opening General Session kicks off in the late afternoon on Sunday, November 16, with a brief recognition of AAGL dignitaries followed by a captivating, 15-minute, “TED Talk style,” AAGL MED Talk by Michael Shu, titled What Defines a Gynecologic Surgical Mentor. We will then be treated to the Honorary Chair Address by the ever-inspiring Linda Bradley, who I have long considered one of my personal mentors, and what is certain to be a compelling Presidential Address by Michel Canis. Next, General Session II will feature a panel of AAGL greats, Alan Lam, Paya Pasic and Jose Carugno, who will discuss surgical complications …but with a twist. The focus of these presentations will be the impact of complications on the surgeon, which brings me to one of the highlights of our event, the Keynote Address by Dr. Patrice Weiss.
The title of our Keynote Address is “The Second Victim: Coping with Medical Errors.” I have had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Weiss speak on this topic and found it to be incredibly moving, inspirational, and helpful. It was such a powerful and defining experience that I chose to invite her to present this year’s address so you can each benefit from her wisdom and experience. We have often discussed what to do surgically when a complication occurs, but rarely have we reflected on the impact that a complication can have on us as surgeons, and how to cope with the personal aftermath.
Dr. Weiss received her medical degree from Hahnemann University (Drexel) School of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honorary Medical Society. She completed her residency at Lehigh Valley Hospital as well as a fellowship in academic leadership with the Council of University Chairs of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She became the Residency Program Director and Clerkship Director at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where she also became the first Medical Director of Risk Management for Lehigh Valley Physicians Group. She is a highly respected physician executive currently serving as the Chief Medical Officer of the Midlands and the Chief Academic Officer at Prisma Health Medical Group in Columbia, South Carolina, having served in a similar role for Carilion Clinic in Roanoke, Virginia, for over a decade. As Professor, Chair, and Residency Program Director of the Department of Ob/Gyn at Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, she was instrumental in establishing a system wide Second Victim and Disclosure program for all providers involved in medical errors and unanticipated outcomes. She was recently appointed as professor of clinical Ob/Gyn at Vanderbilt University Medical Center where she is actively involved in clinical care and teaching.
Dr. Weiss is past chair of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) Committee on Patient Safety and Quality Improvement and served on the Council on Patient Safety in Women’s Healthcare. In addition, she is a past member of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Ob/Gyn Residency Review Committee, a founding board member of the Society of Academic Specialists in General Ob/Gyn (SASGOG), and has served on the Board of Directors for the Association of Professors of Gynecology and Obstetrics (APGO). She is a former oral board examiner with the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ABOG) and participated in creating the recertification written exams.
Having published numerous peer-reviewed articles, and authored and edited several textbooks, she has been an invited speaker on multiple topics transformative to healthcare. When asked why she speaks on the topic of the second victim, Dr. Weiss empathizes that most, if not all, of us have been involved in a medical error or an unanticipated outcome. Some of these outcomes can impact us so negatively that we become a second victim. For some, the strain of this is so intense that they commit suicide or leave medicine. Other responses can include sleepless nights, self-doubt, and increased burnout. Identifying the symptoms of the second victim, developing organizational cultures that serve as resources of support, and developing the skills to address it, are critical to preserving the well-being of our families, our profession, and our emotional and mental health. As someone who has been a second victim, this is a topic that is shared not just from the podium, but from her heart.
Dr. Weiss will join attorney Adam Snyder to continue the second half of her talk on the medicolegal aspects of the second victim and will be available for questions in Panel 2: The Second Victim: Managing the Legal and Emotional Aspects Following a Complication.
Our next three General Sessions will cover topics such as surgical ergonomics, hysteroscopy, female sexuality, AI in surgery, and medical device innovation. In General Session III, Kim Kho and Dobie Giles will present the AAGL MED Talk, Strong Work: How a Work-Related Injury Made Me Whole. This will be followed by a presentation by Dr. Geeta Lal on Surgical Ergonomics, including common injuries and methods of prevention. Dr. Lal is a surgical oncologist and a trained surgical ergonomics coach whose personalized services are available through individual coaching sessions where she will analyze your unique surgical positioning to determine ways to improve your ergonomics and prevent injury, both inside and outside the operating room. For more information, please visit her website or see her in her booth in the Exhibit Hall. General Session IV brings us an engaging AAGL MED Talk on The Uterine Cavity: A Living Natural Reserve presented by Sergio Haimovich followed by a very special presentation on female sexuality by Debra Wickman titled Optimizing Sexuality Outcomes After Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery. In our final General Session, GSV, Assia Stepanian will guide us through the complexities of AI in surgery through her thought-provoking AAGL MED Talk, New Horizons of Surgical Intellect. Immediately following, we will be treated to a panel on innovation comprised of Eugene Skalnyi, Dominique Filloux, and Ali Behbahani. This panel, titled, Medical Device Innovation: Roadmap from Idea to the Operating Room with Roles and Contributions of Medical Professionals, will provide a comprehensive review and very helpful guide of the fundamentals of the medical device development process from idea to the operating room.
The 2024 Global Congress in New Orleans, Louisiana is just a mere 3 months away. After hearing more about what the General Sessions have in store for you, I hope that you will make your plans now to join us! The complete program is available on the Global Congress website along with registration, travel and hotel information, social events, family services, and more.
See you all soon in New Orleans!
