Welcome to the QE “Laparoscopic Skills for Gynaecologists” Course. This is a ‘hands-on’ course and the intention is that over two days, our intensive training programme will boost to your endoscopic skills and confidence.
Much work has gone into organization and the event would just not have been possible without the enthusiastic support of our partners in industry - Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Karl Storz UK, Gyrus International, Eschmann and Robert’s Surgical. They have all generously equipped the ‘skills stations’. Throughout the course their representatives will be continually available. Please use them for advice.
In recent years, huge progress has been made in our ability to employ laparoscopic techniques for gynaecologic surgery. Granted, there have been immense improvements in imaging systems, but of more significance has been the availability of better technology for coagulating and cutting tissue. Moreover, both these functions can now be fulfilled with single instruments. The Tripolar and Plasma Kinetic (PK) forceps, the Harmonic (ACE) Shears and the Laploop system will all be available for you to experience and practice. Having said that, traditional suturing is occasionally still a necessary skill, so we have devoted one whole session to this.
With respect to procedure related skills, we will have sessions dedicated to ectopic pregnancy, endometriosis and the latest techniques for laparoscopic hysterectomy.
Tissue removal is a recurring problem for endoscopic surgery. The removal of large organs through small incisions is both a challenge and an irritation. Whereas various bag systems have sufficed for the removal of ectopics, the plea for a simple, safe and reliable technique for laparoscopic hysterectomy remained long unanswered. That was, until the introduction of single use morcellators. You will be given ample opportunity to develop your skills with both bags and morcellators.
From the programme, you will see we have dedicated virtually the whole course to either skills training or live surgery. The time given to presentations has been kept to a minimum and these, where possible will be restricted to essential information and advice on how to develop technique. When researching training courses, a recurring complaint from delegates was “not enough time for practise”. This will not happen at the QE!
On a final note, we would also like to thank those who have contributed to the course working behind the scenes. To Maxine Grindley and her staff at the Medical Education Centre and to Barry Pike from Medical Photography, who has arranged the audiovisual link for the ‘live cases’.
We have also arranged dinner on Thursday. This will be at 7.00pm in the Trafalgar Tavern, on the Thames in the Greenwich Maritime World Heritage Site. Trafalgartavern.co.uk.
Details and directions can be found in the delegates’ bags and we hope all of you will be able to join us.
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Course June 2008 
