SLS Teaching the Latest in Minimally Invasive Surgery to Communities with A Need for Advanced, Efficient Medicine
Miami, FL—In response to a need for better quality medical care in developing countries, beginning next month SLS, the largest multi-disciplinary surgical society in North America, will introduce the latest in minimally invasive surgical techniques to communities around the world, as well as younger surgeons who can benefit the most from the newest research in surgical education. Minimally invasive surgery has been shown to minimize blood loss and hospital stay, which is even more important in countries with fewer resources.
“This is an opportunity for us as a society to present what we know to communities who cannot yet capture this kind of education because they lack the resources to attend worldwide medical meetings or come face to face with experts in our field, says Dr. Paul Wetter, chairman of SLS. “For the first time, we are going to them to teach the latest techniques in minimally invasive surgery.”
The SLS course, which will be called “Tips and Tricks in Minimally Invasive Surgery,” will be taught by academics from a variety of medical disciplines in Romania, Puerto Rico, Brazil and Columbia as a part of a ten-city tour that will also reach more industrialized nations such as China, as well as military bases in the United States. Primarily funded by SLS, the two day course will allow academic experts in general surgery, gynecology, urology and other disciplines to teach basic minimally invasive surgical (MIS) techniques, using the latest research, which will include specific, common conditions, how to avoid complications, pain, and complex surgical conditions.
“By doing on this, we are bringing a multi-specialty vision in minimally invasive surgery to the rest of the world,” says Dr. Maurice Chung, president of SLS, director of women’s health service, Van Wert County Hospital, Ohio and a professor at University of Toledo School of Medicine.
The course will also be developed for the military, with the first lecture at Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii. The six-hour course, which has not yet been advertised, has already attracted dozens of attendees and is scheduled for February 16th, 2016.
“Supplementing the training of these important institutions and for military based hospitals is important work,” says Dr. Richard Satava, a general surgeon and Professor Emeritus of Surgery at the University of Washington, Seattle, and a former senior science advisor at the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command. “They are targeting the younger generation of doctors—many that have fewer resources and the greatest need.”
The Society of Laparoendoscopic Surgeons (SLS), a 501(c)(3) organization, is the nation’s leading group of multi-specialty surgeons, including general surgery, urology, OB-GYN and others, SLS advocates for minimally invasive surgery and improved surgical outcomes for all these specialties. It is a voluntary, nonprofit membership organization of roughly 6,000 surgeons. www.sls.org