It’s been a full-on ten days for me, and I’m writing this on the plane home from an incredible SAGES conference in Long Beach, California. The breadth and depth of talks was truly inspiring and it gives me much pleasure to know that we are bringing so many talented SAGES members to the ASGBI Congress in May. The SAGES team will be delivering their excellent MIS in Emergency Surgery course on Sunday 11th May and they are also involved in multiple symposia, masterclass sessions and are an integral part of our hands-on training village for our residents. One of the best parts of the SAGES Congress, and one which strikes a chord with the ASGBI, is their incredible social programme where residents can “Meet the Leadership”, the President’s Gala Dinner and of course, The Main Event, which this year was at the Aquarium in Long Beach and had the traditional karaoke that SAGES are so famous for. I cannot wait to welcome them back in the UK in a couple of months time.
We have finally scored all abstracts for the Congress and you will all have received notifications by email. Congratulations to all those who will be joining us for ePosters, short oral presentations and the NELA, BJS and Moynihan Prize sessions. The standard this year has been very high and the prize sessions will be excellent.
The pre-Congress courses have also been released and if you want to sign up and join us then please do so on the Congress website.
There are also some interesting times ahead for us in the NHS. The Government have announced that NHS England is to be scrapped and that the NHS will come under closer Government control under the Department of Health and Wes Streeting. The Leng Review of Physician and Anaesthetic Associates is currently compiling evidence and will close on 30th March. If you haven’t submitted your experience or thoughts on PA/AAs, then please click HERE and have your say.
Finally, I would like to draw attention to an important piece of work from Professor Dileep Lobo from Nottingham. He is looking for surgeons and residents working in the UK to complete an anonymous survey on surgeon mistreatment and wellbeing. This is an important chance to voice your experience in the workplace and on your wellbeing and only took me 5 minutes to complete. I encourage everyone to get involved - use the QR code below or click HERE.
