AAGL appoints Inovus Medical as exclusive partner for EMIGS
Posted by Helen Hanson. 1st December 2022
AAGL appoints Inovus Medical as exclusive equipment partner for EMIGS national training and testing program
Inovus Medical, the global surgical training technology business, has been appointed as exclusive partner by the American Association of Gynecologic Laparoscopists (AAGL) for the manufacturing and delivery of the equipment for the Essentials in Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery (EMIGS) program. The partnership was announced during the Business Meeting at the 51st Global Congress on MIGS held at Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center Centre in Colorado.
The EMIGS validated Training and Testing program, which has been under development for nearly ten years, was approved for use by the American Board of Obstetrics & Gynecology (ABOG) as an alternative to the current Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS) examination to meet the standards for board eligibility.
According to Nash S. Moawad, MD, Chair of the AAGL EMIGS Steering Committee:
EMIGS is the culmination of ten years of dedication by a team of expert educators so committed to advancing MIGS that they were driven to create this exceptional training and standardized testing platform. While the FLS will still have its place, EMIGS addresses the complexities of minimally invasive gynecologic surgery, in particular and will now be the standard for qualifying MIGS surgeons.
The EMIGS program includes an online Didactic course and a Cognitive exam as well as a series of Manual skills tasks specifically designed to develop and test minimally invasive gynaecologic surgical (MIGS) skills. The partnership with Inovus Medical will initially focus on the manufacturing and delivery of the equipment for the laparoscopic skills portion of EMIGS. The hands-on laparoscopic curriculum will be delivered using the LaparoBowl modular platform. The LaparoBowl is designed to simulate operating in the female pelvis and can be utilized with most laparoscopic box trainer systems. EMIGS includes 5 laparoscopic tasks that are performed in the LaparoBowl pelvic environment.
We are all very proud of this historic achievement, and grateful to partner with Inovus Medical to assist us in getting EMIGS into the hands of the OBGYN residency community.
As a leading manufacturer of surgical training technology and with a host of manufacturing modalities available at the company’s UK based manufacturing plant, Inovus will be providing all manufacturing and logistics support for the LaparoBowls as part of the exclusive agreement. An initial roll out of LaparoBowls in 250 residency program sites across the USA is already underway. Following initial roll out, Inovus’ USA based team will work to support all 250 programs to extend the local adoption of the hands-on skills tasks, scaling the delivery of the EMIGS program across the country.
The appointment of Inovus Medical as a partner to the program comes just months after the company expanded its direct commercial operations across the USA. The national coverage offered by Inovus will ensure all 250 residency programs will receive expert support as they integrate the EMIGS curriculum into their programs.
AAGL Executive Director, Linda Michels said:
We chose Inovus Medical because of their innovative perspective to training and testing, and we felt that they would be a strong partner to assist now and in the future.
Elliot Street, MD, Co-Founder and CEO of Inovus Medical said:
We are extremely proud to be announcing our exclusive partnership with AAGL for the delivery of the EMIGS equipment across the USA. This partnership is a major step towards Inovus Medical’s mission of becoming the world’s partner for surgical training. I want to take this opportunity to thank the AAGL Board of Directors and EMIGS steering committee for putting their trust in our team to deliver the future of MIGS training across North America.
About AAGL and ABOG
AAGL is the premier global association in minimally invasive gynecologic surgery (MIGS) with membership of over 6,500 physicians across 110 countries. ABOG defines standards and provides certification to obstetricians and gynecologists (OB GYNs) in the United States and Canada. Both organizations seek to facilitate ongoing training in best practices and systemize the qualifications of physicians to ensure the highest quality of healthcare for women.