{"id":168,"date":"2026-02-12T09:07:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T23:07:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/?p=168"},"modified":"2026-02-13T10:08:11","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T00:08:11","slug":"bridging-continents-highlights-from-the-54th-aagl-global-congress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/bridging-continents-highlights-from-the-54th-aagl-global-congress\/","title":{"rendered":"Bridging Continents: Highlights from the 54th AAGL Global Congress"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\n\t\t\tBridging Continents: Highlights from the 54th AAGL Global Congress \t<\/h1>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\"Bridging\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t

Held from the 8th – 12th November in Vancouver, Canada – the 54th global congress on Minimally Invasive Gynaecology was an event not to be missed. With the theme of precision, progress and the power of artificial intelligence (AI) – this brought together laparoscopic, robotic surgeons, innovators and leaders in this advancing technological space. The conference expanded our collective understanding of the role of AI – not just for the surgeon, but for the entire team and most importantly, the patient. There was a strong Australian presence with over 25 delegates from our Australian shores attending, presenting and representing!<\/p>\n\t\t\t

Pre-conference Workshops: A Strong Foundation<\/h3>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t

Day one launched with a wide scope of didactic sessions ranging from the cutting edge advances in fibroids to congenital anomalies in the complex paediatric surgical history. The afternoon continued with inspiring and powerful discussions into how to integrate robotics into your surgical practice. With practical speakers such as Dr Jamal Mourad (Mayo Clinic) – he gave us the inspiration, confidence and tools to aim to get off the ground transitioning from a predominantly laparoscopic based practice to incorporating robotics into your armamentarium.<\/p>\n

Day two commenced with a hands-on advanced suturing lab – targeted at MIGS Fellows to practice and consolidate their skills in a one-on-one environment with expert faculty, with varying port configurations, needle loading and knot tying. This was a session not to be missed! Following on from this the tone shifted to exploring human leadership in the world of AI. Led by Dr Cara King (Cleveland Clinic), this inspiring session highlighted the key parallels between the surgeon’s mindset and skills required for effective leadership in this advancing technological landscape.<\/p>\n

To top off an inspiring day, the evening concluded with the AAGL Foundation Awards where our very own Dr Amani Harris (SMIGS) was internationally recognised & awarded the prestigious Barbara S Levy AchieveHER Award. This award honours an exceptional female leader in MIGS. It is a testament to her strong leadership, mentorship and being a trailblazer in paving the way for future generations of female surgeons. Congratulations Amani!!<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n\t\t\t

Conference Highlights:<\/h3>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t

Day three commenced with a Med Talk exploring the transformative role of AI in video based operative reporting and the potential benefits of addressing blind spots in traditional documentation. Following this, our very own AGES Australasian Gynaecological Endoscopy and Surgery Society held an engaging panel exploring the latest in conservative surgical management of rectal muscularis endometriosis led by Dr Michael Wynn Williams (Aukland Hospital). A highlight that peaked particular interest from our international colleagues was the introduction of the Sydney Shave Technique – introduced by Dr Danny Chou (St George Hospital). The technique that employs laparoscopic reverse submucosal dissection principles as an innovative conservative approach to rectal muscularis endometriosis.<\/p>\n

The final day commenced with a full ballroom, attending the Panel of Original Innovators. Listening to Dr Malcom Munro’s efforts to introduce the EMIGS Syllabus as the standardised education platform for FMIGS, Dr Cara King’s groundwork and contribution to The Academy of Surgical Coaching and of course hearing Dr Marcello Ceccaroni’s engaging & entertaining video of his life’s work and establishing the International School of Surgical Anatomy – the excitement in the air was clearly palpable as we knew were standing on the shoulders of giants with endless possibilities for the future.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\"AAGL-004\"\n\t<\/figure>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\"AAGL-005\"\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t

Looking Ahead<\/h3>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t

The 54th Global Congress in MIGS was an exceptional event with a wide scope of opportunity for potential innovation & harnessing AI into the future of healthcare. Whilst exciting, we need to remain vigilant to the risk of overreliance and be aware of the rigorous regulatory frameworks that need to be instituted to ensure its safety, transparency and reliability. Here’s to Boston 2026!<\/p>\n\t\t\t

Author<\/h3>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
\nDr Akshara Shyamsunder
\nMBBS, MRMed, FRANZCOG, AGES
\nGynaecologist & Laparoscopic Surgeon
\nThe Royal Hospital for Women, Sydney\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Held from the 8th \u2013 12th November in Vancouver, Canada \u2013 the 54th global congress on Minimally Invasive Gynaecology was an event not to be missed. With the theme of precision, progress and the power of artificial intelligence (AI) \u2013 this brought together laparoscopic, robotic surgeons, innovators and leaders in this advancing technological space. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":72,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"full-width-container","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-168","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorised"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=168"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":218,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/168\/revisions\/218"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=168"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=168"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/february-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=168"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}