{"id":115,"date":"2025-06-04T10:06:48","date_gmt":"2025-06-04T00:06:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/?p=115"},"modified":"2026-06-25T11:21:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T01:21:55","slug":"presidents-message","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/presidents-message\/","title":{"rendered":"President’s Message"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\n\t\t\tFrom the President’s Desk\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t

Welcome to the winter edition of eScope. Over the past few months, I’ve been reflecting on how strong and connected our AGES community has become, and on the momentum we’re building together.<\/p>\n

The Auckland ASM in March really felt like a turning point for us. Bringing the ASM to Aotearoa, New Zealand, for the first time wasn’t just a change of scenery – it highlighted the depth of our trans-Tasman connection and the different perspectives that shape how we practise. It was a meeting that brought together experience, evidence, and cultural context in a way that felt both genuine and forward-looking.<\/p>\n

The feedback has been incredibly positive. What stood out for me was how open and engaged the discussions were, and how willing people were to share – successes, challenges, and everything in between. The final leadership session, in particular, clearly struck a chord with many. It was a good reminder that being a surgeon today is about much more than technical skill.<\/p>\n

I’d really like to acknowledge the Auckland Local Organising Committee – Dr Simon Edmonds, Dr Olivia Smart, Dr Prathima Chowdary, Dr Sarah Corbett, Dr Keryn Harlow, Dr Elliot Mackenzie, Dr Tarek Saleh, Dr Simon Scheck, and Dr Pip Walker. The meeting simply wouldn’t have been what it was without their hard work and commitment.<\/p>\n

One of the highlights of the ASM was the launch of the AGES Surgical Coaching Program. This is something we’ve been working towards for some time, and it’s exciting to see it up and running. Moving towards a structured, reflective approach to surgical improvement feels like an important step forward for our specialty. You can register your interest in becoming a coach or to find a coach through the AGES website<\/a>, or register directly with the Academy for Surgical Coaching.<\/a> You can also email the AGES Secretariat<\/a> with any questions.<\/p>\n

My sincere thanks to Dr Cara King from the Cleveland Clinic for her leadership and support, and to Dr Kate Martin and Dr Kirsten Connan – this programme exists because of their effort, persistence, and belief in its value.<\/p>\n

As part of our ongoing Governance review, the Board has approved a new AGES Board Election Policy this year. As the Society grows, it’s important that our governance keeps pace. A key part of this policy is setting clear boundaries for campaigning. We have deliberately limited electioneering to ensure a fair and level playing field – no unsolicited outreach, no third-party endorsements, and no negative campaigning. The aim is simple: elections are based on contribution and merit, not visibility or influence. The policy is available in the policy section of the AGES website.<\/p>\n

The Board is also currently reviewing the AGES Clinical Research Grant process. This is about making sure our funding programme is as strong, fair, and impactful as it can be. As part of this work, we’ve delayed the opening of the 2027 grant round. I appreciate this may be frustrating for some, but it’s important we take the time to get this right. We will share updated timelines and processes once the review is complete.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead, there’s a lot to be excited about. The upcoming AGES & UGSA Pelvic Floor Symposium in Melbourne (23-25 July 2026) is shaping up to be something special. It’s the first joint meeting of its kind and a great example of what we can achieve through collaboration.<\/p>\n

I thank Associate Professor Erin Nesbitt-Hawes and Dr. Supuni Kapurubandara for their leadership, as well as the broader team for organising the programme. I highly recommend attending what is shaping up to be our largest Pelvic Floor meeting to date.<\/p>\n

We’re also launching a new ASM Focus Meeting in October “Rise of the Machines” which examines AI and robotic surgery. These areas are rapidly changing how we practise, and it’s important we engage with them thoughtfully and critically. We’re excited to hold the meeting at a new venue: the Double Bay InterContinental in Sydney.<\/p>\n

And finally, none of this happens without the AGES secretariat. Mary Sparksman and the YRD team are the engine behind everything we do, and we are incredibly fortunate to have them.<\/p>\n

Thank you for your continued support, I’m looking forward to what lies ahead.<\/p>\n\t

\"\"<\/p>\nWarm regards,
\nDr Michael Wynn-Williams
\nPresident, AGES\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

eScope\u2019s winter edition highlights the successful Auckland ASM, the new Surgical Coaching Program, governance updates, and upcoming 2026 events focusing on collaboration and robotic surgery.<\/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-115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorised"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":226,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115\/revisions\/226"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/escope.ages.com.au\/july-2026\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}