Royal Australasian College of Surgeons

📅 Mark your calendars for the 93rd RACS Annual Scientific Congress (ASC) 2025, taking place from Saturday 3 to Tuesday 6 May at the International Convention Centre in Sydney (ICC, Sydney).

This prestigious event, themed 'Innovation, Precision, Excellence', will unite leading experts to share groundbreaking research and insights across diverse surgical disciplines, fostering an environment where cutting-edge techniques and scientific excellence can flourish.

The ASC offers a transformative experience for networking and reconnecting with peers, and provides a valuable opportunity to share experiences, exchange ideas, and forge new collaborations that shape the future of surgery.

📌Stay tuned for more information soon!

The Foundation for Surgery 2024 Supporter Survey has launched.

Your important feedback will assist the Foundation in raising essential funds to support many incredible initiatives and take steps towards a world where all children, families and communities can access quality surgical care when they need it most.

Take the survey: https://bit.ly/3ztz3PU

Join us for a night celebrating advanced surgical academic research excellence in Aotearoa New Zealand at the online presentation of the Louis Barnett Prize 2024.

Date: Thursday 19 September 2024
Time: 7 pm NZST
Register here: https://bit.ly/3XDQsP8

Hear from our keynote speaker Professor Angus Watson, Consultant Colorectal Surgeon at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness, Clinical Professor of Surgery at Aberdeen University and Councillor of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

Angus has spearheaded innovative initiatives including Surgical Boot Camp, where all core surgical trainees in Scotland take part in a highly valued skills course in Inverness. He is also passionate about running large clinical trials in the North of Scotland, most notably the NHS Scotland Colon Capsule Endoscope (CCE) programme. From a feasible trial in 2017, this diagnostic technology is now being used across the UK and has grown an international reputation.

In his presentation, Angus will share his experience working in conflict zones around the world including most recently in Ukraine and Gaza. Working for UK-Med, Angus helped to set up and operate in a Ukrainian field hospital only 30 km from the Russian border.

RACS members, it's nearly time. The ballot on the proposed updated Constitution opens next Tuesday (17 September).

The revised Constitution allows for the establishment of a skills-based governance Board, to be comprised of a majority of surgeons, and complemented by directors with specific skills to collectively oversee corporate governance, including finance and risk management. This will allow Council to focus on its core business of leading the development of professional standards, research, education and training, as well as its critical role in advocating on behalf of the profession to government.

Make sure you take the time to familiarise yourself with the proposed updates so you can confidently cast your vote: https://bit.ly/4ec3gm1

Today is R U OK? Day.

Today we focus on the power of connection and conversation to support wellbeing and mental health.

Doctors and health workers experience higher rates of depression and psychological stress than the general population. Working conditions, isolation and burnout can all contribute to poor mental health in the profession.

R U OK? Day encourages us to check in with colleagues and loved ones, fostering a culture where asking "are you okay?" is normal and can lead to meaningful conversations and real connections to support someone who is struggling.

It's also a timely reminder of the RACS Support Program, delivered by Converge International, which offers confidential support by an experienced counsellor or psychologist, for any professional or personal concerns.

Up to four free sessions are available annually to all RACS Fellows, Trainees, International Medical Graduates and their immediate family.

RACS Support Program: https://bit.ly/3AY4h21
Wellbeing Program: https://bit.ly/3B28zWp
RUOK? Day website: https://bit.ly/4d2vo9y

You can also complete the CPD-approved Surgeon Wellbeing eLearning module.

📚 Best wishes to all our dedicated Trainee and SIMG candidates as you tackle the Clinical/Viva segments of the Fellowship Examination this weekend!

Please be aware that there are a couple events in NSW/Sydney CBD:

📍 2024 NSW Local Government elections will be held on Saturday 14 September 2024
📍 2024 TCS Sydney Marathon will be held on Sunday 15 September 2024

Please allow travel time to get to the examination venues.

Meet Dr Sue Hui Ong, RACSTA Chair and final year General Surgery Trainee at Wellington Hospital. She's championing diversity, inclusivity, and support for Trainees. Her mission? To improve the Fellowship exam experience and ensure every Trainee thrives. Her leadership ensures Trainee voices are heard--advancing positive change in surgery.
bit.ly/4cTAoNy

This time next week (Tuesday 17 September), the ballot will open for voting on a proposed revised Constitution for the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

RACS President Associate Professor Kerin Fielding is encouraging members to support the future of the College by voting YES in the upcoming ballot.

The new Constitution allows for the establishment of a skills-based governance Board to underpin the future of the College.

The Board, to be comprised of a majority of surgeons and chaired by a RACS Fellow, will be complemented by directors with specific skills to collectively undertake fiduciary responsibilities including finance, audit, risk and high-level governance. The core business of RACS will be Council-led.

To be adopted, the proposed new Constitution requires a two-thirds majority vote in a Fellows’ ballot. Council issued a Notice of Resolution on 16 August, with voting running from 17 September to 18 October.

Associate Professor Fielding said College leadership has engaged in an extensive period of consultation with Fellows, specialty societies and other interested parties to ensure that the new Constitution is fit-for-purpose and meets the robust governance needs of a modern and financially stable organisation.

“The new Constitution addresses key concerns that were raised, chiefly the paramountcy of the surgical voice in guiding our College. My Council colleagues and I have shared this new version with a broad group of stakeholders, and I’m pleased to say that it has met with wide acceptance."

Please visit the website for further details and to view the new Constitution: https://www.surgeons.org/about-racs/about-the-college-of-surgeons/governance-committees/Proposed-governance-and-constitutional-changes

We are now accepting applications for the 2025 Rowan Nicks International Scholarship and Pacific Islands Scholarship.

🎓 The Rowan Nicks Scholarships and Fellowships are directed at qualified mid-career surgeons with the highest potential to lead in their specialties. They provide opportunities to candidates who demonstrate a high calibre in surgical ability, ethical integrity, leadership qualities, and a commitment to teach and promote high standards in the development of surgery in their country.

The Scholarship offers placement in a major hospital in Australia or New Zealand for a period of up to 12 months, and includes a return economy airfare, living allowance, and professional development opportunities whilst in country.

Find eligibility criteria, application forms and further information here: https://bit.ly/3AXTxkr

Applications close at 5:00pm (AEDT) on Monday 21 October 2024.

Images:

📷 Current Rowan Nicks scholar Dr Ravuama Raqisia, from Fiji, is in the neurosurgery unit at the Alfred Hospital with supervisor Dr Ron Jithoo until February 2025.

📷 Current Rowan Nicks scholar Dr Benjamin Thomas, from Papua New Guinea, joined the Concord Repatriation Hospital’s department of neurosurgery alongside supervisor Dr Prakash Damodaran. Dr Thomas will also rotate between Mater, Nepean, and Gosford Private Hospitals until February 2025.

📷 Previous Rowan Nicks scholar Dr Tika Ram Adhikari from Bhutan was placed in the Department of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery at John Hunter Hospital with supervisor Professor Kelvin Kong from October 2022 to September 2023.

The Australian Medical Association (AMA) and Doctors for the Environment (DEA) hosted a joint webinar on September 3, 2024, themed “Climate change and sustainability: Leadership and action from Australian doctors”. The webinar saw strong turnout from the medical community, with 146 participants in attendance.

The webinar featured presentations by a prominent roster of speakers, including Professor Steve Robson, AMA President; Professor Nicholas Talley, DEA President; Hon Ged Kearney, Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care and Professor Carolyn Hullick, Clinical Director, Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care.

A number of medical colleges including RACS also presented, sharing their initiatives on climate change mitigation and promotion of sustainability outcomes. Dr Ben Dunne, Chair of the Environmental Sustainability in Surgical Practice Working Party, presented on RACS’ current work. These include the embedding of sustainability in the RACS Strategic Plan 2022-24; incorporating sustainability into the curriculum and professional development; supporting and enhancing sustainability research and audits of operational sustainability within the College.

It was encouraging to hear about the excellent sustainability work being conducted by the various Australian medical colleges. RACS looks forward to continuing to work with policymakers, medical colleges, educators and researchers to advance the implementation of sustainability practices in the Australian healthcare sector.

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer for men in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. Around 3, 700 lives are tragically lost to prostate cancer every year in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand.

Prostate cancer develops when abnormal cells in the prostate, a small walnut-sized gland found only in men, grow uncontrollably and form a malignant tumour.

As part of their regular health check-up, we encourage all men over the age of 50 years of age, or 40 years if they have a family history of prostate cancer, to discuss with their GP about testing for prostate cancer.

This September let’s spread awareness about the importance of early detection and stand together in the fight against prostate cancer.

Register now for the ACT ASM 2024!

Co-convened by Dr Philip Chia and Dr Soon Lau, our 2024 theme, 'Surgical Synergy: Bridging Research to Practice' underscores our commitment to advancing surgical knowledge and practice.

📍 National Portrait Gallery, King Edward Terrace, Parkes, Canberra, ACT
📅 Saturday 23 November 2024
🕘 8:00am–5:00pm

Register: https://bit.ly/47kKVR2

Join us for the online presentation of the Louis Barnett Prize 2024 on Thursday 19 September at 7pm New Zealand Standard Time.

The award finalists will present their research at this standalone event before one is chosen as the 2024 winner and awarded the $2500 prize.

Attendees will also be treated to a presentation by Professor Angus Watson, Consultant Colorectal Surgeon at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness, Clinical Professor of Surgery at Aberdeen University and Councillor of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

The Louis Barnett Prize commemorates Sir Louis Barnett CMG, a pioneering surgical researcher, a founder of RACS and the first surgeon from Aotearoa New Zealand to become president of the College.

Register here: https://bit.ly/3AN0jJz

We hope you can join us for a night celebrating academic research excellence by Aotearoa New Zealanders.

Registrations are now open for the ACT ASM Dinner on Saturday 23 November.

Join us after the ASM at Canberra's iconic Lanterne Rooms for inventive South-East Asian dishes with "A-ma" (grandma) soul.

📍Lanterne Rooms, Iskia building, 139/81 Constitution Ave, Campbell, ACT
📅 Saturday 23 November 2024
🕡 6:30pm–9:00pm

Register: https://bit.ly/3z55rbw

Dr Nicholas Candy, a Neurosurgery Trainee, used the 2023 RACS Roy and Marjory Edwards Research Scholarship to advance his PhD on fluorescence-guided surgery targeting pituitary tumours. His research uncovered more than 2000 differentially expressed proteins, offering potential for enhanced surgical precision. Now, back in training, he’s eager to apply these findings.

Dr Nicholas Candy, recipient of the Roy and Marjory Edwards Research Scholarship Dr Nicholas Candy, a Neurosurgery Trainee and recipient of the 2023 Roy and Marjory Edwards Research Scholarship from the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS), highlights the invaluable support provided by the scholarship.

Fellows, Trainees, SIMGs, as well as all medical professionals and those interested in climate change and sustainability are invited to attend the AMA-DEA Webinar “Climate change and sustainability: Leadership and action from Australian doctors”.

Join Dr Ben Dunne, Environmental Sustainability in Surgical Practice Working Party Chair at RACS; Professor Carolyn Hullick, Clinical Director at the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare and representatives from a number of Colleges as they present on their organisations’ ongoing efforts to reduce the impact of emissions in the healthcare sector.

Date: Tuesday, 3 September 2024
Time: 7-9 pm AEST
Register here: https://bit.ly/4e2Yoin

Don't miss Fast Track to Private Practice in Brisbane this November – your one-day, one-stop guide to private practice excellence.

Join industry experts and consultant speakers as they guide you through the practical aspects of setting up in private practice while fellow surgeons share their own personal experiences and help you understand what has and hasn’t worked for them and why.

For more information, please contact [email protected].

Date: Saturday 16 November
Time: 8:30am–5:00pm
Venue: 14 Stratton St, Newstead, QLD
Cost: $100
Register here: https://bit.ly/3yMvV1y

RACS welcomes move to secure more IV fluid amid shortages.
The Australian Government has announced it has secured the supply of an extra 22 million IV fluid bags to address high demand amid a nationwide shortage.
Dr Christine Lai, Councillor and Chair of the RACS Professional Standards and Fellowship Services Committee, has been active in advocating on behalf of surgeons and patients on the saline shortages, which threatened to make worse already long surgical waitlists by causing delays or cancellations. Dr Lai previously welcomed efforts by the Therapeutics Goods Authority (TGA) to alleviate the impacts of the shortage, including the approval of several overseas-registered alternative saline fluids.
“However, this needs to be the first step in a nationally coordinated strategy that is informed by healthcare professionals,” Dr Lai said.
“The government needs to clearly communicate how it is addressing the current situation to clinicians and the healthcare sector and develop a comprehensive strategy to ensure medicines supply at all stages of the pipeline. Longer-term, we should consider the development of onshore medical manufacturing to insulate Australia from future medicine supply shortages.”
Read more: https://www.surgeons.org/News/Advocacy/RACS-calls-for-national-strategy-on-intravenous-fluid-products-shortage

RACS is proud to be a platinum sponsor of bringing together researchers, clinical practitioners and health workers investigating and treating chronic ear disease in Australia.

Join us for the online presentation of the Louis Barnett Prize 2024 on Thursday 19 September at 7pm New Zealand Standard Time.

The award finalists will present their research at this standalone event before one is chosen as the 2024 winner and awarded the $2500 prize.

Attendees will also be treated to a presentation by Professor Angus Watson, Consultant Colorectal Surgeon at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness, Clinical Professor of Surgery at Aberdeen University and Councillor of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

The Louis Barnett Prize commemorates Sir Louis Barnett CMG, a pioneering surgical researcher, a founder of RACS and the first surgeon from Aotearoa New Zealand to become president of the College.

Registration details will be available soon. We hope you can join us for a night celebrating academic research excellence by Aotearoa New Zealanders.

A portrait of RACS past-President Dr Sally Langley now hangs proudly in our Council Room.

Dr Langley was the College's second female President, serving from May 2021 until May 2023, before passing the torch to incumbent A/Prof Kerin Fielding.

Welcome to the wall of Presidents, Dr Langley!

For Dr. Maia Tipene, a first-year house officer in Aotearoa New Zealand, the Māori concept of tuakana-teina—mentorship between the experienced and inexperienced—shapes her medical career. Rooted in tradition and modernity, this value fosters strong connections and guidance, enriching her journey from medical school to her current surgical practice.
https://bit.ly/3YVlNhz

📅 Join us for our September Educator Studio Session featuring A/Prof Caroline Dowling on the topic 'Unaccredited Specialty Surgery "Training", the impact of the ‘pre-SET’ years'.

Many PGY3+ doctors spend more than two years in clinical and research posts accruing ‘points’ before applying for selection to surgical training. This group has become vulnerable to exploitation as there is no formal oversight of their progress.

📝 Our questionnaire-based study presented at RACS ASM 2024 in Christchurch aimed to assess the impact of these circumstances for unaccredited plastic, orthopaedic, ENT, urology, and vascular surgical registrars (USRs) in Australia.

In this session we will go through the findings of the study and explore ways to improve the process, from selection onwards, to ensure fairness while maintaining quality.

📃 More information: https://bit.ly/3SpXkvB
💻 Register: https://bit.ly/4dtC5m6

Our latest issue of Surgical News has articles on governance reform, groundbreaking research, health equity, RACS policy on breastfeeding, and much more.
Read the full issue: https://bit.ly/457FGRY

📅 Registrations are now open for the 4th South West General Surgery Conference to be held in Bunbury, Western Australia from 22–24 November 2024.

The conference theme of 'Learn. Share. Transcend' seeks to create a vibrant platform for surgical professionals, researchers and educators to share knowledge, explore innovative practices and discuss the latest advancements in the field of General Surgery.

Register now via the link in our bio.

RACS WA had the privilege of hosting the RACS WA, SA & NT Tristate Annual Scientific Meeting 2024 in the stunning landscape of Broome from 1–3 August, 2024.

Conveners, Assoc. Prof. Ming Yew and Dr. Sharon Lee, crafted a comprehensive program that facilitated critical discussions with key stakeholders in the room on the theme of Culture, Accountability and Diversity.

🙏🏽Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to this enriching experience. We look forward to continuing these essential conversations and driving forward progress in the years to come.

🙏🏽We are grateful to our valued sponsors, whose support was integral to the success of this meeting.

Today is Daffodil Day.

Each year, Australians across the country come together to support people diagnosed with cancer and help fund lifesaving breakthroughs in research.

Every dollar raised through Daffodil Day goes towards important cancer research conducted and funded by the Cancer Council.

You can show your support by donating, sending an e-card or buying daffodils at a store near you.

Find out more: https://bit.ly/3Ar6GlC