A Big Tent for Gastroenterologists: The Miller School at the Florida Gastroenterologic Society Annual Meeting
Summary
- Miller School digestive health and liver disease specialists occupy leadership positions in the Florida Gastroenterologic Society.
- At this year’s FGS meeting, Dr. Jodie Barkin and colleagues ran a hands-on endoscopy training laboratory.
- As FGS president, Dr. Barkin is guiding the organization’s advocacy efforts on behalf of patients and fellow providers.
Faculty from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine showed up in force at the 60th annual meeting of the Florida Gastroenterologic Society (FGS), which met September 12-14 in Orlando.
Professors and clinicians from the Miller School’s Division of Digestive Health and Liver Diseases gave talks and presentations, helped run the hands-on endoscopy lab and took on leadership roles in the FGS:
• Jodie Barkin, M.D., associate professor of digestive health and liver diseases, president of the FGS, speaker and endoscopy lab physician instructor
• Amar Deshpande, M.D., professor of digestive health and liver diseases, senior associate dean for medical education, chief of the FGS Education Committee and speaker
• Sunil Amin, M.D., associate professor of digestive health and liver diseases, endoscopy lab course co-director and instructor
• Fabian Emura, M.D., voluntary faculty member in the Department of Digestive Health and Liver Diseases and endoscopy lab physician instructor
• David Goldberg, M.D., associate professor of digestive health and liver diseases and speaker
• Gala Godoy Brewer, M.D., Miller School resident and educational competition participant
• Carol Antequera, D.Msc, P.A., UHealth—University of Miami Health System physician assistant and chair of the Advanced Practice Provider committee
“FGS is a tremendous asset to Florida’s GI community,” said Daniel Sussman, M.D., professor and chief of the Division of Digestive Health and Liver Diseases. “Division members played an active role at this year’s annual meeting, and I am humbled to work with such a fine group.”
Hands-On Endoscopy Training
Along with traditional presentations and lectures, one of the more unique aspects of the annual FGS meeting is the onsite endoscopy lab that offers participants hands-on training in clinical techniques.
“You can picture hundreds of people packed into a ballroom that becomes an endoscopy lab, with 25 stations run by faculty across the state who serve as station leaders,” said Dr. Barkin, who assumed the role of FGS president at this year’s meeting.
The lab teaches different skills and procedures in endoscopy, offering continuing education and a chance for clinicians to practice skills and learn new techniques.
“In gastroenterology, as in other fields, you’re trained during your fellowship on the procedures that are available at the time. But the field is ever-evolving and innovating, and so this is one of the premier ways to learn new techniques once you’re already in practice,” said Dr. Barkin.
Miller School faculty, including Dr. Emura and Dr. Amin, helped oversee the stations. Dr. Amin recruited physicians from across Florida to run stations for the FGS endoscopy lab. An expert in third-space endoscopy (TSE), he oversaw a station dedicated to TSE procedures POEM (peroral endoscopic myotomy) and ESD (endoscopic submucosal dissection).
Dr. Emura ran a station focused on improving endoscopic resections for polyp removal. He taught a technique to remove polyps that involves injecting a solution of saline and indigo underneath the polyp, then excising it using a wire snare and electrocautery.
“If we have a good technique to remove the entire polyp, we can prevent cancer development. If we don’t remove them completely, some of the polyp cells will remain in the colonic wall. Then, after three or four years, cancers can grow up,” said Dr. Emura.
A Growing Coalition for Florida GI Research and Practice
Once a modestly sized state society, FGS has grown significantly in recent years. The expansion is partly attributable to the increase in the number of Florida medical schools and a fast-growing, aging population. More growth means a more robust meeting.
“Twenty years ago, there were only a couple places in Florida that could recruit a big name in gastroenterology. Now you have very well-known people at multiple Florida medical schools. The more big names in the field, the more cache you have to run a more sophisticated meeting that is really academic,” said Dr. Deshpande.
Dr. Barkin said that the appeal and strength of FGS lies in its inclusive approach to GI practitioners.
“In Florida, things can get a bit niche. Practices are different and regional issues are different. But FGS provides a great opportunity for all these different players to interact,” said Dr. Barkin. “As we grow our tent in FGS, we have to make sure the society serves everyone’s needs: practicing physicians from a year to 40 years into practice, trainees at resident and fellow level, APP colleagues, nursing colleagues. We have a lot of different constituencies, but we’re one big, happy GI family.”
As president, one of Dr. Barkin’s key focus areas will be increasing the number of advanced practice providers (APPs) of nurse practitioners and physician assistants in FGS. He plans to establish an APP committee that will spearhead efforts to have dedicated APP programming at next year’s annual meetings.
Beyond clinical concerns, FGS serves an advocacy role for Florida gastroenterologists and their patients.
“We’ve lobbied on behalf of our patients and colleagues, working when there were potential cuts or restrictions proposed at the state level that we felt would negatively impact patient care. Some of these issues are on a state level, and for some we serve as part of a coalition lobbying nationally. But I think the key part is advocacy for our patients, our colleagues and our profession,” said Dr. Barkin.
Tags: Division of Digestive Health and Liver Diseases, Dr. Amar Deshpande, Dr. David Goldberg, Dr. Jodie Barkin, Dr. Sunil Amin, gastroenterology