Helen Joseph tackles urogynaecology backlog

Helen Joseph Hospital is now ready to address urogynaecology surgical issues without having to call in specialists.

Hospital staff members and registrars from Johannesburg, as well as Pretoria, attended a two-day workshop from 14 to 15 August which included a mock exam and live procedures.

Discussions, lectures and live cases were handled by Doctor Frans van Wijk of the University of the Witwatersrand urology department, Stephen Jeffery of the University of Cape Town and Professor Ahmed Adams of Wits and the Helen Joseph Hospital urology department.

Adams said the department has been trying to address the female incontinence surgery backlog.

“We have a waiting list which I think has been growing for a while now,” said Adams.

He explained that the hospital usually calls in experts in the field when they are presented with more intricate incontinence cases.

This time around one such expert, Doctor Stephen Jeffery, who is an urogynaecology and pelvic floor reconstruction specialist, was called in to equip surgeons with the knowledge to perform the surgeries.

Jeffery said the visit was not only about surgery, but also to raise awareness about female incontinence as well as to destigmatise it.

“They [patients] are very embarrassed to talk about it. They wear pads and pantyliners, they don’t want to go out. It’s [treated] as quite a bit of a secret so we’re trying to destigmatise it,” Jeffery explained.

In addition to receiving expert tips, the hospital received equipment to carry out surgeries from Boston Scientific. Other sponsors of the workshop included Wits, Storz and Medtronic.

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