Overview

Whilst advances in reproductive medicine has created scope and diversity in treatment options, it has also increased patient expectation. Multidisciplinary team working is therefore essential for the delivery of integrated quality patient care. Fertility nurses and midwives provide a holistic approach to patient care, from investigation to first- and second-line treatments. Specialist roles encompass donor insemination, egg donation, surrogacy arrangements, in addition to management of early pregnancy, and recurrent implantation failure/miscarriage.  

Increasing responsibility and the extended role of fertility nurses and midwives requires excellent communication skills with both patients and the wider multidisciplinary team (clinicians, scientists, administrative and counselling colleagues) in addition to specialist teams (oncology, gynaecology, endocrinology) as appropriate. Living with infertility has been likened to that of bereavement, therefore the psychological support of patients throughout their fertility journey is paramount. 

This unique MedEA program is CME accredited and provide continuous professional development (CPD) credits which meet the requirement for assessment and competency in professional practice in accordance professional nursing standards.  

The scientific program will be chaired by experts in the field, linking specific knowledge and evidence-based research findings which informs clinical practice.  

Learning Objectives

Target Audience

Nurses and midwives working in fertility or early pregnancy settings who wish to update their knowledge of advanced techniques and scientific innovations, and their understanding of best practice using evidence-based models of care.

Nurses & Midwives working in fertility settings

Nurses & Midwives working in early pregnancy settings

Trainee Embryologists

The content of this activity is not intended for nurses and midwives practicing in Italy.

Accreditation

This webinar has been accredited by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) until 24th August 2023 – Accreditation applies only to the educational content and not to any product. The RCN cannot confirm the competence of any practitioner.

 This program has been accredited by the European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (EACCME®) for a maximum of 3 European CME credits (ECMEC®s).

Language

The official language of the online workshop will in English. Simultaneous translation in French, Spanish and German will be provided for the live session.

Partnership

Virtual Workshop for Fertility Nurses & Midwives

Improving implantation potential and outcome in ART

Held on 14 October 2022
Free On-demand and E-learning

Language

The official language of the online workshop will be English. Simultaneous translation in FrenchSpanish and German will be provided for the live session.

Accreditation

This program has been submitted for CME accreditation to EACCME® (European Accreditation Council for Continuing for Medical Education). Accreditation is through the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) RCN Accredited until 24th August 2023 - Accreditation applies only to the educational content and not to any product RCN cannot confirm competence of any practitioner.

Format

The virtual workshop will consist of 6 lectures on 4 topics with recurring theme (improving implantation potential). During the live session, participant will be able to participate to the poll questions and ask questions for the discussion.

Chair

Valerie Peddie

Aberdeen Centre for Reproductive Medicine
Institute of Applied Health Sciences
School of Medicine, Medical Sciences, Nutrition
University of Aberdeen Aberdeen Maternity Hospital Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom
Biography

Co-Chairs

Carlo Alviggi

Federico II University
Naples, Italy
Biography

Sandro C. Esteves

Androfert - Andrology and Human Reproduction Clinic
Campinas, Brazil
Biography

Helen Kendrew

CARE fertility Bath
Bath, UK
Biography

Robert Fisher

Fertility Centre Hamburg
Hamburg, Germany
Aarhus, Denmark
Biography

Peter Humaidan

Fertility Clinic, Skive Regional Hospital
Faculty of Health, Aarhus University
Biography

Faculty

Chris Barratt

University of Dundee
Scotland, UK
Biography

Eline Dancet

University of Leuven
Leuven, Belgium
Biography

Sandro C. Esteves

ANDROFERT - Andrology & Human Reproduction Clinic
 Campinas, Brazil
Biography

Robert Fischer

Fertility Centre Hamburg
Hamburg, Germany
Biography

Rachel Gregoire

Hewitt Fertility Centres
Liverpool, UK
Biography

Peter Humaidan

Skive Regional Hospital and Faculty of Health
Aarhus University
Fertility Clinic Skive, Denmark
Biography

Helen Kendrew

CARE Fertility
Bath, UK
Biography

Valerie Peddie

Aberdeen Centre for Reproductive Medicine
University of Aberdeen
Scotland, UK
Biography

Scientific Program

Agenda

Chair

· Valerie Peddie ·

I have been involved in Fertility Nursing since 1993 and chaired of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Midwifery & Fertility Nurses Forum from 2008-2011. I currently hold the position of Nurse Consultant, Fertility Preservation (NHS Grampian), member of the European Society of Human Reproduction & Embryology (ESHRE) Nurses & Midwives Certification Committee and Editorial Board (Human Fertility) in addition to peer reviewer for several fertility and oncology related journals. Overall, I have a specialist interest in exploring reproductive potential and decision-making within a variety of settings – including oncology – contributing to the RCN clinical professional resource ‘Fertility Preservation’ (2017). I have designed analysed and published numerous applied qualitative and clinical studies in reproductive health care, written several book chapters, and continue to support the Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen in providing teaching sessions in Fertility and Reproduction for 3rd Year Midwifery Students.
MSc; BA (Hons); ADM; RM; RGN

· Carlo Alviggi ·

Carlo Alviggi earned his MD degree in 1994, from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Naples “Federico II” in Naples, Italy; he specialized in obstetrics and gynaecology in 1998, and gained a PhD in 2001, from the same university. During his career, he collaborated with: The Imperial College of London, in London, UK; the Laboratory of Immunology of the Italian National Research Council in Naples; and the Autoimmunity and Tolerance Laboratory of the University of California in Los Angeles, CA, USA. This network resulted in various publications, some of which concern new hypotheses on the pathogenesis of pelvic endometriosis. He is now an associate professor in reproductive medicine at the Fertility Unit of the University of Naples “Federico II”. Professor Alviggi’s current research interests are the role of luteinizing hormone (LH) in folliculogenesis; the use of LH-containing drugs in patients undergoing ovarian controlled stimulation for IVF; the pathogenesis of pelvic endometriosis; oncofertility; reproductive endicrinology and the genetics of human reproduction. He has participated in several national and international (phase 2 and 3) multicentric, prospective randomized trials. Professor Alviggi has published extensively and has been invited to lecture at over 200 international meetings dealing with reproductive medicine and gynaecological endocrinology; he is also starter and co-founder of the Poseidon group, an international collaborative network dedicated to low prognosis patients in Assisted Reproductive Technology and vice-President of the “Società Italiana di Fertilità e Sterilità – Medicina della Riproduzione”.

· Sandro C. Esteves ·

Sandro Esteves, MD., Ph.D. is a board-certified urologist and consultant in assisted reproduction with over 25 years of clinical experience in all areas of reproductive medicine, with specialization in male reproduction.

He is listed by Expertscape among the top three world experts in the areas of male infertility, azoospermia, varicocele, and sperm retrieval techniques. Sandro has been also included in the list of the world’s most influential scientists.

He is the Founder and Medical Director of the ANDROFERT Andrology & Human Reproduction Clinic, in Campinas, Brazil. Dr. Esteves established the first Brazilian Fertility Clinic with a primary focus on male infertility, as well as the very first to introduce quality management as per the ISO 9001 standards and IVF cleanroom technology (ISO 14644-1).

Sandro is also a Collaborating Professor of Urology at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP, Brazil) and Honorary Professor of Reproductive Medicine at Aarhus University (Denmark). Dr. Esteves received his Master’s in Surgery from the University of Campinas Medical School and his Ph.D. in Urology from the Federal University of São Paulo Medical School. His post-doctoral training was at the American Center for Reproductive Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic in the United States. He has received many research grants and awards from national and international societies.

Prof. Esteves is the author of 10 textbooks in the fields of infertility and reproductive medicine. He was also the co-editor of several Journal Supplements and has published over 400 hundred scientific papers in journals like Lancet, Nature, Human Reproduction Update, Human Reproduction, Fertility and Sterility, etc. His current Hirsch index (h-index) is 63 while his citation count is over 12K. He is a member of ‘Faculty Opinions’ in the area of reproductive endocrinology & infertility. Dr. Esteves is Associate Editor of Frontiers in Endocrinology (Reproduction), Andrology, International Brazilian Journal of Urology, Regional Editor of the Société Internationale d’Urologie Journal, an editorial board member of Nature Reviews Urology, and a dozen of other peer-reviewed scientific journals. He is also a co-founder of the POSEIDON group and currently serves as a Chair of the Male Infertility Section of the WHO Infertility Guidelines Development Group.

Dr. Esteves is a very much requested speaker and presents over 50 lectures annually. He also regularly conducts infertility workshops, provides consulting services in the area of quality management for ART Clinics,

· Helen Kendrew ·

Helen Kendrew is the Clinic Director at CARE Fertility Bath. She has worked at the clinic in Bath for over 20 years and is a registered nurse with wide experience in the field of fertility. As well as supporting and caring for patients going through treatment she has held a number of professional committee posts including the British Fertility Society, the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and the NICE Fertility Guideline Development Group.

“We always strive to offer our patients the best chance of creating their family”.

· Robert Fischer ·

Robert Fischer is the founder and Medical Director of the Fertility Center Hamburg (FCH) in Hamburg, Germany. Dr Fischer trained in obstetrics and gynaecology at the University Hospital of Münster, Germany, from 1979 to 1982 and at the Queen’s Medical Centre, University of Nottingham, UK. In 1983, Dr Fischer pioneered the first German outpatient IVF unit in Hamburg and became its Medical Director. The unit moved to a new location in 1998, and its name was changed to the “Fertility Center Hamburg”.

In July 1998, the Fertility Center Hamburg was one of the first centres, both in Germany and worldwide, to introduce quality management, and it was certified according to the ISO 9001 and accredited for IVF laboratories (ISO 17025). Dr Fischer’s main research interests are in the development of stimulation protocols, luteinizing hormone supplementation, and gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist triggering, as well as further development of quality management systems in IVF centres. He is a founding member of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE); a founding member of the POSEIDON (Patient Oriented Strategies Encompassing IndividualizeD Oocyte Number) group);  Member of the  Scientific Committee of Excellence in Medical Education (EXCEMED- formerly the Serono Symposia International Foundation) and Scientific director of  Med.E.A.( Medical Education Academy)

· Peter Humaidan ·

Professor Peter Humaidan is a specialist in reproductive endocrinology, professor at The Fertility Clinic Skive Regional Hospital, Aarhus University, Denmark and Honorary professor at Odense University, Denmark. During his scientific work he has primarily focused on developing individualized treatment protocols for the infertile patient. His doctoral thesis (DMSc) explored the role of LH during the follicular and luteal phases in controlled ovarian stimulation. His main fields of interest are triggering of ovulation with GnRH agonist, role of LH during the follicular and luteal phases, role of the female genital tract microbiota for reproductive outcomes, OHSS prevention, and role of sperm DNA fragmentation for spontaneous and assisted reproduction. He is the founder of the international society “The Copenhagen GnRHa Triggering Workshop Group” who introduced the GnRHa trigger in modern IVF, changing trigger policies worldwide. Moreover, he is co-founder of the POSEIDON group which suggested a new stratification of the poor responder patient, and a past board member of the ESHRE SIG Endocrinology Group. He is in the Elsevier, Stanford global list of 2% top scientists, and he authored and co-authored 250 + articles (H-index 67, Google Scholar) in international peer reviewed journals as well as chapters in textbooks and the Danish guidelines for OHSS prevention. Peter Humaidan has a wide international scientific network and is frequently invited as a speaker at international conferences. 

· Christopher Barratt ·

Professor Barratt is Head of the Division of Post Graduate Medicine at the Medical School,  Head of the Reproductive Medicine Group at the University of Dundee as well as a clinical scientist (Hon) with NHS Tayside. He graduated with an Honours degree in Zoology and then completed a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (University of Wales, Swansea). His PhD, also in Zoology, was under the supervision of Jack Cohen at the University of Birmingham.

His formative post-doctoral studies and ART experience was gained at the University of Sheffield [with Ian Cooke] where they specialized in natural cycle IVF. From 1997-2005 he was the Scientific Director of the ART Centre at the Birmingham Women’s Hospital.

Professor Barratt has been awarded a number of honours for outstanding contributions to the discipline e.g. Young Andrologist of the Year, the Professor Sir Robert Edwards keynote lecture at ESHRE. He was awarded a DSc from University of Birmingham and has a h index of 54 (Scopus 2021). Professor Barratt is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

He is a regularly invited speaker at national and international scientific conferences/workshops. He was a member of the WHO Male Fertility Semen Analysis Taskforce (for both the 4th and 5th editions) and director of the WHO (2012-2017) Male Fertility Expert Working Group which devised a new system for the diagnosis and treatment of the infertile male. He was a member of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority for 6 years until 2009.

Professor Barratt has been appointed to editorial board of WHO for development of new Semen Analysis manual (6th edition, publication date late 2021). He recently published the global WHO guidelines for semen reference ranges.

He has been on the Editorial Board of Human Reproduction, Human Fertility, Biology of Reproduction, Human Reproduction Update, Journal of Andrology and was Editor-in-Chief of Molecular Human Reproduction  from 2013-2018. Currently he is a member of the Editorial board of Physiological Reviews.

Professor Barratt is coordinating the Global Initiative on Male Reproductive Health.

His life’s ambition is to see – live – Wales comprehensively beat the All Blacks.

· Eline Dancet ·

Eline Dancet has worked as a fertility midwife and currently holds a full time postdoctoral research fellowship of the Research Foundation Flanders (Belgium). Eline is developing and evaluating patient-driven fertility care interventions at the Universities of Leuven (Belgium) and Amsterdam (the Netherlands). She teaches and empowers Master and PhD-students. The PhD thesis of Eline focused on ‘Bridging the gap between evidence based and patient-centered fertility and endometriosis care’. This thesis was defended in 2012 as a joint degree of the Leuven University (Belgium) and the Radboud University of Nijmegen (The Netherlands). Eline has received an ‘ESHRE nurse/midwife award’ and has been a board member of the ESHRE paramedical group. Eline is currently co-ordinator of the steering committee of the ESHRE Nurses and Midwifes certification.

· Rachel Gregoire ·

Rachel has worked in the field of embryology for 23 years, starting her clinical training at Ninewells Hospital, Dundee Scotland where she completed a PhD in Developmental Science focusing on glucose metabolism in late human embryonic and fetal development. In 2008 she moved to the Hewitt Fertility Centre Liverpool, one of the UK’s largest assisted conception providers, as Senior and then Lead Clinical Embryologist. In 2014 she worked with Glasgow Royal Infirmary as a Consultant Embryologist and HFEA Person Responsible where she led the scientific service in delivering cutting edge techniques and achieved a significant improvement in clinical and laboratory success rates. In 2017 Rachel returned to the Hewitt Fertility Centres in Liverpool and Knutsford as the Scientific Director and HFEA Person Responsible, where she continues to strive for excellence in laboratory techniques, and in clinical and laboratory success rates. The Hewitt Centres are leaders in the provision of training for future Reproductive Scientists and currently support both Andrology and Embryology students through their clinical training.  

Rachel is passionate about the training and professional development of Reproductive Scientists, supporting the academic and clinical Reproductive Scientists of the future, and is Co-Chair for the Association of Reproductive and Clinical Scientists (ARCS) Education SIG who develop and provide all training opportunities available for the ARCS membership. Rachel is also Deputy Chair of ARCS and a mentor for Laboratory Directors and HFEA Persons Responsible in the UK.