-
Surgeons collective to improve outcomes for hernia patients
This may be some use to those seeking hernia surgeons, although it doesn’t appear to cover the UK.
-
5 Replies
-
One of the unique features of the ACHQC project is that surgeons log in their results and include exact brand names of meshes when used.
-
That’s good to know Dr. Towfigh, thank you. I have saved the link to the ACHQC page so that I can keep track of when this information becomes available to the public. I’m surprised though, that no surgeon, doctor, or educator has parsed through the data available to them as professionals and reported on the worst products. So that surgeons and patients can avoid them. Since nobody is removing the bad products, and surgeons keep using them. See the Aaron Stinson plug lawsuit. He had a plug implanted in 2015.
If the knowledge of the problems with plugs had been collected and reported maybe his surgeon would not have used it. Your advice has been to “trust your surgeon”. Harry Stinson did. Now he’s been harmed and his surgeon’s name is out there as the one who harmed him, along with Bard. It’s just how things look from outside.
The ACHQC work can fill in the gap that the device makers have left. Failure to warn. An open database, constantly tabulating results could have enormous impact. The device makers won’t be happy though. I will be surprised if the actual brand names of the products are actually shown to the public. Who knows though, I wish everybody involved the effort good luck.
topclassactions.com
Man awarded $500,000 over hernia mesh injuries
A federal jury in Ohio has awarded $500,000 to a man who argued he experienced injuries after a hernia mesh adhered to his insides.
-
-
I can’t reply to my own post so this will probably end up out of order.
Here is the actual list of “Surgeons of Quality”. Many of the big names are missing, but there are several that are recognizable.
One thing that comes out of the description of the program is that there is no mention of improving things for the patient. Calling out bad products for example. In the end it’s just another Certificate of Completion of taking a course and agreeing to supply data to the database. The database itself is still closed to the public. When they open up the data so that future patients can see which products and methods give the best results then it will have real value.
p.s. if you click “Remove Preview” then scroll down and post quickly the large annoying image will not show. You have to be quick though.
-
Thanks for the shout-out William. The ACHQC certainly seems like a good faith effort to make things better. But if you dig in to the details you find that there is not much substance there. Maybe things will improve as time goes on. This new “<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; color: var(–bb-body-text-color);”>Verified Surgeon of Quality” <font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”>program seems like more of a club that surgeons join, making a commitment to collect data and participate in the ACHQC meetings. And, of course, the corporate money is looming over it all, all device-focused. I’ll add some of the specific links </font>below<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”> and pull out some material.</font>
<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”>It </font>reminds<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”> me that one of the reason I chose my </font>implantation<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”> surgeon was </font>because<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”> he was part of a group that was offering training and certification in laparoscopic methods. Take the training course, get a certificate. It was active at the time but I think that it has faded away.</font>
https://www.prweb.com/releases/Abdominal_Core_Health_Quality_Collaborative_Celebrates_Hernia_Awareness_Month_With_New_Verified_Surgeon_of_Quality_Program/prweb19370242.htm#!<font color=”rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)” face=”inherit”>
</font>“ACHQC Verified Surgeons of Quality demonstrate a commitment to consistent entry of data in the ACHQC Registry and participation in ACHQC’s continuous quality improvement programs including the annual ACHQC QI Summit. Importantly, patients recognize that surgeons who focus on optimizing hernia surgical outcomes can provide an enhanced level of care.
…
Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative programs are supported by Foundation Partners Medtronic, BD-Bard, Integra LifeSciences, TELA Bio, Allergan Aesthetics, Ethicon, Inc., and W.L. Gore.”
-
My posts are out of order again so they make little sense if you just read down the page. So I’ll reply directly to the last one so it will stay in order.
Here is a page on the ACHQC web site that seems to describe what we, the patients, need. Unfortunately, everyone involved in the hernia repair business has a vested interest in not changing. The surgeons have many patients behind them that have the mesh that they chose and if they change to a new mesh or new method the patients can reasonably ask “what was wrong with the one you used on me?”
The device makers have millions of dollars in marketing promotions and also potential liability from lawsuits if they change. The patient can reasonably ask “if you knew that the product had problems why didn’t you tell me before my surgeon used it on me?”
All that’s left is to make the information freely (free is the key) available to patients who are trying to be informed about the dangerous surgery that they need.
The ACHQC implies that this collected information will soon be available. I have to imagine though that the sponsors, the device makers supplying the funding, will be nervous about what is shown. I wouldn’t be surprised if the specificity is dumbed down to all mesh products lumped together in to broad categories like “light weight” and “standard” mesh. What the patient needs is the brand names: 3D Max, Progrip, Ovitex, etc. So they can see the actual results and make a choice, just like buying a set of tires or a microwave.
It will be interesting to see how things develop. So far, the ACHQC is just a group of surgeons under the purview of the device makers, saying “we’re trying to make things better”. Without specific numbers though, the effort is of little use. I think also, that the whole thing could just be another research tool, plus promotion of mesh devices. It could just be a facade.</font>
“Public Reporting Public Reporting of ACHQC Data
COMING SOON
123,398 Enrolled Patients
462 Participating Surgeons”
https://achqc.org/data/public-reporting
-
Log in to reply.