Dr. Nitti: 32 new courses on tap at AUA 2019

With the AUA annual meeting quickly approaching, Victor W. Nitti, MD, chair of the AUA Office of Education, provided a snapshot of new course offerings and other AUA educational opportunities. He was interviewed by Barry A. Kogan, MD, of the Urology Times Editorial Council.

The AUA Office of Education courses are among the highlights of the AUA annual meeting for many of us. Can you tell us about any new courses this year?

This year the Office of Education will be offering 85 2-hour Instructional Courses, of which 30 are brand new. New courses will be available in all major areas of urology, including sexual and reproductive medicine, female pelvic medicine, reconstructive urology, lower urinary tract dysfunction, endourology, geriatric urology, public policy, new technologies, and urologic oncology. In addition, will be offering two new Hands-On Courses on office-based transperineal prostate interventions (including biopsy) and flexible ureteroscopy, for a total of six Hands-On Courses.

I imagine you repeat the courses that have had the most interest over the years. Which courses have attendees found to be most popular?

The most popular courses by number of attendees are in endourology (especially stone management), testosterone therapy, infertility update, prostate cancer (including treatment options and active surveillance), and robotic technologies.

The meeting is always pretty jam packed. What are the options for those who have conflicts for a given course? 

In 2019, we will have several ways to access the AUA Instructional Courses. The Live Course Pass is our traditional option, providing access to all 85 Instructional Courses. One can also choose the Course Pass Bundle that gives the same access to all live courses plus all online webcasts. Lastly, we will be offering a single-course ticket for those attendees who want to go to just one course. Access to the Instructional Courses can be purchased with meeting registration, through the mobile app, or at registration upon arrival in Chicago.

Next:What to do if unable to attend?Not everyone can make the meeting. For those stuck on call back home, are they able to access the information presented at the courses?

Content from the annual meeting will be available on AUAUniversity following the meeting. Some content will be open to everyone, while other content like the Surgical Video Library will be available to our members. The entire meeting content can be accessed through the AUA2019 Virtual Meeting product, which will be available for purchase within a week of the meeting.

Given the expense and time commitment of travel, many urologists are unable to attend many meetings. In addition to Self-Assessment Study Program and the Update series, can you tell us about the some of the newer offerings of the Office of Education? 

The AUAUniversity is an invaluable source of educational opportunities. In addition to those products you mentioned, the University offers the AUA Urology Core Curriculum, webcasts and podcasts that are constantly updated, surgical videos, and access to online materials from our annual meetings. In 2018, we completely revamped our online platform, giving our members easier access to all of the educational opportunities that we have to offer. The new AUAUniversity allows for easy search of materials by topic or by ABU lifelong learning categories.