Members 2024-25
Janindra Warusavitarne (Chair), Michel Adamina (Asst. Chair), Cihangir Akyol, Ben Barbanel (PPI Rep), Caterina Foppa, Dieter Hahnloser (ex-officio), Roel Hompes, Beatriz Martín-Pérez, Kapil Sahnan, Irshad Shaikh, Yegor Triliskiy (Guidelines and Y-ESCP Rep), Hagit Tulchinsky (ex-officio/Treasurer), Carolynne Vaizey (ex-officio/Secretary), Marko Zelic, Nicolas Avellaneda, Klaus Matzel (ESC Chair).
There were several demitting members this year and I wish them all the best, we thank them immensely for the contributions they have made to the committee. We welcome several new members - Ayca Gültekin, David Zimmerman, Jan Colpaert - and look forward to their contribution. We welcome Ben Barbanel who is the first patient representative of the education committee and provides a valuable contribution to the ESCP and its overall progress to improve patient representation in the ESCP.
Aims
The aims of the Education Committee remain unchanged:
- To deliver high-quality, contemporary education for surgeons in training and practice, and other allied healthcare professionals.
- To educate, disseminate and accredit to the highest standard in coloproctology across Europe.
We have been successful in delivering more face- to-face meetings in the past year. Collaboration with European societies and the development of the beyond Europe masterclass was a great success.
Thessaloniki 2024
The Educational Committee worked hard through to ensure an excellent programme. The sessions were received with very positive feedback. The pre-congress masterclass as always was a great success and the EBSQ preparation course was on its 2nd year since inception. The training village was also a great success and will continue in Paris 2025. The education programme was well received with a very high turnout and collaboration.
Resource Library
The website resource library is a great resource for all who are looking for information on related topics and this has been updated regularly with the diligence and persistence of Beatriz Martin.
Mentoring
The Mentors Sans Frontières programme supported by Johnson and Johnson which will commence this year allows junior surgeons to form networks early in their career. The programme developed by Frédéric Ris is unique and has had many applicants.
Campaign
Faecal incontinence month which was supported by Medtronic was launched in June 2025 as a focussed campaign with several prominent key opinion leaders presenting the latest data on the subject.
European Board of Surgery Qualification (EBSQ) in Coloproctology
In September 2024 and March 2025, the EBSQ face to face exams continued. The excellent organisation and coordination by David Zimmerman and Ayca Gültekin ensured that each of these was a great success. There were record number of candidates. The March exam was held in Barcelona, and this was well received with a very high number of candidates. Ayca commenced her role as co-secretary. Paris in 2025 will have the highest number of candidates.
The Turkish Society of colon and rectal surgery has extended their workshop on EBSQ preparation to encompass the entire Eastern region, and this is well received and further enhances the education provided for success in the EBSQ.
ESCP Fellowship Programme
The programme has been on hold, but not cancelled!
ESCP currently offers:
- Six-month Robotic Surgery fellowships
- 2 x three-month Functional/Pelvic Floor fellowships
- Korean Society of Coloproctology (KSCP) exchange fellowship
- Japanese Society of Coloproctology (JSCP) exchange fellowship
The robotic fellowships are now up and running and this has been very successfully coordinated by Irshad Shaikh. Several restrictions on fellowships based on language and nation-based registration has made this challenging and will be reviewed in the coming months. The pelvic floor fellowship is up and running and successfully managed by Kapil Sahnan.
Masterclasses
Please refer to the Regional Events Working Group report.
European School of Coloproctology (ESC)
Education and training all year around. Setting European standards. The ESC is working on several educational programs. Please refer to the ESC report.
UEG Collaboration
Inés Rubio-Pérez continues as the Education Committee representative at the UEG. Dieter remains the chair of ESSAT and sits on the council of the UEG.
Janindra Warusavitarne
Education Committee Chair
September 2025